Sustainability is confusing, complicated, unclear, lacking in support, expensive, devoid of clear solutions and ultimately, overwhelming.

At least these are the sentiments I hear from nearly every business I work with. Whether it's a progressive enterprise striving to maintain its competitive edge, a corporation navigating a complex business landscape, or a small business exploring sustainability for the first time, the message is always the same: it's not easy being green.

And who can blame them? Most businesses were formed before sustainability was mainstream (if it even is today). But businesses find themselves here nonetheless, facing unfamiliar and risky innovation challenges, justified by poorly communicated rationale business cases that have, at least in the eyes of most businesses I speak to, been overplayed or unrealised.

Even passionate, enlightened leaders often express notions of frustration and lack of direction on their sustainability journey, let alone those who are facing this challenge for the first time.

As a result, businesses often choose incremental approaches to solving their climate woes such as efficient lighting or solar panels. These solutions are certainly needed and we need more of them across the entire economy. But whilst they are good at nudging the needle, they lack the creativity and ambition necessary for us to avoid the worst impacts of climate change. Nor do they create the opportunity that sustainable innovation can afford those businesses who are willing to give it 'a real go'.

Such businesses have shown that there is a place in the economy for responsible businesses that can do well by doing good. Take Community Clothing's approach to sustainable fashion, which looks to ensure that products are made to last. Or Fairphone's commitment to modularity that ensures its products can be repaired or upgraded over time. And let's not forget Patagonia and Faith in Nature's bold approach to governance, which challenges the very nature of what it means to do business.

These are organisations that have taken a deep look at the climate problem not by asking what they do (and how to make that more efficient) but by asking what they are and to what purpose they ultimately serve. This is brave and challenging stuff, but in doing so these organisations are helping to shift the narrative about what sustainability means by reframing it not as a risk to business, but as part of the future they want to see.

So why am I writing all of this in a design blog? Well, at its core sustainability is a disruptive innovation challenge like any other. To address it effectively, businesses must take a reflective, holistic and challenging look at a very deep level to:

• Understand the problem that sustainability poses (what they do, what their impacts are, and what are the implications of physical and transitional risks)

• Create an ambitious vision of what success looks like by redefining sustainability as an opportunity to do better business

• Create viable, feasible, desirable and flexible pathways to that vision (including the perspectives of all stakeholders and end-users)

Discovery, problem framing, iterative design of solutions, stakeholder engagement, empathy building. All of this will likely sound familiar to any designer – they're the very thing that makes design such an artform, and such a valuable part of society.

It is for this reason why I am such a huge advocate of design and why it is my personal mission to both upskill designers in green skills, but also to advocate for design-led approaches with every client I work with. 

Let me explain why.

I have worked as a sustainability professional for over 15 years now, originally with a more traditional and technical approach to sustainable business (carbon accounting and so on), pivoting to design-led approaches during my PhD when I first started to think about sustainable innovation and strategy as a process.

During this time, I have observed how sustainability professionals are fantastic when it comes to skills such as analysing regulatory landscapes, crunching numbers, and guiding businesses through 'business-as-usual' innovation. This is all important work that is needed by every business.

However, by focusing on specialisms, the sector often entrenches itself in business-as-usual solutions, rather than taking advantage of the core competencies and skills (facilitation, problem framing, creativity, iterative design, and stakeholder engagement) that are second nature to designers.

This is important because when seeking sustainability support, businesses nearly always turn to sustainability consultancies for help as their first port of call. This means that they are missing out on so much value that the design industry can offer. It also means that designers are missing out on a fabulous opportunity to have real impact through some very core competencies that are second nature to them, and for the true value of design to be realised.

Of course, there are some major barriers to all this happening. Businesses tend to not really know what design is or what design practice means. This makes pathways to working on such projects complicated. At the same time, we know that Design Council research has shown that although designers are deeply motivated by climate change and a desire to design for planet, many of them feel that they lack the appropriate knowledge and skills with which to do so.

It is for this reason why I am a huge supporter of the Design Council’s Design for Planet mission and particularly their goal to upskill 1 million designers to do so. I would encourage all designers of all disciplines to engage with that movement, as well as the fantastic Design Declares team, to learn more and find out how they can support the transition.

Designers have the tools, processes, creativity, and empathy necessary to transform how businesses think, act, and innovate. But this won’t happen unless we can find better pathways to work with them. So I also encourage designers to connect to sustainability professionals who can benefit from learning from your ways of working, and who may be able to offer your next sustainability project the technical support for sustainability that it needs. 

If you are such a designer then please feel free to reach out. There is much work to do so let’s start the conversation.