Photo of the face of a chameleon, a mosaic of orange, red and green scales. Pic by DrPrattDatta on Wikimedia
Earlier this summer saw the launch of London-based Lawyers for NetZero, a peer network for in-house counsel. But which other unlikely professions are changing from the inside out?
It's going to need all of us, working from wherever we find ourselves, to create some kind of soft landing within the turbulence. While it's not so surprising to see scientists (e.g. Scientists for Global Responsibility (SGR), with their Science Oath for the Climate) and coaches (e.g. the Climate Coaching Alliance) mobilising to bring their expertise to work on the climate emergency, people from more unexpected fields and professions are too.
Military
For currently serving and former military personnel, UK-based, the Armed Forces Network for Sustainability Leadership is a peer-to-peer network helping people put sustainability issues into their current work, or to find a career in sustainability when they leave the services. Not a place for activism or overt challenge, but for like-minded people to find and help each other.
Aviation
Small so far, and looking as if its activity is behind-the-scenes for the time being, Safe Landing is the network for people working in aviation (pilots, air crew, ground crew etc) who want to work out what a just transition looks like for the industry. There's more about the founder's vision here.
Actuaries
Actuaries are maths and statistics geniuses who work in insurance and pensions, and other fields where probability and risk are key to long-term decisions. The Institute of Actuaries is a professional body, and within it members have set up a Sustainability Board and Sustainable Development Goals member interest group. As part of a Chartered professional body, this network doesn't look like it plans to rock the boat, but instead will help interested professionals find each other, research and share knowledge.
Sport
Olympians from over 200 countries and 33 sports (339 medal events) have been demonstrating their focus and tenacity this month. As far back as 1990, the original sports and environment organisation Surfers Against Sewage was founded. More recently, Rowers again Rubbish, Protect Our Winters (for winter sports) and Champions for Earth (harnessing the energy of retired elite athletes) have joined them.
Communications and advertising
A large proportion of people working in communications, advertising and creative consultancy do so through agencies and work for clients. So it can feel as if the power is all with the businesses which pay the bills. These networks help members get bolder about saying which clients they won't work with, and which kinds of products, services or policies they won't promote. Clean Creatives is a pledge to decline future contracts with the fossil fuel industry. Creative and Climate similarly features a pledge, this time on transparency about 'high carbon' clients. Based in Australia, CommsDeclare asks agencies to "Choose your next clients with the climate in mind" and has also issued an open creative brief to show ‘fossil fuels are the new tobacco’.
Rich, powerful families
Not a profession as such, but some people are born into dynasties which give them disproportionate influence. The Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership, part of the University of Cambridge, has just launched its first executive education programme for people from families like this. The Multi-generational Leadership Programme's alumni network will be something special. CISL has experience of educating the upcoming generations of powerful families, most notably a bespoke programme for Prince William in 2014.
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These networks vary between being explicitly activist and challenging, to ones which are more focused on peer learning, collaborative research and career-focused networking. Whatever their attitude, they speak to an increasing understanding that all our work is climate work now. Let me know about others that have caught your eye.
Making the Path by Walking
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