Anyone for Tea

There was once a world dominated by the British Empire. Our Empirical might was felt in every continent on Earth. Britain was the heart beat of the global economy. Britain was a producer, a manufacturer and engineering powerhouse. The envy of every European and emerging nation on the planet. This Empire was built on Tea.

The tea trade was the main driver behind Britain’s Empire. Keeping the ever widening middle classes in tea.

Bring that picture forward 150 years and we had an every widening middle class again. This time instead of industry we had an ever growing service society. Providing more and more goods to these people. To purchase this they needed money and our financial services system duly obliged. We became prolific consumers. In a strange way this can be traced through coffee.
Coffee houses were the centre of thought and human advance 150 years ago. Now they are a status symbol. Starbucks, Costa and Nero adorn more or less every town or city in the UK. There is very little human advancement taking place but there is plenty of posing and posturing.
Tea was a much more elegant drink, savoured and taken as a leisurely activity. The beauty of the tea pot and the notion of afternoon tea has been lost for the consumer frenzy supported by a quick coffee break.

If Tea was manufactured coffee is almost certainly consumed. Consumed rather than savoured, yet I am sure we can all name someone who would call themselves a connoisseur. The fast paced world of on the move communication, convenience shopping and the on demand lifestyle has won over. With it the world has also shifted. We look to the tea nations of India and China as our mass producers, our centres of industry, technology and social advancement.

I long to see a re-engagement with afternoon tea. With Britain taking time to explore new ways of making things and thinking of how to move the world forward again. Although I drink coffee I will always prefer Tea. Anyone else for tea?

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Is Capitalism the answer?

To get to a place where we have sustainability in macro and micro economics, I believe that we have two choices.

1. Global State control over everything, a total Communal State, otherwise known as communism.

or

2. Global free markets, free from government control but also free from monopolisation.

The problem with this thinking is that we would never submit to Communism, we live in a world consumed by materialism over quality of life. Therefore you can assume we must now rely on market forces. On capitalist economics to rescue us and create a sustainable global economy.

The problem with this, however, is that we already know that capitalism doesn't create equality. or does it?

Could it be possible that the tools we class as our steps of fairness actually crowd out equality. Could it be that free health care for all halts aspirational development. That the welfare state has now served its time and we need to look to fair open market privatisation.

We can clearly see that it isn't working perfectly in areas such as Energy and Media, but we overlook one thing. We are now in possession of more power than ever before. Through the internet we can communicate across the globe, do business across the globe, but we are also reengaging with our communities. We can produce our own market forces, create our own competition.

Imagine a world where micro and small businesses deliver growth. That is where we need to be heading and to get there we need to innovate.

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Is the Green Revolution just Pea Soup

I have been happily talking about the need for a radical shift towards a low carbon society. A greener and fairer society.

This is something I have believed in for as long as I can remember? A world that lives within it's own means and provides for all, regardless of race, creed, colour or status.

Recently the more I read the more I see the immoral taking control of this Green Revolution. Investors and cowboys making quick bucks from an emerging market.

We need to be sure what we want? If we want long term change for all, we need to step back and look at how we go about it. If each community starts to embrace this idea we can protect against the corrupt world we have now. Failing to do so will see the power held by fewer and fewer people for the detriment of more and more.

Let's get fairer and not let the cash cow cloud the reality.

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Before we get Green we Need to get Stable

Days of reading about sovereign debt crises, and the near apocalyptic impact that a Greek default will have on the global markets, leaves you in a sombre mood.

As we look forward to sustainability as a nice "Green" necessity there is a crying urge to create stability in financial markets. This needs to be focused on longevity and a new future not a return to short term profiteering.

This again raises the question, what does the future look like? Policy and politics needs a rethink. Think long term. The future is beyond the next political cycle. It is beyond the next economic cycle, but creating a stable global economy for all. Forget poverty and wealth, lets look at social values. What matters to people.

For too long we have forgotten people. The power and strength of the individual.

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When the dust has settled...

Last week saw backlash and anger and now the courts have done their processing we may start to move forward.

For all the conversations around punishment and causes and a break down in Society there seems to me to be an elephant in the room. That elephant is the whole of society. Not just a hand full of poor neighbourhoods in a hand full of cities, but the wealthy and privileged are just as much to blame as those committing the violence. Me included and I would never class my self as privileged.

