Green Giving #15: Eco-philanthropy in an age of cuts

Green Giving #15: Eco-philanthropy in an age of cuts

News
In the days since the comprehensive spending review, environmental NGOs and commentators have produced a flurry of analysis.It is clear that, for a number of key initiatives, the devil will be in the as-yet-unclear detail. Will the Green Investment Bank be a major driver of additional pro-environmental investment, or merely a cosmetic wrapper on existing government spending streams? Will the (less than feared) adjustments to the feed in tariff scheme, and the (more than hoped for) plans for a renewable heating initiative, add up to a step-change in micro-generation or an ongoing period of uncertainty? And as the current Warm Front drifts away, is there something better on the cards from the Green Deal, for those living in badly-insulated homes? Will the Energy Saving Trust and the Carbon Trust go the same way as the Sustainable Development Commission? Time will tell. David Cameron’s intention for this to be ‘the greenest government ever’ is more often quoted than his following phrase - “it's a very simple ambition and one that I'm absolutely committed to achieving”. The only sense in which this ambition is simple is that it is succinctly expressed, and that the competition may not be all that intense. However, if this administration is to out-do even just the last government’s decidedly mixed record on the environment, then it will require more of those ‘hard choices’ that government ministers are so fond of mentioning in connection with fiscal tightening. As surveys such as the Climate Competitiveness Index show, the UK is reasonably well advanced in terms of setting top-level environmental policy; Cameron and Clegg are left with the hard part – delivery. If, for the sake of argument, the government lasts two terms, it is responsible for meeting a legally binding cut of one third in UK carbon emissions during its tenure. That challenge alone will require far more concerted action than we have seen to date. Though of course, this is not just a job for government alone. As this government is very keen to point out on a whole range of issues – we are all in this together. Whether you believe the ‘Big Society’ language is a genuine attempt to promote a particular political understanding, or a smokescreen for cuts, or indeed both, there is no doubt that the government has high hopes for the contribution that can be made to all its objectives by commercial organisations, community groups, concerned citizens, and of course, philanthropists. To date, my own tentative encounters with the government’s effort to promote the 'Big Society' have been fairly demoralising. A low point was a meeting with a civil servant, whose identity and area of responsibility I shall draw a discrete veil over. Not only were they wishfully hoping that ‘philanthropy’ would step in and continue a particular government-funded green initiative which they had helped develop, they seemed unable either to make a compelling case for the scheme, or to have any appreciation of why trusts or individual donors might be reluctant to step in once statutory support was withdrawn. So, in an age of uncertainty, austerity and big society, what might be the appropriate roles of government and philanthropy respectively in driving pro-environmental change? Firstly, there are some things that government could probably safely leave alone. The government's freeze on its marketing and advertising may spare us from the sort of broad brush environmental awareness campaigns, notably the unfortunate DECC ‘bed-time story’ advert, which irritate and alienate at least as many people as they inform. Also, having worked on a government-funded programme encouraging personal behaviour change, I am far from certain that such programmes are indispensable. In contrast, only government can legislate, regulate and set taxes, or provide long-term economic incentives to the private sector, and these tools must be used to the full if profound shifts in production and consumption are to be brought about. In addition, if government procurement is to be revolutionised by Sir Philip Green, putting the other sort of green ideas at the centre of those changes could have both direct and catalytic effects. As others have noted, trusts and philanthropists are likely to be deluged with requests to pick up project costs as local government and other statutory funding is withdrawn, and environmental causes will be no exception. Even if philanthropy continues to grow strongly, it cannot conceivably replace more than a percentage point or so of the reduction in government funding, and inevitably both civil servants and civil society are going to be sorely disappointed if they expect otherwise. Conversely, the model of trusts or other independent donors funding innovative new projects with a view to state funding providing a sustainable income flow in the longer term, is going to be less viable. Seeding social enterprises looks attractive where there is a prospect of a market-based solution. For environmental problems that don’t come with a potential revenue flow, campaigning and advocacy organisations may offer some of the best value for money. However, there is one other role that philanthropy could play, which is to encourage discussions that are not framed by cuts or defined solely in economic terms. The global financial crisis briefly brought to prominence some deeper reflection on the relationship between our economy and social and environmental goods, and yet there is already a sense that we are back on the road to business as usual. Philanthropy, love of others, is about what kind of world we aspire to, not just how we will pay for it. Nick Perks is co-ordinator of The Environmental Funders Network Philanthropy UK's regular column on ‘Green Giving’ for 2010 is a response to the superordinate challenge that climate change and other environmental issues present to us all. Though Philanthropy UK is cause neutral, we believe the environmental issue to be one that could impact every cause. Nick Perks, Harriet Williams and Jon Cracknell, of the Environmental Funders Network, an informal network of trusts, foundations and individuals making grants on environmental and conservation issues, will also offer analysis, news and insight of ‘enviro philanthropy’, including what other branches of philanthropy can learn from green giving. We are keen to hear from interested parties on enviro-philanthropy and views on other issues facing society that we should feature in a dedicated column: please email editor@philanthropyuk.org.