Our achievements

Forum for the Future has established itself as a leader in thought and action. We have changed hearts and minds in business and been instrumental in changing the way leading companies and sectors operate. We have helped government, cities and public service providers understand how to develop sustainable public services which offer a better life to the people they serve. Here are a few of the things we’ve achieved...

We’ve helped transform entire sectors

  • Greening retail. Retailers and manufacturers have huge power to influence the behaviour of both their suppliers and their customers. The sector has shown real leadership over recent years, and Forum for the Future has been instrumental in many of the cutting edge initiatives. We helped Marks & Spencer develop 'Plan A', which had a profound impact on wider business behaviour, and we worked with Unilever on its Sustainable Living Plan, with its ambitious target to halve the company’s environmental footprint.
  • Holidays that don’t cost the earth. Our Tourism 2023 project brought together some of the world’s biggest tourism organisations, including British Airways, TUI Travel and Thomas Cook, who between them carry 45million customers a year. They signed a joint pledge that by 2023 they would create a strong and profitable industry which benefits tourist destinations and protects the environment. They are now working on the practicalities of delivering this.
  • A sea change for shipping. Forum’s Sustainable Shipping Initiative unites leaders from across the global maritime sector including Maersk, Rio Tinto and Cargill and embraces ship owners, charterers, shipbuilders, engineers, service providers and financiers. The members published a Case for Action, setting out the reasons why the sector needs to become sustainable, and are developing a roadmap with actions.

We’ve won a reputation for effective, long-term partnerships

  • Leading the field. Forum and WWF are the best at helping businesses with their climate change, sustainability and environmental goals according to a survey of 12 UK NGOs by independent research firm Verdantix. It highlighted the value of our long-term partnerships with companies, and our ability to shape debate by brokering industry collaboration.

We’ve helped public bodies, nationally and globally, to deliver better public services

  • Procuring excellence. Public organisations spend £160 million a year in the UK alone, so they can make a huge impact by buying sustainable products and services. Our Buying a Better World toolkit on sustainable procurement is used by the United Nations and several global corporations, and is recommended by the UK’s Audit Commission and the UK National Health Service.

We’ve created new products and services

  • Green Innovation. Forum for the Future has sparked the innovation of new products, services and business models. We worked with Telefonica O2 to launch Eco rating, the UK’s first scheme rating mobile phones on their sustainability, which the company has now rolled out to Germany. We also helped AkzoNobel develop Ecosure and Ecosense, award-winning paints, with low environmental footprints.

We’ve helped deliver proper investment in the environment

We have helped create more sustainable cities

  • Sustainable London. We’ve been working in London for more than a decade. We founded the London Sustainability Exchange with the City of London Corporation back in 2000 and launched it as an independent NGO in 2008 with a portfolio of groundbreaking climate change awareness work with the capital’s black and minority ethnic communities.
  • Sustainable Bristol. In March 2008, we launched an ambitious 10-year programme aiming to make Bristol one of the world’s greenest cities, and the region a beacon of UK sustainability. Projects have included improving the energy efficiency of homes, helping businesses commit to challenging cuts in CO2 emissions, and encouraging local food production and consumption.
  • Benchmarking performance. According to the UK Local Government Association, our annual Sustainable Cities Index “has driven real change by inspiring cities to adopt more ambitious sustainability strategies and by providing a framework against which they can benchmark their efforts."

Spreading the good news

  • Green Futures, our magazine, leads the debate on environmental solutions and sustainable futures, and provide a lively snapshot of the latest news and opinion, along with cutting edge examples of good practice. In recent years, special reports on the prospects for sustainability in China, India, Mexico, South Africa and Brazil have taken the message to new audiences.
  • Farming Futures inspired farmers and land managers to engage with the risks and opportunities climate change presents to their businesses, and promoted behaviour change in the sector. It reached out to farmers with factsheets and case studies, a dedicated website, presence at key national and regional events, and on-farm ‘seeing is believing’ seminars on topics from anaerobic digestion to new crops. Farming Futures has won multiple awards.