We live in a society driven by consumerism. Our economic growth over the last 20 years has been driven by the expanding middle class spending. Borrowing rose to improve ones possession list. The latest phone, a newer car, the latest fashion, all things we aspire to. Even the most liberal will recognise the growth in local food shops and organic food. This may have an ethical angle but how much of the behaviour is driven by trend and fashion.

So there is a bit of the looter in all of us because we all want better. We all want to improve. Whilst for some of us we are supported and encouraged and shown the right way, some people are forgotten about and it is down to the strength of those individuals to bring themselves out of their predicament. Blame the moral compass but we need to look at where this is pointing. When all we hold dear is ithis and 3D that, there is an underlying problem.

If we want a sustainable society, we cannot all be equals and we need people to have aspirations. However these must be accessible for all. How many "self made millionaires" went to Oxbridge or Eton? How many went to University full stop? Then you look at both front benches in the house of commons. Does that seem a sensible balance?

We are not all the same and therefore what is right for me is not right for my neighbour. Before we decide how to make these communities safer, can we please sit down and listen to these communities instead of telling them what to do. Surely it is that attitude that started the problems.

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The Confusing Colour of Politics

Red is Socialism, Blue is Tory-ism, Yellow is Liberalism and Green is...

Green is bit of all three and then it's own as well.

I have been encouraged recently by such movements as Red Tory-ism and Blue Labour. This to me shows that these parties are realising after 50 years of hard liners and dogmatic principles that they might not be right. There may be a solution other than theirs.

This may be a result of the coalition, or a result of Blair dragging the Labour Party as far right as it ever has been. The question remains, will this continue. Can we coalesce in Politics in the UK. Can we live in an accepting and tolerant society that looks to make long term decisions for the greater good and not short term decisions for votes.

Whatever this will look like in the future it is clear that there will have to be Blue, Yellow, Red and more importantly Green. To make long term changes you need collective support. We cannot progress with minority leadership. a brief look at our train network and its awkward future highlights the matter perfectly.

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How Green is your Business?

Do you know do you care?

Is it about your logo or your practice areas? Is it how your employee's behave in the office?

Is it the way you are approaching new business ideas and opportunities?

In reality you probably don't have the time to lift your head off the desk and when you do, you ask yourself if it really matters.

Some of it won't matter today or next week. Some of it may stop you winning a new client. Eventually it will matter, but when is too late?

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Banks and the future

I have been speaking to a range of people recently on the future of money and in particular the future of finance. The media will tell us that banks are a spent force, but it would seem that actually Governments are a spent force. The threat of credit agencies down grading government ratings is not a step that will encourage them to spend.

So as a result where does that leave funding in the economy. Banks, were never going to be the catalyst. My one wish in all this is that we'd stop expecting them to suddenly open a sluice gate. We are just as much to blame as the Banks are. Ultimately they are controlled by their shareholders and always will be. The mutual movement has signs of hope in the retail sector. The sensible businesses that held true to their business models still have a vital role in the mortgage and saving market. The area that retail finance needs to focus.

But the driving question is growth. Growth will come from business and SME's will be dealt with by the Banks. This is their focus, and we shouldn't punish them for that. Good businesses will continue to get support.

But what about start ups, community enterprises, the big society, renewable energy, co-operatives. I heard a story the other day that the Co-Operative Bank had suggested a new business venture avoid using the Co-Operative model as they didn't understand it.

This world is specialist and not very profitable to big institutions. A call centre couldn't support the demands of micro business. They need coaching, mentoring and support, but as recent micro finance schemes show they can be profitable.

So instead of blaming big Banks, shouting at the Government or thinking we are without solution, we need to start thinking about money and finance differently. There is a new age upon us, an age where money will change in its meaning. We will not just look for interest rates, but for the value our savings can add. Let's start mobilising and stop waiting for a clunky overly complicated Government to tell us what to do.

Big Society Bank in Leeds? Maybe just a community focused mutual in Leeds!

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Sustainability in Leeds

I was reading yesterday the guest blog by Paul Thomas for the Guardian Leeds. The title of which is "Does Leeds want to become a sustainable City". The blog by Paul and the comments following were very interesting reading.

Apparently sustainability is not the way forward in Paul's mind and for other people it absolutely is, we need to be greener, leaner and manage our resources better. However this led me back to my overriding issue with the word sustainability. Whilst I think the word is valuable the use of the word isn't valuable at all.

Having done a quick dictionary search on the meaning of sustainability, it is clear that most people have got it all wrong. It doesn't mean hand made jumpers, beards and long hair. It doesn't mean wind turbines, cycling to work and communal living either. Sustainability derives form sustain, to hold up, to provide, to support.

