“Wow” is probably not the best way to capture the last few weeks and months, some sources define the word as “way over wonderful”, and wonderful is a long way from where the majority of us probably feel right now. “Crikey”, is probably a better way to get started. Our normal has been turned upside down and Business As Unusual is the new norm. Hundreds of millions of people are having their lives capsized, many are paying the ultimate price and without a doubt, there will be very few people personally or professionally who are feeling bullish right now.

The current situation is hugely disruptive and there are many serious situations in our lives, businesses and economies that no one can play down. It would be disrespectful to do so. But amidst the negatives of the status quo, we cannot deny that positives are emerging. The skies and waters are clearer, the amount of pollution we are emitting is reduced, LOCAL and COMMUNITY have become key words once again. Many of us have met and chatted with our neighbours for the first time, if only from a safe few metres; we’ve offered help to the elderly and vulnerable; we’re shopping near home and supporting local businesses where we can; we’re paying forward goods, services and goodwill, fully confident that these will be paid back in future and probably not so worried even if they aren’t – we’re just trying to do the right thing. The positivity and good human values that are emerging have clear parallels with business, our clients, our supply chains, our colleagues and their families. Saying “yes” with a view to trying to help seems to be easier, competitors become allies for the greater good and quest for survival. There seems to be a genuine desire to get as many people and companies safely out at the other end as possible, whenever that may be.

All of these positive factors inevitably lead to some thinking about how we might maintain momentum once this situation is over. From a personal point of view, I want to push myself to take learnings and not just go back to how we were and think it’ll all be fine – I will continue to shop much more locally, to awkwardly say “hello” for the first time to people I ‘sort-of’ recognise from my street, to offer help even if it doesn’t look like it’s needed (on the off chance that 1 time in 10, it will be). The same applies to work and the business that we love, why shouldn’t we try to keep saying “yes” (sensibly of course) in situations where we’d normally keep quiet? I’ll definitely be giving it a go – feel free to give me a kick in person or over social, if it appears, I’m veering off-piste!

Cris Cicirello is Senior Vice President at LND WassermanX and is contactable @ ccicirello@teamwass.com

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Children up and down the country will be given a hands-on role in challenging the confusion around what can and cannot be recycled as part of a ground-breaking environmental campaign with Keep Britain Tidy and Harrogate Water.

Over 20,000 schools will be taking part in the project through the environmental charity’s Eco Schools programme. Eco-Schools is a global programme engaging 19.5 million children across 67 countries, making it the largest educational programme in the world.

The Eco-Schools programme is pupil-led, involving hands-on learning that gets the whole school and the wider community involved in exciting environmental projects.

Schools are provided with free resources to help them progress to the international Eco-Schools Green Flag award within 12 months of registration and Keep Britain Tidy provides additional assistance from a dedicated team of former teachers.

The initiative is being supported by Keep Britain Tidy recycling partner Harrogate Water along with Plastipak, one of the global leaders in sustainable packaging and recycling.

Richard McIlwain, Deputy Chief Executive of Keep Britain Tidy, said: “We are currently working with Harrogate Water and Plastipak on the new Waste and Recycling module. In 2019 ‘The Challenge’ will be a call to action for all participating schools to take part in a national survey assessing recycling in schools, finding out what waste management resources they have available as well as understanding local authority collections and recycling services. This National survey will be the first if its kind and will allow the schools to help advise on what they believe we should be doing to improve provision and help harmonise recycling services in schools across the country. The report will be published in an easy-to-use infographic format, made available to all relevant parties. This work by students will provide the springboard for the ‘Circular School 2020 Challenge’ when we’ll be encouraging schools to take an active role in coming up with sustainable waste management solutions.”

Kinza Sutton, Head of Public Affairs and Sustainability Europe at Plastipak’s, said: “Plastipak and Harrogate Water are champions of the circular economy and we believe children can play a big part in shaping a sustainable future and challenging the misinformation and confusion around waste management and recycling.”

Nicky Cain Brand Manager at Harrogate Water, said: “The Eco-Schools project will promote discussion around waste, recycling and the circular economy in the classroom. We know that children are passionate about the environment and want to lead the way in making positive changes. This programme gives them the opportunity, not only to uncover the facts about packaging and recycling but to influence the way forward towards a more sustainable future.”

