Speak Carbon Collective (SCC) works with a wide range of organisations. This gives us a broad insight into what’s happening within the climate space across sectors, as well as allowing us to identify where the most impact is possible.
Carbon Literacy in upward spirals for the legal sector
The legal sector has one of the biggest opportunities to influence positive changes in climate action, with law firms supporting and representing businesses and corporations across all other sectors. Strong relationships are built between law firms and their clients in tech, energy, retail and the built environment to name just a few. It’s these relationships that allow potentially sensitive conversations to take place about the responsibility these organisations have to take action. Most of us are familiar with scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions. Law firms and others in the Professional Services industry are also heavily engaged in addressing what are increasingly known as scope 4 or ‘advised’ emissions – the emissions of their clients. With almost every business requiring legal counsel at some point, there is almost immeasurable potential for law firms to support businesses and corporations in reducing their emissions.
Contact us to talk about Carbon Literacy in your organisation.
Osborne Clarke’s vision
In early 2023, international legal practice Osborne Clarke contacted SCC to discuss rolling out Carbon Literacy training within their UK offices. Sustainability Manager Mary Lavin had already completed the training and wanted to design a programme to engage colleagues from across the business. From the start, Mary was keen to also build internal capacity to deliver training from within the growing CL community at the Firm.
Osborne Clarke published this article at the start of our work together. The following is an update on how the project has progressed since then.
Choosing Speak Carbon
Osborne Clarke has been considering Carbon Literacy to upskill colleagues on climate for some time. The firm had been developing its approach to carbon reduction and transitioning to net zero through the adoption of Science Based Targets, and recognised the extent to which this transition would be dependent on wider societal and technological change. This desire to engage with its people, clients, suppliers and communities, along with Mary’s previous experience of Carbon Literacy, helped Osborne Clarke to decide to invest in the course.
The project
A team from Osborne Clarke worked closely with Alison at Speak Carbon to develop a bespoke Carbon Literacy course throughout spring 2023. The course focused on the firm’s decarbonisation strategies and plans, as well as looking at the unique role law firms play in climate conversations. The team was keen for the course to be relevant to all colleagues, from fee earners to business services and from interns to senior partners.
The course was accredited in summer 2023, and a pilot cohort planned for August. The team was keen to kick off the first ‘real’ cohort with some of the most senior leaders in the UK business, so that cohort was planned for September.
The pilot cohort was delivered online and involved colleagues from the Firm’s internal sustainability champions group OC Planet. Those involved were encouraged to make suggestions on how to improve the course and the feedback given was really impactful in readying the content for the full roll-out.
The September cohort was delivered in-person at Osborne Clarke’s Thames Valley office to board members from across the UK Firm, including Conrad Davies, the UK Managing Partner. Conrad’s group pledge has previously been spotlighted as part of our Pledge of the Month programme. You can read the full pledge here.
Following that first cohort, Speak Carbon and Osborne Clarke have delivered a further eight cohorts of training. The course was developed to be equally impactful whether delivered online or in-person. As well as being offered online, cohorts have been delivered in all three of the firm’s UK offices to ensure as many colleagues as possible have easy access to this vital learning.
As was always the firm’s plan, participants completing the Carbon Literacy course have been encouraged to train up to deliver the course as well. In early 2024, two of those who’d attended training in autumn 2023 went on the complete a Train the Trainer course and join the internal training team. Since then Speak Carbon has trained a further four of the firm’s people using our accredited Training Professionals course. This internal training team are all now working towards their Carbon Literacy Trainer accreditation, and with four cohorts booked for delivery from September to December 2024 and more planned for 2025, they will be getting plenty of practice!
The results so far
This project is one of our most successful to date, and Mary’s CL vision has been a driving force behind that success. Being able to co-deliver every session with someone who knows the firm inside out has strengthened the peer-to-peer perspective that is so important for effective Carbon Literacy training. Working so closely with Osborne Clarke for so long has given Speak Carbon vital insight into the legal sector and the unique challenges and opportunities this sector presents.
To date over 100 participants have successfully completed Carbon Literacy training and gained certification, that’s 200 pledges made to reduce emissions within the Firm’s operations, supply chain and – perhaps most importantly – within their client groups.
As well as continuing the roll-out of internal training, Mary and her team of burgeoning trainers are now planning to take Carbon Literacy out to Osborne Clarke’s clients and suppliers. Using the framework to connect with an organisation’s upstream & downstream contacts is a powerful way to spread climate knowledge and facilitate climate conversations far more widely.
Climate learning cascades within your organisation
If you would like to talk to us about building a bespoke climate learning programme for your organisation, including Carbon Literacy course development, training delivery and our Training Professionals programme get in touch today.