Making Impact Investment Mainstream Part 1-Engaging the Public
SeedTribe's CEO, Liv Sibony, was recently invited to be part of a round table about how to make impact investing mainstream. Read the first in a series of blogs about our findings here.
Liv Sibony, CEO of SeedTribe, was recently invited to Chatham House to be part of a round table to discuss how to make impact investing more mainstream. We at SeedTribe were intrigued by the discussions that took place, and thought it was vital to share what we learnt. Over the coming weeks, we will be publishing 3 blogs about the biggest themes we took away from this round table. The first one below is about focusing on positive action and increasing public knowledge about sustainable business.
Everyday we are inundated with news stories about how the world as we know it is coming to an end due to the climate crisis and there is nothing to be done. Conversely, we rarely hear any positive stories about what people and organisations are doing to combat this international crisis. After a recent meeting at Chatham House, we at SeedTribe were reminded of the lack of knowledge the greater public has about what is being done in a positive way to address the climate crisis and a general idea as to actual change rather than green-washing. By increasing the public’s overall awareness about achieving sustainable development and what actors are already doing, everyone becomes more prepared to make their own contributions to ensure the future of our society and our planet.
Focusing on Action
At times, the situation seems hopeless. However, the United Kingdom (as a government and but thanks to efforts by its citizens) is making a positive impact. Not only are there positive government initiatives, but also positive businesses that never make the news. This adds to people’s feelings of hopelessness and helplessness: “It’s already too late mentality”. The more hopelessness that exists, the less willing people are to find ways to generate change, no matter how small. Positive action must become the predominant rhetoric should we as a society want to continue the hope and positivity to achieve these goals.
Building a Strong Knowledge Base
Creating a solid base of knowledge and information is crucial to engage all areas of society in meaningful impact. Greenwashing, that is, making unsubstantiated claims about the environmental benefits of a product or service, is rampant across the UK and the world. It is necessary to inform people about products and innovations that contribute positively to sustainable development, rather than those that take attention away. Moreover, not only must we educate the public about sustainability but also businesses. We at SeedTribe believe there exists a desire amongst businesses to integrate these ideas from the beginning or learn how to integrate them into an existing business plan.
By increasing society’s knowledge about the climate crisis, people can make more informed decisions about the best action to take in their daily lives and help businesses to best create or adapt their business to add, not detract, from developing sustainability.
We recognise that achieving the Sustainable Development Goals is no easy task. However, the more each individual and business is empowered to make a step in the right direction the better.
This is why SeedTribe has started its new Hub, where driven, engaged citizens can learn about Sustainable Development and entrepreneurs who are looking to address society’s greatest issues. Learn more here.