Ethical Era
2030 Positive Planet Agenda

Connecting the Dots
Sustainability and Innovation Consulting

Ethical Era are here to track sustainability- focused organisations and leaders.

To track sustainability- focused economic, social, innovation, industry, science, tech and governance developments.

To explore concise, simplified and transparent information about sustainability.

To connect the dots via “mapping” sustainability and climate change initiatives across all industries and sectors so that we can “standardise metrics” for the measurement of sustainability in the future.

Ethical Era has been developed to showcase that organisations and individuals can be a force for good.

By connecting environmental knowledge, science, technology and much more we can form the policies, initiatives and actions we need to take at institutional and public level to create a sustainable future.

We are here to ask the question; what are the issues we need to consider? But more so we are here to find the solutions readily available to us and how do we coordinate these solutions into action cross-industry. We are also searching and exploring new solutions.

We are not here to concentrate on negative practices only but rather to focus on positive endeavours which focus on driving the sustainbility solutions to the forefront.

We aim to have a meaningful conversation around climate change and sustainability that is focused on the possibility of a positive future and not on past mistakes.

Ethical Era is focused on institutions and companies starting the journey to sustainability not on making a company 100% sustainable overnight. We focus on the “endeavour” mind-set which will take a company from 1% to 10% to 25% to 50% and so forth.

Every small step in organisations engaging with sustainability will be applauded by Ethical Era until we get there because.

Positive action now
Time to listen.
Time to understand the science.
Time to connect the dots.
Time to take action.
Time.
#2030PositivePlanet

Visionary Leadership

The United Kingdom Parliament and Irish Parliament have been the first visionary governments in the world to declare a ‘climate emergency’. France and Canada have also followed in making a climate emergency declaration.

This is due to the mounting evidence that all sectors and citizens top down and bottom are currently contributing to degenerative social and environmental changes to our planet which will impact us all within the next decade (United Nations data).

We are here to explore how we can turn this around to create Regenerative Sectors, organisations and citizens via the 2030 Positive Planet Agenda.

Common language. Common Framework.

We cannot hide from the facts or bury our heads in the sand neither as institutions, nor as organisation nor as individuals.

We must start to explore and connect the dots across government departments and cross-industry to draw out and highlight organisations and individuals that are doing sustainable-future and positive planet work. This is where the answers and innovation lie.

Through greater focus on tracking positive endeavours and connecting the dots we access sustainability data and innovative practices that can be shared with other organisations. We can also showcase the strong business case for embracing sustainability by creating a common language and a common framework.

Through this method we can build the foundations to on-board more and more organisations to sign up to the 2030 Positive Planet Agenda (orientated around the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and orientated around the “endeavour” mind-set).

Waking up to the climate change issue.

Sustainability and Climate change is ‘a moral, ethical and economic imperative’ to slow global warming the UN leaders, have warned. To meet the sustainability and climate change 2030 goals governments will call on all organisations and leaders to step up their ambition and take concrete action.

Why is it important and what does the 2030 deadline symbolise?

As set out by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)  Special Report on Global Warming, holding the increase in the global average temperature to well below 2°C (3.6°F) above pre-industrial levels and pursuing efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1.5°C (2.7°F) “is necessary to prevent irreversible changes to our planet” and we are the last generation to have the opportunity to implement these measures.

Achieving this goal will require changes on an unprecedented scale at all levels, (by all countries, by all organisations and all individuals), but it is still possible if we act now”, UN system-wide appeal. Based on scientific research 2030 is the year in which planet earth will not longer have the ability to regenerate and will start on the projection of degradation.

However through sustainable consumption and production, sustainably managing our natural resources and taking urgent action on climate change in all industries, we still have the window of opportunity to support the needs of the present and future generations.

2030 Positive Planet Action - Timer

Mobilizing Technological Advancements for planet and people

Through case studies and collaborations, Ethical Era will be exploring untapped resources in reviewing artificial intelligence (AI) as a solutions tool within climate change and sustainability theory.

World Economic Forum Report Harnessing Artificial Intelligence for the Earth

http://www3.weforum.org/docs/Harnessing_Artificial_Intelligence_for_the_Earth_report_2018.pdf

Building a case for Sustainability and AI/Tech.

  • Machine learning and deep learning solutions
  • Liquid Robotics
  • Drone Driven Conservation/Regenerative Work
  • Blockchain
  • Smart Agriculture
  • Smart Cities
  • Autonomous and connected electric vehicles
  • Distributed Energy Grids
  • Weather forecasting and climate modelling

And much more to explore...

Working with leaders to embrace sustainability and change

We are here to assist leading minds explore sustainability in:

  • Policymaking
  • Industry
  • Public sector
  • Private sector
  • Multinational companies
  • SMEs
  • Collaborative Initiatives

and even at:

  • Citizen initiative level
  • Product level

Ethical Era are here to confront barriers to change and help your organisational leaders to take their first step in exploring sustainability. Whether you are a governmental department, the fashion industry or within the agriculture sector work with Ethical Era one on one with our “introduction to sustainability leadership” impact programme to understand why sustainability matters.

