How can sustainability and creativity co-exist?

The surprise rain in Cannes cleared up on Thursday afternoon just in time for a thought-provoking discussion on sustainability and creativity, courtesy of PwC.

Chaired by AdGreen Project Director, Jo Fenn, the panellists took a deep dive into the production challenges every agency faces when it comes to shooting a brilliant creative which does not come with a carbon-heavy travel budget.

Joining the discussion were Dave Rolfe, Global Head of Production, WPP and Hogarth; James Morris, CEO EMEA and UK for Creative, dentsu; Darren Khan, Chief Commercial Officer for Clickon Group and Traci Dunne, Global Director of Industry Relations for APR.

The panel covered vast ground from the imperative for sustainability and creativity to coexist – as legal regulations in terms of corporate responsibility are coming – to case studies showing that adapting a shoot with sustainability in mind, is more than possible.

It also raised the need for our industry to have experts on sustainability – but we do need leaders to take responsibility. This week’s launch of our Ad Net Zero Global roll-out was cited as an example of how to take the lead in terms of action, with AdGreen and its carbon calculator being part of the second action on reducing carbon in production.

While much can still be done to motivate the industry to become more carbon literate, motivation also lies in finding space for optimism. To conclude, panellists were asked to give one sentence on a positive thought for the future.

Create within the world, not outside of it, was Dave Rolfe’s advice.

Problems engineer creativity, said James Morris, and we should be excited about the responsibility we have to shape what modern creativity could look like.

Darren Khan added it was important to see how quickly things are moving.

Traci Dunne remarked that seven years ago AdGreen was not part of the industry and now it’s featuring front-and-centre in Cannes. Maintaining the momentum and collaboration is critical now.

Jo Fenn concluded the panel saying we must keep sharing the work we are doing. And on that note, to find out more about how we can learn from each other – you can visit AdNetZero.com and weareadgreen.org