It is becoming increasingly important that organisational policymakers make decisions with sustainability in mind. Though households remain the largest users of energy (37%) in the UK, they are closely followed by the service (30%) and industry (29%) sectors. It is already broadly accepted that organisations will have to play a role in achieving Net Zero by 2050, with many businesses publishing their own sustainability statements and strategies. But are businesses focusing their efforts on the actions required? There is an abundance of social science research in the context of energy and sustainability that has relevance for businesses considering how they might tackle their carbon footprint. Academic research, however, is laden with specialist language that makes it difficult to understand by those outside of the field – especially troubling when those with the power to make the changes needed are not academics. It is urgent, then, that academics better consider how they explain and communicate their research. TELLING A TALE Along with colleagues, I have tried to tackle this problem by making use of fairy tale characters as metaphors to translate research insights in digestible and memorable ways. Fairy tales are already well known and understood, providing fertile ground for us to become more creative in communicating research. Though fairy tales are now considered the stuff of childhood, their history lends them well to this cause, having previously played crucial roles in communicating moral and social codes to adults and children alike. Our research describes three comparisons, but I focus here on the case with the most relevance for organisations: renewable energy as mermaids. A SIREN’S CALL Simply put, businesses have become enticed by the mermaid that is renewable energy. It is common to see a move towards renewable energy forms in corporate sustainability strategies. For example, four of the UK’s largest corporations (Barclays, Unilever, Tesco, and GlaxoSmithKline) have implemented a switch towards, and major investment in, renewable energy. Smaller scale operations, too, have focused on how renewable energy sources could lessen their costs and carbon footprint. In the UK, these efforts most often focus on wind power – with technologies like turbines harnessing an abundant natural source for energy production. The allure is unsurprising. Renewable energy is an attractive solution. It is a relatively cheap form of energy production, increases energy security, and reduces some forms of pollution. But it is not just these qualities that make it so attractive. The mermaid calls to us, implying that it not the social organisation of business practices that is the problem. It is simply the technologies used to harness and generate energy supplies. If the problem is technological, little change is presumed to be required in the form of demand reduction. Business can, thankfully, continue as usual. 12 |
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy NTI5NzM=