Collaborate with colleagues
As an employee, everyone can help – whether you’re in marketing or product design, procurement or administration. There’s a chance for change at every stage.
Find out how to engage your colleagues in the discussion and work out who to get involved.
Build your team
Get ready to start a conversation
Every organisation is at a different point along the journey to sustainability and bringing nature into their thinking.
Before starting a conversation with colleagues, you might want to explore what your organisation is already doing and what more it could do.
What is already being done?
There might be initiatives, policies or practices that already exist - take a look at your employee handbook, intranet pages or annual impact report
Talk to your manager about where to start and how best to start this conversation in your business. You might want to draw upon the reasons why this matters for your business and how starting this conversation will support your personal development.
Don't do this alone
If your organisation has a sustainability team or colleague, reach out!
Other organisations have already started to bring nature into their business. Watch the Save Our Wild Isles films ‘The Business of Nature’ to see what different sectors can do.
Download pre-conversation checklist
Click here to download the full checklist
REACH OUT
It can be daunting to start a conversation about a topic that isn’t currently being thought about or you don’t feel an expert in. Here are some different approaches for how to reach out and frame the conversation:
Keep it simple
Get started by talking to colleagues who you know are already interested in nature and climate.
Plus 1s.
Ask your colleagues to each bring one other person into the conversation – increasing your reach and bringing in new perspectives.
The open invite.
Depending on the scale and structures of where you work, you might want to open this conversation up from the start - using public spaces to extend the invite that could look anything like: a notice on the kitchen cupboard, to an email, to something on the intranet.
INVITE A COLLEAGUE NOW
If you’re short on time, use these templates to reach out to your colleagues.
Hi [name],
The UK is one of the most nature-depleted countries in the world, and all workplaces, no matter their size or what they do, have a huge impact on the natural world.
I’m interested in exploring how we might bring more nature into our business - understanding more about how our business impacts nature and where we can change that for the better. It would be great to start a conversation where we can share what we know already, ask questions and start to spot where there might be opportunities to do more for nature.
I’d like to start by initiating a wider discussion on [your area of focus e.g., supply chain]. As the [job title/expert in supply chains...], would you be interested in joining me for a quick coffee/tea to discuss how you may support in initiating a wider conversation about [supply chains] at [company name]?
I look forward to hearing from you,
[sign-off]
Hi [name],
The UK is one of the most nature-depleted countries in the world, and all workplaces, no matter their size or what they do, have a huge impact on the natural world.
I’m interested in exploring how we might bring more nature into our business - understanding more about how our business impacts nature and where we can change that for the better. It would be great to start a conversation where we can share what we know already, ask questions and start to spot where there might be opportunities to do more for nature.
I’d like to start by initiating a wider discussion on [your area of focus e.g., supply chain]. As the [job title/expert in supply chains...], I’d like to set up a meeting with you to discuss how you may support in initiating a wider conversation about [supply chains] at [company name]. Do you have [30 minutes/1 hour] this week to catch-up?
Let me know,
[sign-off]
Hi [name],
The UK is one of the most nature-depleted countries in the world, and all workplaces, no matter their size or what they do, have a huge impact on the natural world.
I’m interested in exploring how we might bring more nature into our business - understanding more about how our business impacts nature and where we can change that for the better. It would be great to start a conversation where we can share what we know already, ask questions and start to spot where there might be opportunities to do more for nature.
I’d like to start by initiating a wider discussion on [your area of focus e.g., supply chain]. As the [job title/expert in supply chains...], I’d like to set up a short workshop with yourself and a few other key colleagues to discuss how you may support in initiating a wider conversation about [supply chains] at [company name]. Do you have [X hours] between [date range] to join a workshop?
I look forward to hearing from you,
[sign-off]
LIGHTEN THE LOAD
Go where the energy is
You don’t need to take everyone with you at once, start the conversation with others in the organisation who are interested in ‘how we might bring more nature into our business?’
Start small
Bringing more nature into your business won’t happen overnight. You might start with just a coffee or lunch chat to build your understanding and identify opportunities to do more for nature. Formal meetings and workshops can always come later!
Ideas not answers
Starting the conversation doesn't mean finding all of the solutions. Your excitement and enthusiasm to spot opportunities will help you to take the first steps
Take the next step.