Supporting you on the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals journey

Ethical Era will help organisations to look at the bigger picture, by striking a balance between staying competitive, driving innovation and preserving our environment. With 193 governments agreeing to deliver 17 goals tackling major world issues by 2030, change lies ahead for all businesses, not only to rethink strategy and business behaviour to align with the goals, but also to assess and evidence their impact.
The Blueprint for Action
TThe blue print for tackling sustainability already exists in the: The United Nations Sustainability Development Goals (UN SDGs) alongside other initiatives. Additionally the answers and innovations already partially exist within the organisations that are successfully embracing sustainability.
How do the UN SDGs impact your organisation and business?
Exploring and adopting the SDGs
  • The SDGs provide a concise blueprint and framework for any organisation (from the fashion sector to the energy sector) to begin the journey to sustainability.
  • There are 17 Global Goals to explore. The expectation is that governments will urgently turn their attention to business to support them achieve the SDGs.
  • Each government will have its own set of precedence which will drive the action it needs to take but there is still a commonality in approach relative to the Paris Climate Agreement.
  • Ethical Era predict that it will soon become common practice for company ESG/CSR etc policies to align with/include the SDGs so that an organisation makes an impact that aids the 2030 Agenda, not hinders, a country to achieve its goals.
  • Many assume that the goals do not concern them because the goals are international in scope and do not immediately flag up as relevant to the business a company conducts however the reality is that every single company and organisations is tied closely or loosely in their supply chain and structure to all of the 17 goals and to climate change.
  • Business doesn’t operate in isolation. Business shares infrastructure, land, resources, people, energy, water with society and other businesses alike - the connectivity and interdependencies are important and so need to be managed well.
  • There is growing pressure for responsibility and accountability in infrastructures and therefore transparency and responsibility is going to become key in the future in tackling the social and environmental imperative for actioning the SDGs.
  • The SDGs are very compatible with CSR, ESG etc. metrics that are used within multinational enterprises and SMEs- we just need to explore how to translate to key leaders within your company the urgent need to be better versed on the SDGs and the 2030 Positive Planet Agenda.

Policymakers have announced a “Climate Change Emergency” and will now have to roll out the framework and legislation in line with this announcement.

Every industry from fashion to agriculture is contributing to climate change.

Every Citizen from small basic action like fast fashion shopping to eating habits are contributing to climate change.

We are all contributing to a Non Sustainable Future & to Climate Change and we all hold the keys to the 2030 Positive Planet Agenda and the creation of a Sustainable & Innovative future for the planet.
Artic Sea Ice Diminishing
Deforestation
Soil Erosion
All leading to a Non-Sustainable Future and/or Climate Change
Ocean Pollution
Freshwater Depletion
Human Cost
And much more…
IN THE NEWS

Arctic sea ice reaches its minimum each September. September Arctic sea ice is now declining at a rate of 12.8% per decade, relative to the 1981 to 2010 average. (NASA)

WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT

Arctic sea ice keeps the polar regions cool and helps moderate global climate and therefore helps regulate climate change.

IN THE NEWS

According to statistics, about half of the world’s tropical forests have been cleared.

IN WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT

The forests comprise 31% of the total land mass of the Earth. They are vital in the absorption of carbon dioxide emissions to filter the air we breathe. They are also responsible for producing vital oxygen essential for the existence of wildlife and humans. Human-driven and natural loss of trees—deforestation—affects wildlife, ecosystems, weather patterns, and even the climate.

IN THE NEWS

UK Government warns we are 30-40 years away from eradication of soil fertility for growing our food in parts of the UK. Globally scientists have predicted we have only 60 years of farming left if soil degradation continues. Generating three cm of top soil takes 1,000 years.

IN WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT

Topsoil is required for growing our food and if current rates of degradation continue all of the world's top soil could be gone within 60 years, a senior United Nations officials have stated. Therefore we have only 60 years of farming left if soil degradation continues and we don’t change methods.

IN THE NEWS

A whopping 91% of plastic IS NOT recycled. About 8 million metric tons of plastic are dumped into the ocean annually. Every minute, one garbage truck of plastic is dumped into our oceans. By 2050 there will be more plastic in the oceans than there are fish (by weight). Of those, 236,000 tons are micro plastics (from our washing machines when washing synthetic fibres like polyester, nylon, acrylic etc garments or exist in our personal hygiene products) – these are tiny pieces of broken-down plastic smaller than your little fingernail that make it from the washing machine/sink into the waterways and into the ocean.

WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT

The air we breathe: The ocean produces over half of the world's oxygen for us humans and all other species and absorbs 50 times more carbon dioxide than our atmosphere. It is also important for climate regulation. Covering 70 percent of the Earth's surface, the ocean transports heat from the equator to the poles, regulating our climate and weather patterns.

IN THE NEWS

Fast Fashion and the Rana Plaza disaster, Bangladesh. On 24 April 2013, the collapse of the Rana Plazabuilding in Dhaka, Bangladesh, which housed five garment factories, killed at least 1,132 people and injured more than 2,500. Since the Rana Plaza disaster, no fewer than 109 accidents have occurred. Fast Fashion has a cost to both people and our planet.

IN WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT

Approximately 80% of the fashion we buy is made using fast fashion cycles. Fast Fashion methods are a disaster for women and the environment. 75 million people are making our clothes today. 80% is made by women who are only 18 – 24 years old and trapped in poverty and not being paid the living wage in this cycle of production and are living in poverty and slave like conditions. A large percentage of fast fashion/accessories is made by child labour. 7/10 garments which are subsequently bought are worn once and are discarded to end up in the landfill. Non- sustainable/non-slow fashion /non-sustainable textiles pollute the environment whilst being produced in high volumes and also pollutes when it hits landfill and it has a high human/female cost. An unimaginable cost for single wear garments.

IN THE NEWS

Researchers at the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy and GRAIN Study suggests the meat and dairy industry is on track to surpass oil companies as biggest greenhouse gas emitters. They also claim that five of the biggest meat and dairy corporations are already responsible for more greenhouse gas emissions than the top 3 Oil & Gas companies.

IN WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT

The researchers conclude their report by suggesting that soon there will be no choice—if we are to curb green house gas emissions to meet targets set by agreed upon international/government protocols to slow down climate change. Meat and dairy  production and consumption will have to be greatly reduced.