Is sustainability the key to unlocking the UK’s economic potential?

Back in the earlier stages of my career, I spent time working in the South West of the UK on a project focused on how the role of technology could enable greater economic growth, in an area which traditionally saw people migrate during the week to elsewhere in the UK for work, impacting the overall economic prosperity of the region. My work involved understanding how, by building high-speed digital infrastructure, we could retain skills within the area in the long term, by, amongst other things, encouraging remote working.

Although technology and ways of working have evolved considerably since then, the focus on how to keep and attract the best talent in the UK is one that remains, and the principles of this challenge can be applied to the skills required to address the looming climate crisis.

It was with this reflection in mind that I much enjoyed attending Microsoft UK’s ‘Future Work in the South West’ event last month. This one-day event, which was held at the Met Office headquarters in Exeter, comprised panels, workshops, and networking to provide local business owners and leaders from key sectors such as construction, manufacturing, and tourism with the tools to unlock growth from the skills shift happening in the region.

I enjoyed facilitating one of the live workshops, which focused on sustainability targets and milestones, the importance of digital skills in the future green economy, and ways that small and medium businesses can kickstart their net zero strategy.

At Microsoft, we appreciate it is challenging to make and meet meaningful carbon reduction goals without the ability to measure carbon emissions. As such, our discussion focused on:

The meaning of net zero – a global definition for any net zero commitment grounded in both carbon removal and reduction

The measurement of net zero – protocols and digital tools to ensure that progress reported on an accounting statement is truly progress

The markets to support net zero – both the financial and human investment needed across the economy

Microsoft takes the journey to net zero seriously. We have set bold commitments and outlined detailed plans to be carbon negative, zero waste, and water positive by 2030 and to build a new Planetary Computing platform to help monitor, model, and manage Earth's natural systems. These commitments are in line with the UK government’s ambitious 25-year plan to protect flora and fauna and improve air and water quality.

Whilst UK employers have made a lot of progress in meeting the goals outlined in the plan, there is still a long way to go. The 2021 Microsoft Sustainability Research Report found that 59% of UK organisations are set to miss the UK's 2050 net zero target unless they take urgent action to accelerate their sustainable strategies.

The South West region has a natural opportunity to play a leading role in supporting these ambitions as it is home to over 50% of England’s heritage coast designations. The region has received over ￡60 million to research and develop offshore floating wind turbines which will create 3,000 jobs. However, one key element is missing: the people to make these ambitions a reality.

A skilled workforce is necessary if we are to fully realise the opportunities of the green economy.

These jobs and future roles created by the transition to a green economy require a workforce with the right skills—not only skills in environmental goods and services, but also the ability to help businesses use natural resources efficiently and sustainably and be resilient to climate change.

What does this mean in practice? It means that the future workforce will be heavily reliant on people with strong scientific and technical skills, such as data scientists and those with skills to design and adopt technologies, and processes that increase resource efficiency and climate resilience – including lean manufacturing. And who can design, operate, and monitor a wide range of systems. Proficiency in areas such as cloud computing, big data, artificial intelligence (AI), and other emerging technologies will become ever more important.

Consider, for example, the Exeter-based company Quanterra Systems, which is using AI to measure indicators of ecosystem health. Quanterra is just one example of many of companies using AI to scale solutions critical to fighting climate change.

Technology is paramount in helping organisations reach net zero without having to compromise performance. A workforce equipped with the right skills will allow us to realise the promises of today’s technologies and grow the South West’s economy sustainably in an increasingly green future.

For those who would like to learn more, please see the latest Microsoft sustainability report, Cloud for Sustainability page, and The Building Blocks for Net Zero Transformation report.

The climate-related challenges we face may have grown more complex and urgent over time, but the lessons from the early days of my career remain. By all working together, we can achieve lasting impact. What are you doing to drive sustainability in your business - would love to hear in the comments below.