With this piece of insight why would anybody not want a sustainable society? One where communities support each other. Where food, housing and transport needs are met for all. Does this sound like a society restricted from growth or consumption? No, it is purely a society that sustains itself.

Should Leeds be a sustainable city? Yes, undoubtedly. For the benefit of its citizens it should be sustainable. Now we can talk about how, but I think the bigger question is whether Leeds can be a sustainable City? More importantly does it have it in it to break some barriers and be different?

Is our future Nuclear?

Recent, tragic occurrences in Japan have raised yet more concerns over the use of Nuclear power in the long term. The government has been a key driver in the establishment of Nuclear Fuels in the UK funding research and build costs of power stations up and down the country.

However, this is also, potentially, the most environmentally damaging energy source. Whilst it is low carbon and a good chunk of the material can be recycled it can have devastating implications on the global environment when it goes wrong. The mining of Uranium is hardly clean either.

The question has to be, why does the government continue to support and plough capital into Nuclear power but is so reticent to do so with true renewable energy such as tidal, wave, wind and hydro? With our geography and topography these are surely where our future energy opportunities are. When will people sit up and start thinking long term.

I am sure that all those NIMBY's who oppose wind turbines would rather have 20 turbines on the landscape than a new Nuclear Power Station on their doorstep. It seems to be that we have to start making that choice sooner rather than later, however to achieve the scale needed we need national and local government to support with more than just words.

Can we really change?

I was at a climate change meeting yesterday where the challenge was put to the group to shift from a linear to a circular economy.

The challenges were made around market forces driving change and innovation and how cities can develop naturally as ecosystems.

In reality, the will always be a wasteful race. We have always been. Recycling has been around for years but is not in our nature. We are developed beings that will always be wasteful with the resources we have. We will be greedy and take resource from others.

Can we truly change how we behave and live? Do we have the courage to forget about self? Can you change?

An economy we can no longer service...

I have just been reading an article outline the work done by Tesco and Sainsburys creating jobs in growing stores and they call this Corporate Responsibility (CR).

Do we now have to rely on charity from Corporates to create new jobs? Have we completely lost the idea and hope of a growing economy?

I have always being troubled by the statistic that 80% of UK employment is in the form of the Service industry. Not making primary or secondary industry but pure tertiary work, servicing the consumers in the UK. We are continually recycling our income and wealth and with a growing rate of unemployment these service industries are under threat as the disposable income to service each other will diminish.

The early noughties supported this shift in employment as more people had money, could borrow money etc.. but as the economy declines so does the value of this economy. As it grew itself it will also shrink itself.

We need to radically look at where jobs can be created and where the value in our economy should be coming from. Not emerging opportunities but existing opportunities in a global market.

Tribal Movement

Will sustainability ever become a mass market "tribal" idea. It seems that few people get it. Those that do, live it and are passionate about. Those that don't, steer clear and those in the middle are totally apathetic to it.

Do we try to force people to live more sustainably, do we financial encourage them to do it or do we take the lead and show them what the difference is.

The Green Party in the UK has exactly this challenge. Annomously their policies appeal to people, probably enough to be a major political force in the UK. The wrapper however isn't so appealing.

Is it just the brand, is it the apathy or is it that we need to stop talking about sustainability and talk about equality, fairness and economic value??

Quick ways to make a difference.

Replace a regular incandescent light bulb with low energy light bulbs.
CFLs use 60% less energy than a regular bulb. This switch will save about 300 pounds of carbon dioxide a year. Try multiplying that around your house and it soon starts making a big difference.

Localism and Global Issues

Localism has been something I have been passionate about for several years now. The idea of developing local communities, helping people re-engage with their neighbourhood and preventing big corporate culture from dominating our high streets.

With a low carbon economy, these ideas begin to be more relevant as we look at restrictions on global travel, renewable energy production requiring smart grids to be effective etc.. But we still live in a planet challenged by resource deprivation, mass poverty and poor health care.

I have heard the saying charity begins at home all my life and I do agree that principle, but if we focus purely on our neighbour do we miss a chance to make real change.

In reality our neighbour has never been further away, whilst at the same time never closer. The communications era has lead to a shrinking world. Someone living in my village has never read my blog, but I know people as far away as South Korea have. Does the term neighbour redefining in our global network.

