Climate change is high on the agenda for the BBC, and the organisation was looking for ways to engage their employees on sustainability as well as helping them to make changes in their own lifestyles. But, with a large and busy workforce based in both national and international hubs, connecting their people to broader engagement initiatives can prove challenging.
The BBC wanted to connect their historic 2022 centenary celebrations with sustainability engagement, and a colleague came up with the concept of a ‘Carbon Swap Shop (inspired by 1970s children’s TV programme Multi-coloured Swap Shop), which could connect the history and nostalgia of the centenary with climate action.
What was therefore needed was a way to turn this idea into a reality, with the potential for teams and local offices to compete for the most carbon swaps – swapping high carbon for low carbon lifestyle actions.
What we did
Giki’s experience of running successful sustainability engagement challenges across complex organisations led to a pilot project within part of BBC Operations. The BBC team valued our science based, inclusive and accessible approach, so together we planned the BBC Carbon Swap Shop to build on the climate education they already had and then give employees across the BBC the knowledge and tools to put this into action and live more sustainably.
Giki’s engagement programme and platform launched across the whole organisation, including both the public service, and commercial arms of the BBC. To drive participation and engagement, we launched a series of challenges built around themes, including energy usage at home, travel, and fashion.
To open the opportunity for all, the challenges were combined with virtual events and competitions, delivered virtually, so that colleagues could take part no matter where they were located, or their work demands.
Then, using Giki Zero Pro, employees had the opportunity to find their carbon footprint, take steps to reduce their impact, and compete against teams and individuals, creating a fun competition and moments to connect, inspire and encourage.
The impact
The campaign saw engagement across the BBC, from local offices reaching from Aberdeen to London and some lively competition in local offices in cities including Manchester and Birmingham to swap for more greener habits. In BBC Studios, their international offices got stuck in, with winners based in New York and Sydney.
One of the most popular steps taken was the ‘Work from Home checklist’ to keep carbon emissions down at home, and over 850 steps were completed and committed in just one month.
The Giki Zero facilitated ‘Carbon Swap Shop’ brought teams together across the BBC to help understand how individuals can play an important role in solving the climate crisis, build their knowledge of climate action and be more engaged with the organisation’s strategic aims on sustainability.
If you’d like to engage your team on sustainability, then get in touch.
