Charmian Love is currently Global Director of Advocacy at Natura &Co, the world’s largest publicly traded B Corp. But she is most-known for co-founding B Lab UK, the non-profit network behind the B Corp movement to transform the global economy to benefit people, communities and the planet. A prominent voice for change, Char has been an activist and advocate for the planet for most of her life, pushing industries and businesses to be forces for good.

In this discussion, Char shares insights into what a B Corp is, how to become one and the importance of having purpose as a driver behind the movement. She also delves into the importance of changing perceptions of what it means to be an activist and an advocate and challenges the current priorities of the ESG agenda.

We also discuss:

• How purpose can be used as a driver for personal and collective action within businesses.
• The B Corp movement and how it’s transforming industries to be better through its continuous process of improvement.
• The importance of addressing the G in ESG in having governance processes in place to enable people to make decisions that activate the E and S.
• Why we should pay more attention to being like ‘zebras’ than ‘unicorns’.
• The differences between activism and advocacy, how these look in the 21 st century and how they connect through the 5 As of Advocacy: Authentic, ambition, agency, activism, allyship.
• The generational shifts in attitudes towards work life and quality of life.
• Tackling procrastination, which Char argues is a product of fear instead of laziness.

Selected links:

The B Corp movement https://www.bcorporation.net/en-us/

B Corp and the ESG agenda https://www.esgthereport.com/what-is-a-b-corp/

The power of purpose in business https://hbr.org/2022/03/what-is-the-purpose-of-your-purpose

Jackson Pollock artwork https://www.jackson-pollock.org/

‘Outrage and Optimism’ by Christiana Figueres, Tom Rivett-Carnac & Paul Dickinson https://www.outrageandoptimism.org/episodes

Designing a Climate Advocacy Strategy, by Sophie Dembinski, Charmian Love & Beth Thoren https://hbr.org/2023/03/designing-a-climate-advocacy-strategy

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Susan Aitken has been Leader of Glasgow City Council, the local government authority for the UK’s fourth largest city, since May 2017. A prominent figure in the local political scene, she has been a key spokesperson for the Scottish National Party on health and social care. Susan led the city through the COVID-19 pandemic, in which Glasgow was the second most affected after London. She was also integral in the city hosting COP26.

In this conversation, Susan shares insights about the role of local government in fostering a vibrant, innovative economy, the things civic leaders can do to combat the climate crisis, and the partnerships that cities are forming to hasten transformation. Have a listen to hear about what makes a great city tick and the influence government – local government – has on driving social and economic innovation.

We also discuss:

• How hosting COP26 catalysed genuine progress towards a net zero future in Glasgow
• How one of Europe’s preeminent post-industrial cities is emerging as a global innovation centre
• More about Glasgow’s leading position in the high tech, including the space race where Glasgow is the second biggest satellite building industry outside of the United States
• How Glasgow is preventing its innovation economy becoming elitist
• The way city leaders are driving economic transformation through partnerships between the public, private and academic sectors.
• How a unique collaboration between Scotland's eight cities and the Scottish Government is delivering inclusive growth across the region.

Selected links:

Glasgow’s Industrial history https://www.bbc.co.uk/history/scottishhistory/victorian/trails_victorian_glasgow.shtml#:~:text=The%20Industrial%20Revolution%20took%20hold,the%201840s%20formed%20the%20workforce

UN outcomes of COP26 in Glasgow https://www.un.org/en/climatechange/cop26

Sustainable Glasgow partnership https://sustainableglasgow.org.uk/

The Space sector in Scotland https://www.gov.scot/policies/manufacturing/space-sector/

Scottish Cities Alliance https://scottishcities.org.uk/

UK’s core cities https://www.corecities.com/

City Centre Recovery Task Force https://www.gov.scot/publications/report-city-centre-recovery-task-force/

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Pen Hadow is a British explorer and ocean conservationist whose commitment to protecting the wildlife and floating ice-reef ecosystem of the North Pole’s international waters has pushed the boundaries of human endeavour, polar exploration, and global engagement on sustainability. He undertook an iconic solo trek on foot from Canada to the North Pole which has never been repeated.

Hadow founded 90 North Foundation, an organisation exclusively dedicated to protecting the Arctic, working in association with the non-governmental programme Arctic Mission.

A few days before the COP15 biodiversity conference concluded with a historic agreement to protect 30% of land and water by 2030, our host, Basil Demeroutis, interviewed Pen about the need to address biodiversity loss now rather than later. And the potential for the property sector to lead by example.

Tune in to discover:

- How determination and resilience pushed Pen beyond his limits while walking – and swimming – unsupported, solo, from Canada to the North Pole

- Why biodiversity loss in the Arctic has a direct impact on life in cities around the world, including on the value of property investments

- What could happen if we lose sea ice, the ‘refrigeration unit’ for the northern hemisphere

- How the global economy and global ecosystems are interlinked

- Why biodiversity should be a bigger focus of companies’ ESG efforts

- What 90 North Foundation is doing to create the largest global reserve for the international - waters that surround the North Pole

Selected links from the episode:

90 North Foundation: https://www.90northfoundation.org/

Current state of sea ice cover: https://earth.gsfc.nasa.gov/cryo/data/current-state-sea-ice-cover

What is an Arctic Habitat?: https://www.twinkl.co.uk/teaching-wiki/arctic-habitat#:~:text=support%20your%20teaching.-,What%20is%20an%20Arctic%20habitat%3F,%2C%20Finland%2C%20Norway%20and%20Greenland.

Ecosystem services: https://www.nwf.org/Educational-Resources/Wildlife-Guide/Understanding-Conservation/Ecosystem-Services

Pen Hadow: What he saw in the Arctic: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5teF3gUfqek

Cop15: historic deal to halt biodiversity loss by 2030: https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2022/dec/19/cop15-historic-deal-signed-to-halt-biodiversity-loss-by-2030-aoe

UN Report: Nature decline in numbers: https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/blog/2019/05/nature-decline-unprecedented-report/

Connect with Pen Hadow:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/penhadow/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/penhadow?lang=en-GB

Website: https://www.90northfoundation.org/

We’d love to hear your thoughts on these topics. Talk to us on Twitter @forepartnership.

You can also follow us on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/forepartnership   

Or visit our website: forepartnership.com

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