The skills and ideas that we generate in the UK are equally relevant in South Korea, Libya or Argentina. Whilst the Global mastodons will continue to grow and reach new markets so the challenge of localism becomes ever more important. Towns in the sub continent and Africa need the skills and ideas to become self supproting to create jobs and provide food for their families in the same way that we do.

We should not be focussed on localism solving local issues but localism and networks of locallities changing the global framework and reinventing how we live our life.

What do we want??

In any democracy we have some freedom and some restricition. This may seem like a very un democratic thing to say but with the budget cuts announced we have no real power to stop these from happening. Further to that, was the detail of the CSR (Comprehensive Spending Review) ever consulted with the public, did it hold firm to what the electorate wanted in the General Elecltion?

It is clear in my mind that the British people have less say now than they ever have. The demise of the Unions and reduction of community cohesion have meant that apathy is here in full effect. I am guessing there will be more out cry over Wagner staying in the X Factor than there will be over the CSR.

How do we recover from this? Can we recover from this? Is this Sustainable?

Innovation to Save Public Services

It is clear from all the media and feedback from the government that 2011 will be a difficult year and we will be faced with devastating cuts to our public sector budgets.

I wonder how many people in leadership across the Public Sector are thinkning outside the box. If the cuts are 20% and the obvious way is to cut salaries and employment numbers, why not wholesale reduce staff working hours? Or is this too simple.

In my mind 20% cuts means a 4 day working week? Why not look at job sharing, increased office hours weekend work. This would have both the desired effect on the budget but also have a massive impact on the service offering of a local authority. Further to this there would be the social beneifts of people still being in employment, not a ground swell of benefit and support claims, as well as the quality of life, work life balance, reduction in congestion around rush hours etc...

The cuts will be big and challenging but now, surely, is the time look at new models and not just to follow a blinkered policy of job losses and service reduction.

Changing the Future

Somebody said to me earlier in the week that business will seek locations with quality local energy supply. This is 15 maybe 20 years down the line but two things struck me. It is within my working lifetime (not just my lifetime), and it is a real issue.

Fossil fuel depletion is challenge for all of us. How much it costs us to commute to work, go to the shops, heat our house in winter and where we go on holiday in the summer. For business leaders it is even more of an issue. How do I keep my manufacturing plant running 6 days a week, how much does that cost me, can I afford to run a data centre in this location, where is my power coming from?

For most of us this is a bridge we will cross when we get to it. Electric/Hydrogen car, solar heating, a wind turbine in the garden. When my fuel bills hit £300/month I'll think about it.

But what about our policy makers, our leaders today and our leaders in the future. Are they planning, getting ready, pushing boundaries and making changes? If they aren't what are you doing to help them realise? What can you do? You'll find it is more than you realise...

Localism - Challenge or Opportunity

There are a whole raft of challenges floating around at the moment in terms of the local offering. Whether this is around LEPs, social enterprise developments around the "Big Society" or even the local stock exchange idea. It seems in politics we are desperate to make changes and put our stamp on a project and retain ownership. The idea of the big society is interesting as is the formulation of LEPs. There is no stipulated framework or booklet of guidelines. As a result we seem to struggle with this as a society. We have been told what to do and how to do it for so long we seem to rely on others to make decisions.
This is a unique opportunity for empowerment of individuals and communities to make a real difference and throw out the rule book. But let's not reform what we are trying to get rid of. We need to start again, build from the bottom up and engage with those looking for the change. We all see areas where change is needed whether it is local authority duplication, disengagement or crumbling communities. Now is the time to make your voice heard, take action and feel empowered. No rule book is an opportunity not only for those in power to make radical changes but for those who feel they have no voice to find one.

First Steps

It seems that sustainability is everywhere at the moment. From Bankers bonuses to the ultra liberal green and anti globalisation movements.

In the end it is just a word and as with all words can hide a multitude of steps. Using sustainability in a brochure or literature doesn't make you sustainable. A food company who only produce 3% waste can't be sustainable when it transports its raw material from the far east to the UK to make ready meals for the masses. A bank who invest in bonds and stocks on short terms to make quick revenue aren't sustainable, if they were there wouldn't be a pension gap or global financial crisis.

"Sustainability" is not about words and glossy brochures containing them, it is about behaviours. As a world and as a country we have a long way to go but to achieve this dream of sustainability we need to start with small steps. Simple behaviour, such as using local shops, turning down the washing machine, cutting down food waste and turning down the thermostat. Simple in theory...?