Content Coms announces Creative Climate Disclosure signup

Content Coms is delighted to announce that we have become a signatory to Creative Climate Disclosure, a new programme which seeks to minimise the carbon conflicts of the creative communications sector.

Why are we signing?

We’ve spotted a disconnect in our industry. Creatives and communicators are changing the narrative about both climate change and ecological crisis. That’s the type of work Content Coms is passionate about.

But too many advertising, creative, public relations, marketing and digital agencies are still ‘playing both sides’ and treating their role as neutral. They have some clients for climate solutions and yet they also run campaigns for fossil fuels.

Content Coms does not, and will not work with clients who operate in a manner that is socially or environmentally negative. “We’ve spent 20 years doing our bit to help fight climate change, by supporting clients who have the solutions to it,” comments Joanna Watchman, CEO and Founder, Content Coms.

“Now and moving forward, we will only work with clients whose values and whose own commitments are as strong as ours.” – Joanna Watchman

“A requirement of signing the Creative Climate Disclosure is that we will produce a disclosure report, which shows where our client work and sales turnover comes from via sector. Our first report will be published by the end of 2019 – sharing details from our previous financial year. In so doing, we will help this initiative widen transparency across our industry and help highlight any climate conflicts within the comms space.”

Action is for now

Creative Climate Disclosure began when change-agency Futerra published the world’s first Client Disclosure Report during COP21 in Paris.

This was the first step towards honesty; for creative agencies to be transparent about who pays their bills. The ultimate goal is to divest creative talent from destruction. This is just the beginning of a conversation across the entire industry; both agencies and individual creatives are signing every day.

“Creativity will help solve the climate emergency,” says Solitaire Townsend, Co-Founder, Futerra. “But not if the advertising, PR and marketing industry keep serving the problem. That’s why creatives, especially young talent, are opting out of destruction. They are powerful communicators themselves, so they know spin when they see it.

What do signatories have to do?

By signing up, Content Coms has promised to disclose our turnover by sector; indicate any ‘high carbon clients’; and highlight any climate conflicts. The deadline is end 2019 to disclose.

“We strongly believe agencies have to be part of the solution, not part of the problem. We are a $1.3 trillion sector, after all.” – Joanna Watchman.

“These disclosures bring comms agencies in line with other industries, all of whom report their ‘material’ impact on the world. We have to respect the climate and ecological science, just like everyone else.”

The 2018/19 Content Coms Creative Climate Disclosure Report was published 2/12/19.