Pathway to Progress was the theme of Ad Net Zero Ireland’s first sustainability summit supported by the Association of Advertisers in Ireland (AAI), the Marketing Institute (MII) and the Institute of Advertising Practitioners in Ireland (IAPI) in the CHQ building in Dublin. The progress sentiment was carried through the morning with presentations, case studies and a panel discussion from agency, platform and brand managers.
Peter Nolan from how his company Indeed acts as a global backer of the initiative and how it has helped them align to a framework that has supported their work across the business. Thomas Geoghegan from PHD Media and Ciara Breen from Skoda Ireland presented their sustainability campaign. Gareth Fitzpatrick of Havas Media spoke about bridging the ‘Say Do’ gap for consumers and the need to work with experts to set ambitions.
Michelle Rowley from Heineken Ireland presented ‘Heineken’s Greener Bar’ initiative from last year’s Electric Picnic. She explained the work under three headings – rethink, reuse and recycle. Mary O’Sullivan from Ad Net Zero spoke about the five action point framework and the resources that are available for all supporters to access and how important it is to get started. Shane McGonigle, CEO, Marketing Institute, chaired a panel discussion.
Thinking differently
On the panel were David Heaney from Diageo, Claire Hyland from Thinkhouse, Sandra Doyle from Global Out of Home and Colette Henry from Droga5. The take home from the panel? The need for marketers to start thinking differently about sustainability; taking it out of ‘green groups’ and placing it at the heart of every business. Start thinking about the gap between what consumers say they want versus what they actually buy and why.
Our job is not to make humans more sustainable, but to make sustainability more human
Ad Net Zero is a global initiative to support all professionals working within the media, advertising and production industry, and help them in their drive to lower emissions and help safeguard the planet’s future for new generations. The framework is now in operation in Ireland, the United Kingdom, New Zealand, the United States, United Arab Emirates (UAE). It has a hub to support other European countries with their sustainability agendas.
Above: Michelle Rowley, Heineken Ireland, speaking at the Ad Net Zero summit in CHQ
