Ep 54 Lucy Piper on building a green collar workforce

Lucy Piper is the Director of WorkforClimate and a passionate voice for moving the needle on climate change. After a decade in the corporate sector working in advertising and film production, Lucy faced her own climate reckoning. As a new mother, hearing the voice of Greta Thunberg addressing the UN, "We will never forgive you", echoed in her mind and she decided to turn her skills towards climate solutions.

In 2020, she left her much-loved role as the Global Head of Creative at Intrepid Travel to join WorkforClimate – a non-profit that equips climate-concerned professionals with the education, resources and community to make impactful change. Since then, Lucy has spent her days empowering Australians to push for change within their workplaces so that more businesses can set and achieve ambitious climate goals.

Lucy believes that businesses are key to solving the climate crisis and that employees are critical to its success. “You don't need to quit your day job in order to have a big impact on climate change.” She says. Her team is helping build a ‘green collar’ workforce and increasing practical climate literacy in every role and department.

My interview with Lucy was such a boost of energy and I hope it flows through to you. It is exactly the kind of energy we need, because it comes from a place of empowerment. A recognition that we all have a role to play in the climate crisis. And we can do something. And that something – no matter how small it is – can level up into something bigger.

Work for Climate is an antidote to the philosophy that little old me can’t do anything. Yes you can.

 

Interview highlights:

❤️  Lucy shares her background from the perspective of – as she describes, a “geriatric millennial” – starting work at the intersection of the analogue and digital worlds.

• Her ten years at Intrepid Travel – from starting on contract to becoming Head of Creative; and why she loves the company so much
• How the catastrophic bushfires in Australia in 2019, combined with Greta Thunberg’s inaugural speech at the UN became a catalyst for Lucy to join WorkforClimate

💲  Lucy explains the concept behind WorkforClimate – empowering people to take action on climate change within their organisations

❤️  She recalls and describes a powerful Venn diagram concept shared at the 2023 Purpose Conference by Adaptation Architect Digby Hall, explaining how we all need to respond to the Climate Crisis today – at the intersection of mitigation and adaptation. She connects this with what corporate organisations must do now to meet their stakeholders’ needs

💲 Lucy explains the specifics behind WorkforClimate and the four comprehensive action areas they support, which include the tools and resources for employees – leadership skills to influence others in their team; and technical skills

❤️ She fleshes out the four action areas:

1. Energy – switching to renewable energy
2. Emissions - Getting the organisation to have a science aligned ambitious target to reduce emissions
3. Money – investments, default superannuation funds
4. Influence – Lobbying efforts and what they call Scope X – advertised emissions (what emissions are you enabling? Who are your clients? Using your influence to minimise the expansion of the fossil fuel industry).

💲  Lucy passionately describes the imperative for everyone to take some form of action. Because the alternative is to be a bystander!

❤️  Lucy shares the dream for WorkforClimate – that “every job should be a climate job” - to grow the community exponentially globally, for employee-led change, across industries, sectors, companies, to accelerate what is possible in the corporate sector.

 

Get Started now in your climate job here

WorkforClimate website http

 

Connect with Lucy

On Linkedin