Introducing the people making Phiture more green, inside and out. In 2019 we decided to establish a dedicated Climate Team at Phiture, aiming to help the company make more green choices and take responsibility for our role in the climate crisis. We joined Leaders for Climate Action, a collective of hundreds of different German companies all working towards becoming more sustainable, and implemented some key foundations for working towards a more eco-conscious future for Phiture.

Join the team as they discuss their wins of 2019 and their highest hopes for 2020.

Wins of 2019

Tessa, Senior Growth Consultant

My personal highlight was convincing all of Phiture to join the Global Climate Strike on the 20th of September 2019. This was the catalyst for us working towards becoming a climate-friendly and carbon-neutral company and bringing the climate emergency to the forefront of everyone’s minds.

Justyna, Designer

The Climate Team started out with the idea of appointing a single Climate Officer. Over three months, it spontaneously grew to a team of six people. That is a huge win in my opinion.

Stuart, Design Team Lead

It was super important to successfully calculate our carbon footprint after joining Leaders for Climate Action. But actually the biggest win was the formation of the Climate Team in the first place. I think making that first step was the most important. Whatever comes after that is a bonus.

Rachael, Copywriter

I’m relatively new to the company and I was really excited to find that Phiture even had a Climate Team. I think a lot of companies talk the talk, but don’t walk the walk. So a big win for me was being given the space during our workdays to help Phiture be more proactive about climate change.

Karan, Growth Consultant

I think the general awareness of everyone in the office regarding important issues, combined with small actions like changing our search browsers to Ecosia, replacing our milk with a plant-based alternative and thinking about how we travel have been hugely significant this year. These actions have crept into my personal life as well. For instance, I have a huge family back in India and I am very proud of the fact that I got all of them to move to Ecosia as well!

Top Priority for 2020

Tessa

I want to introduce better policies when traveling to visit clients or attending conferences. If we can take the train somewhere then let’s do that instead of flying, even if it takes longer. Train travel can be fun!

Justyna

I would like for Phiture to be an example to other companies, which would allow our actions to have even more impact.

Stuart

I would like to encourage the company as a whole to become more involved in one or two projects. There are a couple of things we want to achieve all together as a Climate Team, but the idea behind Leaders for Climate Action is more or less about spreading awareness of the problem itself and the fact that everyone is, in some way, responsible. Ideally, we would execute something in 2020 that really gets everyone involved, rather than something we do and tell the rest of the company about.

Rachael

I would love to build up more of a community with other companies in Berlin or even further afield who are also members of Leaders for Climate Action, or similar initiatives. We have put some great ideas and plans into action here at Phiture, but I’m sure there is more we could be doing that we haven’t thought of yet. Hearing from other like-minded people would be really interesting on that front.

Karan

Phiture is known for its powerful knowledge sharing, and if we are able to do that as well as get more companies on board with these small actions, I think that would be a step forward for us.

Advice to Become More Green

Tessa

Quite simply, eat less meat and dairy.

Justyna

Going more ‘green’ usually means going out of your comfort zone, which is why it’s good to take one step at a time. What worked well in my case was setting monthly challenges for myself, which allowed me to gradually introduce changes and eventually make them a habit.

Stuart

I was going to say eat organic food because I did a lot of research about that at university, and it’s not about the health benefits or the taste or anything like that, it’s actually about the production methods, which have a far greater trickle-down effect than we think. But I read recently that taking one long-distance flight can undo all the other activities that you have in your green arsenal. So I would say if you can switch out even just one flight for a bus or train or even a ship, then that’s a pretty good step.

Rachael

Buy local! A huge part of our modern market, particularly in Europe and America, relies on transporting goods across the world. Trying to buy groceries from local farmer’s markets, or checking the label to see where it came from in the supermarket can help cut down the amount of transportation needed to supply your goods. Similarly, avoid ordering online, especially from other countries. If you can, get out on to your high street or local shops, and see what you can find there first.

Karan

Be conscious of your carbon footprint. There’s no need to think and act drastically; what’s more important is to start with small, actionable things you can start doing tomorrow which are good for the environment.

Interested in finding out more about Leaders for Climate Action, the initiative that kick-started Phiture’s journey to becoming more green? Head over to their website or get in touch with a member of our Climate Team on [email protected].