One planet. Many perspectives. Better ideas.
Many hands make light work. And many minds make smart work.
It’s true for any project, but it’s especially true for climate change. It’s urgent. It’s complicated. We need to get to net zero and arrive at a better future for all. There isn’t one clear path to follow. And old ideas don’t apply.
Thinking about things differently helps us come up with different solutions faster. It’s the key to creating new business models, new processes and new ways of working.
But true innovation comes from different backgrounds, experiences and motivations weaving together to imagine a better future - and then to create it. Here’s how we’re approaching it for climate change.
Meet the climate team
We’re lucky to have a diverse climate team. They’re all working towards to same goal but are approaching it from different walks of life - armed with the lessons they’ve learnt along the way.
To help our clients and our people get to know them, we created our ‘Meet the climate team’ series – a collection of short personal interviews that explore their areas of expertise and how they support our clients and our business to move faster on climate change.
Here’s Laila, Veronica and Viv. Their careers had very different starting points, but they all found their way to our climate team, where they’re developing solutions to make a difference.
Laila Takeh: net zero strategist and veg grower
Laila was concerned about climate change at an early age. Raised in an Iranian-English household, she was always aware of what was happening in the wider world and wanted to do something to help. It’s what led her to pursue a career working with charities and social enterprises after leaving university.
“Connecting the public and private sectors to create shared value is really powerful,” says Laila. In her role leading our net zero transformation team, she uses her experience of working with organisations such as UNICEF (she was there when the Sustainable Development Goals were formed…) to help clients think about how they can transition their strategy and operations to thrive in a low carbon economy.
“The future I see is one where there ceases to be a social value strategy versus a revenue-generating strategy. It’s one and the same thing.”
Discover more: Laila's story
Veronica Poole: corporate reporting leader and transparency advocate
You can’t change what you can’t see, which is why Veronica is passionate about using transparency as a tool to advance climate action.
After studying mathematics in Russia (where she was also a ballet dancer and competitive swimmer!), Veronica married a Brit and moved to the UK, where she became an accountant. But it was a once in a lifetime diving trip that inspired her to use her role to change the way business is done: “I realised I could use my position to change the way business is done. The way investments are made. And ultimately, the impact business has on society.”
As our Global International Finance Reporting Standards & corporate reporting leader, Veronica plays a leading role in profession-wide changes around Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) reporting. Her career highlight so far? The work on comprehensive corporate reporting that she helped facilitate with the World Economic Forum.
“Society looks to business to make the right contribution on important topics like climate. Business can and should do that, but greater transparency is absolutely critical."
Discover more: Veronica's story
Viv Raval: net zero champion and ocean explorer
From studying economics in Nottingham to travelling the high seas and generating new sustainability agreements at COP26 – Viv’s been on quite a journey. He served 14 years in the Royal Navy before joining Deloitte and his time at sea is where his motivation to help protect the planet originates; “I remember seeing a vast array of wildlife while on the oceans – from penguins in the Falklands, hatching turtles in the Ascension islands, and whales and dolphins swimming alongside the ship. This made me want to protect and nurture this diversity.”
Now that his feet are back on dry land, Viv uses his expertise to guide and inform sustainability policymakers. By building a repository of the climate action that the private sector is taking, Viv helps businesses have more informed discussions leading to more impactful decisions.
“I want to see a global economy that puts purpose first. One where business can flourish but is encouraged to give something back.”
Discover more: Viv's story
Everyone, everywhere, all at once
We’ve loved speaking with our climate team to find out how each one found themselves where they are today - and the kind of world they’re working towards. They give us hope about the future and inspiration as to how each of us can play a role in taking action on climate change.
For Susan, it’s making sure we’re more reliant on green energy and living healthier lifestyles.
For Neliswa, it’s about empathy and putting ourselves in others’ shoes when making decisions.
For Molly, it’s helping our own firm do the most we can to reduce the impact of our operations.
For Daniel, it’s seeing innovation and technologies solve today’s problems in creative ways.
And for Jess, it’s transitioning to a green economy where nature and humans not only co-exist but thrive.
You can find the full series here. What kind of world would you like to see in 50 years? How could your specific skills and background contribute to a better future for all?
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