Progressive business must speak out and collaborate for a sustainable future

Posted on May 16, 2012 by

This article is by Thomas Lingard, global advocacy director at Unilever and former deputy director at Green Alliance. It first appeared on Guardian Sustainable Business. 

Silence on climate change and sustainability is not an abstention from the debate, it’s an abdication of responsibility for which no amount of other corporate good deeds can compensate.

What was clear from the outset of Unilever’s ambitious Sustainable Living Plan was that it could not be delivered by one organisation in isolation. It requires collaboration among a wide range of stakeholders on a whole range of issues. But one type of collaboration less well understood is the relationship between progressive business and governments who are trying to rewrite the rules of the game to align both the short and long term business interests with the creation of a low carbon world and promotion of sustainable living. Continue reading →

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Should the government advertise the “green switchover”?

Posted on May 14, 2012 by

This article is by James Murray and first appeared on BusinessGreen. It covers today’s launch of our new report Neither sermons nor silence: the case for national communications on energy use.

The government will today be called on to relax its ban on advertising spend and commission a national communications campaign to drive adoption of upcoming green initiatives, such as the Green Deal energy efficiency scheme, the smart meter rollout, and the Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI).

The recommendation is the centrepiece of a new report from Green Alliance, backed by a number of high profile firms including Scottish Power, Asda, Kellogg’s, Groundwork, PepsiCo, which argues that a government-orchestrated campaign is essential to ensure the success of the coalition’s flagship green policies. Continue reading →

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Government’s £40bn savings subsidies must encourage responsible investment

Posted on May 9, 2012 by

This post is by Green Alliance associate Chris Hewett, based on a new report Saving for a sustainable future, published today.

The post-Budget row over tax relief for charitable giving has obscured the fact that there are many other tax reliefs given for savings and investment activity. Indeed, the government currently subsidises savings and investments by nearly £40 billion each year in Pension Tax Relief, Individual Savings Accounts (ISA) allowances and Capital Gains Tax relief for residential property sales.  Rather than arguing over whether these should be capped, Green Alliance has been looking at how government might use these subsidies to encourage more responsible investment and transparent banking. Continue reading →

Posted in Business, Fresh thoughts, Green economy, Policy, The economic crisis | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Low carbon businesses must speak up in the political debate

Posted on May 8, 2012 by

This post is by Nick Mabey, chief executive and a founder director of E3G. It was first published on Guardian Sustainable Business.

Walking into Westminister tube station, members of parliament currently find themselves surrounded by a phalanx of purple adverts announcing that “The road to economic growth is … a flight path”. This is just the most visible manifestation of a massive business-led campaign arguing the importance of increased airport capacity to the UK economy.

At one level you have to admire the chutzpah of the British Airports Authority (BAA) in making this argument. New airport capacity is irrelevant to UK economic recovery and will not provide a single additional job before the end of the decade. With business passengers making up only 12% of total UK flights it is also clear that absolute capacity constraints are not a material business issue. But at least BAA’s opportunism is understandable; they are simply acting in their own best business interests. What is unforgivable is the lack of alternative business voices advocating a low-carbon, green pathway to economic recovery. Continue reading →

Posted in Business, Green economy, Low carbon energy | Tagged , | 2 Comments

Why the UK needs a binding energy efficiency target

Posted on May 4, 2012 by

This post is by Green Alliance policy assistant Elise Attal 

Energy efficiency is a no brainer. As a recent report from E3G showed, it is the most rational and straightforward thing do from both an economic and environmental perspective. It should be the government’s first priority. Continue reading →

Posted in Energy demand, Green economy, Policy | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Why local consumption-based carbon accounting is good for policy

Posted on May 2, 2012 by

This is a guest post is by Warren Hatter who advises on local low carbon policy and the use of behavioural insights. 

When DECC published a report on consumption-based emissions reporting last week, the local perspective was only hinted at. But it jumped out at me during the evidence sessions that, in the absence of a localist (or at least pro-local governance) voice, the opportunity this presents for local areas could be lost.

Continue reading →

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How acceptable is government intervention on green behaviour?

Posted on April 24, 2012 by

This guest post, by Matthew Evans of Ipsos MORI,  is based on recent international research conducted by Ipsos MORI.

Delivering behaviour change is essential if we are to have a more sustainable society. Meeting the UK’s climate change targets will require action at an individual as well as governmental level.

There is a variety of ways in which these changes in behaviour can be achieved. These include top down legislation, providing information to enable people to make informed decisions, and offering incentives to ease the financial cost to people of making changes to the way they travel, heat their homes and choose more environmentally-friendly products. But what do the public think about these efforts to change the way they live? Continue reading →

Posted in Behaviour change, Policy | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

What does the UKERC report mean for the future of CCS?

Posted on April 20, 2012 by

This post is by Dustin Benton, senior policy adviser at Green Alliance and author of our recent policy insight The CCS challenge: securing a second chance for UK carbon capture and storage.

Recent announcements on carbon capture and storage have made it clear that it is make or break time for the technology. CCS is controversial. Its detractors point out that it doesn’t deal with the problems of resource extraction, and may only buy us a few more decades of fossil fuel power generation. But its potential to enable rapid reductions in CO2 emissions, from the power sector and industrial emitters both in the UK and abroad, mean that we, at least, should establish whether or not CCS is possible. The starting point for doing this in the UK is a publicly funded, multibillion pound demonstration programme, which was relaunched a few weeks ago. Continue reading →

Posted in Carbon Capture and Storage, Low carbon energy | Tagged , , , , , | 3 Comments

Hyper-local, visible action is key to encouraging green living

Posted on April 18, 2012 by

This is a guest post by Oliver Payne, an advertising professional who founded the behavioural communications agency The Hunting Dynasty, and wrote Inspiring Sustainable Behaviour: 19 Ways To Ask For Change

Talk to any communications specialist and they’ll tell you how important social norms are in driving behaviour. This is correct, but a little broad. Norms – or the implicit and explicit rules that govern a society – come in many varieties. Both the injunctive norm (what we’re told is approved of), and the descriptive norm (what we see others doing) can help persuade us to act more sustainably. Continue reading →

Posted in Behaviour change, Beyond nudge, Psychology, Recycling, Research | Tagged , , | 3 Comments

Austerity hasn’t made people care less about the environment

Posted on April 16, 2012 by

This article, by Green Alliance’s Alastair Harper,  about our new report What do people really think about the environment? first appeared on  guardian.co.uk on 10 April.

A few days ago, in a stuffy, closed-windowed meeting, I stared at a projection of Powerpoint slides, featuring graphs, rhetorical questions and stock photos. All these slides dealt with public perception of the environment. Things didn’t start well. In answer to a slide asking “What is the most important issue facing Britain today?”, top of the pile was our old friend the economy. Followed by jobs. Down the list we went. Immigration, crime, inflation, petrol prices, equality. Spluttering in at the bottom with three per cent of the vote was pollution/environment. If it had been an election, the environment would be lucky to get its deposit back. Continue reading →

Posted in Behaviour change, Politics, Public debate, The economic crisis | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments