The Business Case for Sustainability

This talk will provide a short introduction to environmental sustainability and why it’s so much more than just recycling your yoghurt pot or buying an electric car.

Having seen that it’s a broad and complicated topic, we’ll highlight some of the techniques that individuals and businesses can use to reduce their impact and start to make a difference. We will introduce the courses available for those wanting to develop their knowledge and improve their business performance. Runtime is approx. 40 minutes.

Meet the speakers

Alicja Holland – IEMA Practitioner, MAAT.

Alicja has extensive experience in the sustainability industry alongside her own accounting business which means she gets to share how sustainability and finance work side by side within other businesses and help others grow their own businesses sustainably. Through this, she also teaches accounting and bookkeeping as an associate lecturer for West Suffolk College, as well IEMA courses as an accredited IEMA tutor.

Previously, Alicja spent 10 years in the brewing industry and working alongside the Head of Finance and Sustainability and the Sustainability Manager at Adnams PLC obtaining a wealth of knowledge as the leading sustainable brewer in the industry at that time.

Richard Carter – IEMA Fellow, CIMA.

Richard is a lecturer in finance and sustainability across the Eastern Education Group based in Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk. His primary interest is the commercial imperative for sustainability and ethical business practice, and how they can help to address the urgency of the environment-led crises facing humanity.

Richard previously looked after finance and sustainability at Adnams plc, the award-winning brewery and distillery based in Southwold, famous for its eco-distribution centre, its energy-efficient brewhouse and its 500,000 honey bees. Under Richard's tenure, Adnams won 15 major awards for their sustainability achievements, all of which were linked to clear financial business cases.

Outside of work, Richard is a director at IEMA, the Institute of Environmental Management and Assessment, where he is chair of the board, after previously chairing the finance, risk, and audit committee. He sits on several other advisory boards at not-for-profits.