Planet

It’s hard not to be affected by the build-up and weight of expectations for COP26 in Glasgow this week.  As a parent I feel an incredible responsibility to fix some of the things that both I and previous generations have broken, so I can’t imagine what some of these leaders (hopefully acting with “true statesmanship” rather than “politics of the moment”) must be feeling.

I won’t lie, I struggled a bit working for bp.  I didn’t get as much stick from mates or family as I expected, but it gnawed away at me on and off for years.  And I grew pretty cynical about some of the greenwashing.

So it’s a bit of a relief not to be working there anymore.  Although full disclosure I just won a bit of work for one of its low carbon businesses for Familiarize this week, hooray.

I do think companies like bp are part of the solution, and I’m up for helping them.

But this is more about me now – and Familiarize.  What do we do about the climate crisis?  Does our size and impact mean we’re exempt?  That we can leave this to corporates and governments to sort?

Of course not.

I’d seen so much of it at bp – time, money, ideas, energy, motivation, passion, skill.  And it’s everywhere.  It’s in abundance in startups too of course.

And I felt that if I could insert the customer into every business, to be the conscience, relentlessly questioning “why are you doing that?”, I could cut some of this waste.  And this would translate into building less stuff we throw away, less stuff that consumes energy, less stuff that stops us building the good stuff.

And because most of the startups I have worked with this year have been low carbon or climate businesses, it’s really important they don’t waste time, energy and money.  The planet needs them to get it right first time.  Listening to a customer can help; it can dramatically reduce the risk of building something no-one actually wants.

So, Purpose? Tick. But what else should a small business like mine be doing to reduce its impact, to repair our planet, to do good?

Almost no commute (partly down to COVID), no business travel (thanks to zoom), almost no need to heat or cool an entire office (thanks to almost unlimited Patagonia layers to add/subtract) and no lavish gourmet dinners (alas).  The lights are LED, the energy supplier is Octopus, the lunches are (mostly) seasonal, the printer is redundant.  I avoid spending any money I can, which is probably the best thing I can do to slow the pace of climate change.

But quite rightly the bar is constantly raised on these things, and I feel I need to do more.

My wife is an upholsterer and for every chair she upholsters she makes a donation to a local charity that helps unlucky kids get on their feet in spite of horrible childhoods.  It made me think could I do something like this for Familiarize.  Could I give a sum of money for every client I’ve worked with this year?

It’s a gesture at my current scale I know, but it’s a commitment to give more as I grow.  And because I have so much faith in creativity playing a role in saving our planet I’ve decided to make an annual donation to Hubbub that I hope will increase as Familiarize becomes more successful.

Hubbub is a pretty cool charity that focuses on practical steps that are good for the environment, with a real focus on creative design, the kind of nudges we all need to steer us right.  With campaigns about food, fashion, buildings and neighbourhoods, this feels right up my street and I’m excited about helping them do more.

Another thing I’m going to do is get more informed – and get some data.  If Familiarize grows as I hope, it will be compute intensive and contributing to a growing carbon footprint (data centres make up 2% global greenhouse gases – as much as aviation).  This HBR article about green software is illuminating, particularly about the energy intensity to train AI.  I think I have a responsibility to set some principles about how I want the Familiarize software built – and measure this.  Yunus and I have begun discussions…

I know just paying isn’t enough, we need to do more.  But I also think doing a few things well, consistently, is also really important – and from there, build track record.

I also think as business owners we need to start early – and not wait until we’ve scaled and then are forced to act. 

I’m not going to moralise about what you all should be doing to fight climate change.  Many of you are doing a heck of a lot more than me – and have been doing so for a lot longer.  So no five tips this week.

But this fortnight is a good moment for reflection. What ways can we design our businesses to reflect more of our purpose and personalities, to set us apart, as well as set us - and our planet - up for success?