Earth Day 2021 – reflections from our CEO

As the sun sets on Earth Day, I am filled with a sense of relief as businesses come together again to make their feelings heard. It gives me hope.

I studied for my BSc in Environmental Science 3 decades ago. Today’s issues were terrifying even back then. 30 years later, the biggest change I have seen is how we individually behave as consumers. Governments and big businesses? Very little change at all, comparatively speaking.

Perhaps the most profound learning from my studies, which is true to this day, is that in the broadest terms repairing the environment has been manipulated to being the responsibility of ‘us’ at consumer level.

Whilst we all are busy using energy saving devices, recycling and switching to electric cars. Governments, businesses and institutions continue to cause immeasurable damage to the planet. I am not saying as individuals we should revert away from the changes we have made, I am saying as business leaders we could force even more change in an even quicker time. It could be really meaningful.

The businesses we invest in, procure from and partner with should be subjected to the same scrutiny about environmental principles as they are to adhering to financial regulation. Where we locate our offices and who we pay tax to could be supporting governments who are exploiting the environment. We can use our feet and change that.

If we don’t apply these types of principles we are, by proxy, supporting continued environmental exploitation. If we came together as a business community with this type scrutiny and held-firm on the basic criteria we expect for others before we trade with them, we could fundamentally change our planet’s future.

Lumina Planet

We’re working with our partners Pure Planet and The Electric Car Scheme, to bring together a set of environmentally friendly benefits for employees, called Lumina Energy and Lumina Cars. There are options to lease electric vehicles and access to discounted energy tariffs with renewable energy providers.

Packs more of a punch than free fruit Fridays, right? Find out more