This episode was recorded as a live broadcast on the 24th January 2022.
Event description:
Every member of society can play their part in combatting the climate crisis. But with just 100
companies producing over 70% of emissions, the role played by our industry leaders is critical.
Corporate and societal leaders have a responsibility to mobilise the system, by leading industry
transformation and reinventing norms – and we can’t do it without them.
From our fashion choices to our consumption habits, our travel plans and our investment strategies –
what individual actions could have the greatest impact? How do industries ensure that sustainable
living is affordable, and not just for the middle classes? And how can industry leaders and
policymakers help guide the behaviour of their workforce and their consumers?
Individuals want businesses to help them live greener, and we have a wealth of untapped innovation
that could make this happen. The question we are asking our industry leaders is – how do we align
our behaviours with our environmental values to have the greatest impact in the fight to combat
climate change?
Moderator:
Tom Heap – BBC Presenter and author of 39 Ways to Save the Planet. Tom presents Countryfile on BBC One, and the environment series Costing the Earth on Radio Four. He has also made a number of Panorama films focusing on energy and the environment. He worked for many years at BBC News, including in correspondent roles in Science and Rural Affairs. He began his career as a sound recordist at Sky News. Outside of work, he likes to ride bikes, paddle canoes, grow chillies, chop wood and watch movies.
On the panel:
Enass Abo-Hamed – Enass is the co-founder and CEO at H2GO power ltd; an award-winning spin-out company from the University of Cambridge developing energy storage technologies. She completed her PhD at Cambridge University, where she also was a postdoctoral fellow and elected Cambridge University Energy Champion. Currently, she is also a member of the Advisory Board at BeyondNetZero’s General Atlantic Growth Fund and a Royal Academy of Engineering Enterprise Fellow. She has 11 years of research and business experience in hydrogen production & storage, catalysis, renewable energy and energy storage. Enass is passionate about climate entrepreneurship and clean energy technology policy. She often gives keynote speeches at international forums and participates in high impact roundtable discussions on clean energy, energy security and women entrepreneurship in tech. Enass won a few recognition awards and grants to support the development of H2GO Power and recently won the visionary of the year award by MIT Tech Review Innovators Under 35 Europe, the best energy start-up award at the Global Hello Tomorrow Summit and others. In 2015, she was selected by the Cartier women’s initiative awards as one in 18 best women entrepreneurs globally and one in 3 representing Europe. She travelled to Africa, China and central Asia on government-supported partnership missions, delivered high-level keynote speeches and recommendations about clean energy technologies as a tool to combat climate change.
Catherine Howarth – Catherine Howarth joined ShareAction as Chief Executive in 2008. ShareAction coordinates civil society to promote responsible investment across Europe, with a focus on mobilising mainstream institutional investors to drive accelerated action by companies on climate change, loss of biodiversity, gender issues, public health and food system risks. She is a member of the UK Treasury’s asset management taskforce, where she has co-chaired a programme of work on investor stewardship of companies. She is a board member of the Scott Trust, owner of The Guardian Media Group, serving on the Scott Trust’s investment committee. She is a member of the Business Commission to Tackle Inequality. Catherine was recognised by the World Economic Forum as a Young Global Leader in 2014.
Samata Pattinson – Samata Pattinson is a British-born Ghanaian entrepreneur working across fashion, media, and entertainment. She has led the initiative to spotlight sustainable fashion at the Oscars, working with major brands such as Louis Vuitton, Armani, and Vivienne Westwood. An experienced presenter and producer, her work has been featured in i-D, Business of Fashion, Essence, ELLE, InStyle, Refinery29, and more. She has contributed her expertise on fashion, entrepreneurship, and women’s empowerment at platforms such as the United Nations, Copenhagen Fashion Summit and others. Dedicated to education, Samata has spoken at institutions including Central St Martins, Parsons, London College of Fashion, and FIDM Los Angeles, engaging with the next generation of fashion talent.
Paul Polman – Business leader, campaigner and co-author of Net Positive: how courageous companies thrive by giving more than they take. Paul works to accelerate action by business to tackle climate change and inequality. As CEO of Unilever (2009-2019), he demonstrated that a long-term, multi-stakeholder model goes hand-in-hand with excellent financial performance. Paul was a member of the UN Secretary General’s High-Level Panel which developed the Sustainable Development Goals and which he continues to champion, working with global organizations and across industry to advance the 2030 development agenda. Paul’s new book, “Net Positive”, is a call to arms to courageous business leaders, setting out how to build net positive companies which profit by fixing the world’s problems rather than creating them. He Chairs IMAGINE, a social venture dedicated to systems change, and Saïd Business School, and he is Vice-Chair of the UN Global Compact as well as a B Team Leader. Paul is Honorary Chair of the International Chamber of Commerce, which he led for two years.