As part of the project, Harrogate Water and Plastipak will adding their expertise in recycling and recyclable packaging and producing a video showing the lifecycle of a bottle of Harrogate Spring. All content for the module will be approved by the Assessments and Qualifications Alliance (AQA) and feed into academic subjects, as well as linking into Global Citizenship as part of the National Curriculum.

All PET bottles of Harrogate Spring are 100 per cent recyclable and contain at least 50 per cent recycled content, processed and supplied by Plastipak. The recycled content is sourced solely from the UK to inform consumers that their bottle may return as a new bottle when it is recycled.

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Kate Moss, Harry Kane, Cara Delevingne, Sienna Miller, Rita Ora, HRH Princess Eugenie of York, Fearne Cotton, Ronnie Wood, Will Poulter and Bob Geldof have joined forces with Sky Ocean Rescue and ocean conservation movement Project 0 to launch a reusable limited-edition product range to inspire people to #PassOnPlastic.

All proceeds from the range will go to initiatives protecting ocean health, including Sky Ocean Rescue’s partnership with WWF-UK, which funds marine protection areas covering 400,000km² of our oceans.

Each artwork was created with a bespoke ocean-related design for the new Pass On Plastic range, which includes a reusable water bottle, a coffee cup, a tote bag, an on-the-go cutlery set and a three-piece beeswax wrap set – an alternative to cling film.

The products offer reusable versions of the five most common single-use plastic items currently contributing to the quarter of a tonne of plastic entering our oceans every second. New research by Sky Ocean Rescue worryingly reveals the UK consumes 10.7bn single-use plastic bags, 14.1bn drinks bottles, more than 4bn hot drink cups, 1.5bn throwaway cutlery sets and 12.2bn single-use lunch packages in a single year. The Pass On Plastic range provides alternatives to these products, helping everyone make simple everyday changes to stop our oceans from drowning in plastic.

Entrepreneur and artist Fearne Cotton said: “I was so honoured to be asked to create a design for this exceptional range of reusable products that help people pass on plastic to protect the ocean from being the unhappy recipient of ridiculous amounts of this indestructible material. I was inspired to draw my squid by an image that exploded on the internet this year of a seahorse grasping an ear bud.  How impactful could we be if we stopped to think about the unintended consequences of these simple everyday actions that have real long-term consequences – often with devastating effects? It’s my sincere hope that this range of products will inspire people to reduce their plastic footprint now. And, after all, it’s a lot more stylish to be single-use plastic free!”

All the products have been produced and packaged to minimise impact on the environment. Suppliers were carefully selected for their ethical and environmental standards and practices, sharing the values of the Sky Ocean Rescue campaign.

The range will be available to purchase from Wednesday 7 November at Sky.com/POP and at the Pass On Plastic pop-up shop at 20 Beak Street, Soho, London from Thursday 8 November for two months, while stock lasts.

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Lucky Generals and Goodstuff have teamed up with virtual technology specialist Zappar to create an augmented reality (AR) mobile experience that educates young families about environmental sustainability and brings to life Yorkshire Tea’s passion for trees. This campaign also features a partnership with Guardian Labs, aiming to drive a deeper understanding of the project through longer form content.

The introduction of the AR experience comes during year four of Yorkshire Tea’s five-year pledge to plant one million trees across the UK and Kenya. Aimed at families with young children, the campaign looks to increase understanding of why trees are important in a fun and engaging way.

Using Zappar’s augmented reality platform, ZapWorks, the experience is accessed by scanning full page press adverts using the camera feature on Shazam. AR technology then transports users into the forests of the UK and Kenya. Users are given interactive challenges which include planting seeds, learning about various tree species, picking avocados for farmers to take to market and tapping to oxygenate clouds of carbon dioxide with trees. A friendly narrator acts as a play-a-long guide, highlighting the importance of trees at every stage.

The campaign will run across a series of magazine titles and supplements within newsbrands such as The Evening Standard, The Times and The Observer, as well as being distributed via activity sheets in schools across the UK. In tandem, a partnership with Guardian Labs will drive a deeper understanding of the project through longer form content.

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