Irish marketers urged to be more sustainable

Nine out out of 10 Irish consumers are calling on advertisers and marketers to encourage more sustainable behaviours post Covid-19. As part of a new initiative, the Irish advertising and marketing industry plans to gather online at 1pm next Thursday (September 10) to discuss implications of a new study as part of The Great Reset movement.

Register for the free event here

The Great Reset Ireland (GRI) team is a growing collective of Irish marketers who have teamed up with The Purpose Disruptors and IAPI to host the event aimed at understanding how everyone involved in the industry can start resetting themselves, their work and their impact when it comes to the global climate crisis that continues to grow in urgency.

Why now? Global emissions have decreased by seven per cent due to lockdown, which the UN states is the same annual reduction required to keep global warming to 1.5 degrees. As the world starts to ‘reopen’ and return to a ‘new normal’, there is a small yet urgent window of opportunity not to let this progress slide. But action is needed now.

B&A undertook research to uncover the Irish perspective on people’s expectations of the ad industry, post-lockdown. The results were unanimous – the Irish public demands sustainable change from advertisers and communicators, with 90 per cent of the Irish public asking adland to behave more sustainably as they did during lockdown.

Change across society

In B&A interviews with 1,009 Irish adults last month, showed that 82 per cent of respondents believe that businesses who are navigating out of the pandemic need to do their part for the environment. Almost 60 per cent of consumers agree that the Covid-19 crisis has positioned business for a Great Reset that puts people and planets needs first.

Luke Reaper, managing director, B&A, said the research highlights the opportunity to tap into the broader movement for change across society. “People are in a reflective mood, and will be for a while, and engaging with a socially compelling, yet realistic stance is likely to prove fruitful. The reality of the harsh economic climate must be acknowledged and the ‘Reset’ needs to factor the latter in to ensure broader appeal outside of the converted,” he added.

Great Reset Ireland (GRI)

The GRI team, led and inspired by Purpose Disruptors UK, is a group of Irish-based marketing, communications and advertising professionals who believe that this moment presents us with an opportunity to reset, together, on a grand scale in the name of people and planet. We believe that to return to business as usual now is to reject an open opportunity for our industry to fight the climate crisis. Those involved in GRI include: