All companies have a vested interest in being seen to do good. They also work within the framework of society and that framework is shifting. In order to find their space, they need to show a flexibility few have previously demonstrated. If we call this framework capitalism, and what supports it consumerism, then the framework’s biggest challenge is, without doubt, the climate crisis. As the environmentalist, George Monbiot says; in a system, where oil companies who have produced 35% of…
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In their annual, grim unveiling, the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists have announced that their ‘Doomsday Clock’ has moved forward to 100 seconds to midnight. This is the closest the scientists have judged the world to catastrophe since its inception, in 1947. Mary Robinson, chair of the The Elders and former president of Ireland, said: “The world needs to wake up. Our planet faces two simultaneous existential threats”, referring to the exploitation of fossil fuels, leading to ‘a death sentence…
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Making cars is becoming an embarrassment, but it is an integral part of the UK economy. In 1998, I was asked to do a presentation on the future of the automotive industry. I wish still had it, as it is always fun to look back at your predictions. But what I do remember is that electric and hydrogen-fuelled cars were tagged on at the end as things that would come about eventually, but nobody knew when. Until then, the future…
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Are you a manager? Are you a good manager, or are you just failing upwards like most people? If, for example, you are a top sales person and your company promotes you to a management role, they are, on the one hand, losing your expertise and, on the other, chucking you into untested waters as far as your skill sets are concerned. This happens, it is often the wrong thing to do and there's definitely a theorem named after this…
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In January, the world dumps a huge amount of plastic waste. In the UK, we get rid of an extra 30%, around three million tonnes. The majority goes to landfill. You may not know, but little Lithuania comes out as the best in class when it comes to recycling. It recycles at record levels; almost 75% of its plastic waste was recycled in 2017, the highest percentage in Europe. The EU average was 42% and the worst performers, including Finland…
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Marriage is a bit like technology. Oh yes it is. Some people are early adopters. They get married and have two children before you’ve passed your driving test. They’ll probably be on their fourth marriage by the time you hit 50. Other people refused to buy a mobile phone for at least a decade after mass adoption. Now everyone, apart from from your granny, has a mobile and no-one is really allowed to ask about your relationship status, apart from…
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In 2010, unemployment, which was on the rise, due to the 2007/8 global financial crisis, started to soar. This was in part, because of the euro-zone sovereign debt crisis. By 2013, over 25% of the workforces of Greece and Spain were out of work, and 50% of young people. The situation improved and unemployment in Europe has fallen by 40%, from more than 26m in the EU, to just under 16m. This happened even as more women and older people…
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We have just published a series of articles on green issues, looking at business, sport and the generation gap. In the final post of this series we have an article by the well-known environmental campaigner and journalist, George Monbiot. It is, obviously, not the end of the topic asf far as we are concerned, for green issues are going to be woven into the very substance of everything we do for the foreseeable future. So, with thanks to George: George…
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In my opinion, it all started to unravel in 2016. Donald Trump was voted president, David Bowie and Muhammad Ali died and we voted for Brexit. The world has not recovered. So will things improve over the next 12 months? No. November sees an American election and Trump could be gone, but in the UK we will be seeing just how divided and isolated Brexit has left us as the Tories refuse to even mention the B word. One-nation conservatism…
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For many, this might be the first Christmas where the younger generations shame them for their traditional Christmas festivities. People are going to be told off by snowflakes for the miles travelled over the festive period, the unnecessary consumption of meat and the sacrilege of Christmas decorations designed to strangle the poor sealife. And nobody’s going to want those lovely Nespresso machines advertised by lovely eco-warrior George Clooney, anymore. Little Greta Scrooges will look up briefly from their iphones to…
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