PIONEERING GREEN BUSINESS - Friends of the Earth Scotland

PIONEERING GREEN BUSINESS

31 July 2008
Topics: Other

Can business ever be green, or must the pursuit of profit and the bottom line always cost the Earth? Are the entrepreneurial skills of business the same skills we need to address the challenge of climate change? What can business do in practice to remain competitive but also be part of the solution rather than part of the problem?

Brendan Dick, Director of BT Scotland and Glenn Bennett, Managing Director of EAE Distributions will join Friends of the Earth Scotland’s Chief Executive Duncan McLaren in a public debate to explore these increasingly urgent questions.

Journalists are invited to attend this event, which will take place in St Cuthbert’s Church, Edinburgh from 12.30-13.30 on Tuesday 5 August.

Outlining the scope of the event, Duncan McLaren, Chief Executive of Friends of the Earth Scotland said:

"These days, almost any business claims to be helping address climate change. Some are talking a good talk, but doing little more than marketing and PR. Others are beginning to change the ways they operate and even questioning their fundamental business models. In this session we will be trying to distinguish practical action from rhetorical greenwash, and explore how far businesses will have to change if they are to play a fair role in delivering emissions cuts of 80% or more in the coming decades.”

Explaining the importance of addressing these fundamental issues, Brendan Dick, Director of BT Scotland said:

"Business doesn't live in a bubble, nor is business detached from the world, nations and communities in which we live and work. The global environmental challenges require action by everyone. Not only does business have a moral/legal obligation to be part of the solution, it can, in part, lead the way and, at the same time remain competitive, meeting the needs of its customers and employees."

EAE Director Glen Bennett will set out some of the practical steps EAE has taken to ‘green’ its operations, claiming:

“EAE is committed to being carbon neutral by 2012. To achieve this we have installed a 6kw wind turbine on a 15m mast generating £2k of 100% green electricity every year plus many, many smaller schemes such as flow restrictors on water taps, 100% recycling of all office, warehouse and kitchen waste, composting, etc, etc. We have also developed a Biodiversity garden with native tree planting, Scottish wild flowers, bat and bird boxes.”

The event is taking place as part of the Festival of Spirituality and Peace.

NOTES

The Festival of Spirituality and Peace takes place from 3-24 August is venues across Edinburgh. The programme includes Public Talks, Conversations, Film, Drama & Spoken Word, Prayer & Meditation, Exhibitions, Concerts, Workshops and a volunteer programme. www.festivalofspirituality.org.uk/

Friends of the Earth Scotland exists to help people in Scotland look after the planet for everyone’s future. We think globally, and act in Scotland - delivering solutions to climate change and other environmental problems, by enabling and empowering people to take individual and collective action. www.foe-scotland.org.uk

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