Meet Martin & Toby
founders of ZeroBees
Climate change is an existential crisis. And we're running out of time.
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Our generation has witnessed a great leap forward in climate science. Never have we better understood the impact of greenhouse gas emissions on our ecosystem. And following an excruciating period of "heads in the sand", we're seeing growing political will to tackle the problem of climate change. Sometimes it even feels like a competition to make the biggest commitments.
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All good, right? Wrong.
The climate crisis is just one part of a wider set of challenges that we're facing, and we're not collectively making progress fast enough. As friends who were born in the late '70s, we balance huge Millennial optimism with a healthy dose of Gen-X cynicism. Actions speak louder than words and results are what matters. It's time for us to move from big bold headlines to real delivery, at pace. But how?
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Like it or not, businesses are the part of the problem - and the solution.
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Business plays an essential role in society, providing us with the products and services we need to live and to thrive. But these very businesses create negative impacts that are a central part of our challenge. So, achieving Net Zero and sustainability requires leadership, innovation and delivery from the entire business community. However, short term priorities usually trump longer term considerations in business.
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Between us, we've spent over 40 years in a range of businesses across sectors spanning packaged goods to financial services, commodities to energy, infrastructure to hospitality. We've seen first hand how businesses mobilise change by setting targets and holding themselves accountable for delivery.
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Large companies are being driven to change through a mix of regulation, stakeholder pressure (note the rise of shareholder activism), and self interest (since there are tangible benefits to sustainability and Net Zero).
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We now need all businesses to target Net Zero and to be shifting to sustainable models.
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Our research suggests the majority of small and medium sized enterprises have barely started to think about Net Zero and sustainability. They don't have the same resources to throw at this as large corporates, they don't have CSR or sustainability teams to delegate to, and they don't know where to start.
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And so the idea for ZeroBees was conceived over Zoom during a Covid-19 lockdown.
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Our mission is to increase sustainability and accelerate decarbonisation across SMEs, NGOs and value chains
Whether you're a founder who wants to drive this from the top, a finance director who wants to make the business case, or a software engineer who wants your business to make a difference, we can help. Hit the big green button, and we'll get you started on your path to sustainability.
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Toby & Martin
Founders of Zero Bees
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Toby Radcliffe
Co-Founder
A scientist by training, Toby has a passion for positive social change and lifelong experience in sustainability. He holds a masters degree from Cambridge in Natural Sciences, an MSc in Financial Economics from SOAS and an MProf in Leadership for Sustainable Development from Forum for the Future. As well as being a former professional long distance triathlete, he has worked across a range of sectors including rail, energy, commodities, tech and childcare, across a range of functions from risk management to marketing, commodities trading to project management, product range to customer experience, and sustainability consultancy.
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Contact: toby@zerobees.com
Martin Stead
Co-Founder, Advisor
Martin believes the dialogue around climate change needs to shift from doom and gloom to the art of the possible. With a Masters in History from Cambridge, Martin has led a number of businesses including senior positions at P&G where he drove a charge to get people to reduce energy use by washing at lower temperatures, EDF where he launched the UK's first mainstream 100% low carbon electricity tariff at a market-leading price, and FinTech Nutmeg where as CEO he launched ESG portfolios, grew the customer base 10-fold, and raised sufficient capital to get the start-up to a sustainable financial position.
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Contact: martin@zerobees.com
