Connecting on climate change

Conversations in Cannes on climate change have prevailed throughout the festival, and this morning industry leaders convened at the Google Beach to discuss the CMO’s role in driving sustainability.

Hosted by Google President EMEA, Matt Brittin, the panel featured our colleague Jo Fenn, AdGreen Project Director; Mark Read, CEO of WPP and Denise Truelove, Global Brand Director of Mars Petcare.

Introducing the session, Google’s Matt Brittin emphasised the urgency of the climate emergency. He referenced the timely announcement of Ad Net Zero’s global expansion, our initiative to drive advertising operations to net zero by 2030, which was revealed in the Cannes Lions Palais earlier this week.

Building on this, Jo Fenn gave an overview of the steps the industry can grasp as part of the Ad Net Zero action plan, and introduced the AdGreen Carbon Calculator, a tool for calculating and helping to reduce the carbon in ad production.

“How can we still have an amazing creative impact on a reduced carbon budget?”, Jo asked the audience. Over 800 projects have used AdGreen’s new tool since its launch last year, with the ultimate message being we need to change the way we approach productions.

Adding to the case for carbon calculators, WPP’s Mark Read shared analysis that 95% of filming shots from productions currently aren’t used in the final creative, with proactive steps now being taken to reduce and reuse footage. Ultimately, he said, there is a business incentive to become more sustainable because it provides for greater efficiencies. He also highlighted the importance of net zero to media owners who will be in a stronger position to secure bigger shares of their client’s budgets.

Fresh from a Cannes Lions win, the session also saw Denise Truelove of Mars Petcare showcase the Hope Reef campaign for Sheba cat food, which won an Industry Craft Grand Prix with UK agency AMV BBDO. The campaign showed an ocean restoration project with Sheba regrowing a living coral reef, with the remarkable results viewable on Google Maps and Google Earth.

The session rounded up with each panellist giving practical advice for those listening.

Don’t be overwhelmed by this challenge, Denise said, as progress over perfection is what matters when it comes to tackling the climate crisis. Set your ambition high and just start, just do something.

Jo pointed to adnetzero.com as a fantastic place to start for audience members looking for a guide to the action plan. In addition, the Ad Net Zero Essentials training arms our industry with the knowledge to get going.

Data was Mark’s suggestion. Having a quantified map of the problem, and using data to understand our impact on the planet is vital. But “it’s not going to be easy”, he added.

The session concluded with questions and comments from the audience, with our CEO Stephen Woodford calling out to companies across the world to join Ad Net Zero. You can find out more and sign up at adnetzero.com