Written by;
Robert Chapman
Director
RC2 (Robert Chapman & Company)
Over 2 ½ years ago (2018) , an idea of sorts was percolating in my mind (as a citizen and Fellow of the RSA) around how Wales based business membership organisations per se could come together collaboratively at scale to effect change. That is when I engaged with the Leaders of the business membership organisations in Wales: FSB, IoD, CBI, South & Mid Wales Chambers of Commerce, BRC Cymru, and MAKE. Why? Because I knew all of them and I thought this was something that I should do because it was the right thing to do.
Initially, my thinking concerned ‘rubbish’ or widespread littering – a symptom of our ‘consumptionist’ society in which growth has become the nirvana. Subsequently, I enlarged my idea (on the continuing premise that most business is a force for good) by recommending that representative, business membership organisations in Wales should lead by signing a commitment to tackle the growing risks of climate change through the actions of its members within the next 10 years (as advised by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change {IPCC}).
It’s remarkable to me that notwithstanding the publication on 30th October 2006 of The Stern Review (the Economics of Climate Change) there is still business inertia. Sadly, from the off, FSB did not engage. They talked about their own policy approach to the environment (which like all the other business membership organisations I take as read – motherhood and apple pie) but when it came to it they didn’t want to engage, manifesting more interest in pursuing their own ends.
Despite this disappointment, I was encouraged by the announcement in September 2019 that the Better Buildings Partnership had signed up to a Climate Change Commitment. This was the catalyst for me suggesting to the leaders of the business membership organisations in Wales (excluding the FSB) that they should sign up to a similarly named but co-produced commitment (an agreed set of principles). Why? Because the whole is greater than the sum of the parts. Such an act would send out a powerful message to (i) the public and (ii) their respective members. It was described as a ‘great initiative’.
A meeting was convened at the end of November 2019 involving eminent climatologist Professor Chris Rapley. The IoD, CBI, South & Mid Wales Chambers of Commerce, BRC Cymru, and MAKE were on board. An article by CBI Wales in the lead up to that meeting was timely, suggesting that ‘the climate challenge is everyone’s responsibility.’ I responded positively by suggesting that businesses should lead and that there should be unprecedented collaboration to achieve a co-produced Climate Change Commitment for Wales. The response from that meeting was overwhelmingly positive in favour of further action in the New Year (2020) to plan next steps. As it happens, I was asked to engage with BITC (Business in the Community) in the New Year but like the FSB they did not want to collaborate.
The urgency of the situation before us was highlighted at the beginning of January 2020 by Sir David Attenborough who referred to the climate ‘crisis moment’. Subsequently, one could have chosen a range of global warming related articles. My random collection includes: measuring the financial impact of Climate Change by PWC; Sir David Attenborough’s statement that the Pandemic could make nations realise climate issue depends on co-operation; clear evidence of warming in the guise of the Siberian heatwave and the recognition (in Welsh Government’s Consultation document – ‘‘A manufacturing future for Wales: a framework for action’’, p.7) that Climate Change, Environment and decarbonisation is the top one of ten themes.
Covid-19 appeared on the scene early in 2020 which halted the momentum gained at the end of 2019. However, my initiative was re-ignited by a further convened meeting on 9th September 2020. Excluding the FSB, all business membership organisations were present, including representatives for the Wales Youth Parliament – Future Generations. Again, Professor Chris Rapley gave an updated presentation on the state of global warming. It was a sobering set of facts. Chairing the meeting, the IoD summed up the session by stating that ‘we were pushing on an open door’.
Subsequently, the Chambers of Commerce took up the baton by alighting on an idea put forward by the BRC about the forthcoming Climate Change Week in the first week of November. It appeared to provide both a good opportunity and a deadline: engage now with WG to muster the disparate parts around climate change and attempt to form a secretariat and a sense of direction; commit to engage in Wales Climate Week as a collective and use this as a platform to launch; and publish the signed-up commitment and charter during that event. The outline game plan set a series of objectives bounded by a date.
Sadly, the events that followed the early September 2020 meeting were nothing less than underwhelming. After much flip-flopping, the CBI performed a volte face by deciding to withdraw. On reflection, I can now conclude (based on the correspondence) that they were never really committed. And then a week later, the IoD and Chambers of Commerce decided to withdraw citing reasons of ‘bandwidth’ and other business organisation withdrawal. Describing my enthusiasm and ambition as admirable, they concluded that ‘it was now for them as individual organisations to do what [they] can either individually or collectively, when time and resource permits, to build on the foundations you have laid’.
Except for BRC and MAKE, the other organisations declined to collaborate. The idea (premised on strength in numbers) was (is) to forge a collaborative approach, manifesting to the wider public that business can come together to tackle the ‘climate emergency’ that we are all facing. It would demonstrate to our future generations (who will be the hardest hit) that Welsh business membership organisations per se are prepared and willing to influence at scale. Sadly, those organisations have been found wanting.
In conclusion, this does not dent my passion to do the right thing even if others do not – Future Generations should take note of some of the challenges in the way! The world is changed by our action{s}, not by our inaction. Procrastination is the thief of time.
