Water, water everywhere

I'm not made for the hot weather.  I've spent a fair bit of this week in the University Library, taking advantage of their air conditioning whist also avoiding the temptation to watch the tennis.  A few times I've popped into the Student Union for the following:

I wrote in December about the Union's decision (after a student vote) to stop selling bottled water - and about the commercial impact of an environmentally sound decision.  

The policy has now been implemented - and the story's quite interesting.  Yorkshire Water picked up on the vote and got in touch to offer to instal water fountains around the Union building free of charge.  They've certainly been well used this week.

A nice piece of marketing by Yorkshire Water - and  sound business sense.  After all the Union are on a water meter.  

There's a wider issue here of course.  On Mark Thomas's The Manifesto programme on Radio 4 last night, one of the motions presented was for water fountains to be installed in public spaces around the country.  It's a great idea - sadly unlikely ever to happen.  But imagine the environmental impact of all those bottles of water no longer purchased.  And the social benefit of all those water fountain moments.  Maybe water fountains could become the coffee houses of the 21st century - hubs for debate and sedition.   That, if nothing else, will put the Government off the idea.  

Comments

[Aidan Grills]

As a member of staff involved in implementing the water-fountain policy I can tell you that I had my reservations. You look at the services to students that we spend our money on, and the impact of a loss in income from selling bottled water of at least around £20,000 equates to a significant project or a full time worker in some area. However this isn't how you manage with your values.

I realised long ago working in the students' union environment that you can't rationalise such decisions on a financial basis. Our members constantly tell us what is right and wrong and that kind of accountability is rare in other businesses despite some very sophisticated customer relationships. Part of our role to manage/lead organisations with values, is about learning to balance so many competing interests all day, every day. But if you are clear what you're values are and they are integrated in the decision-making, then I don't think you can go far wrong.

Another lesson from watching this issue be implemented was about culture and values. They can't be separated and must reflect each other or the whole thing comes tumbling down. The first reaction from our Retail Manager (his budgets include the bottled water sales) when the policy was passed was that he needed to work harder to identify how he would find the income to off-set this loss. He could have very easily been angry and seen this as an excuse to hide behind for a dip in sales next year. But his example of personal leadership, shows how our culture is right that people like him know the values which we stand far and don't seek to question them or work around them. Arguably if values and culture don't fit, then decisions can be inconsistent and you've got a real mess on your hands.

Aidan Grills
Director of Membership Services & Development
Leeds University Union

[Mike Chitty]

Aidan
This should form the basis of a story/case study that deserves much wider airing (hope you don't take that the wrong way Rob!). So many social enteprises would go down the route of short term financial expediency - justifying it as pragmatic - rather than do what they know to be right. 'We can always do what is right once we have made it through this financial crisis.'

Yvon Chouinard, founder of the Patagonia brand (perhaps the most ethical business on the planet) says that every time he insisted on doing what was 'right' his commercial directors would tell him it couldn't be done (transition to organic cotton being the prime example). Everytime he did what was right it increased profitability rather than reduced it. Karma? The emergent properties of complex adaptive systems? Who knows.

Find an hour and listen to the wisdom of Yvon Chouinard - http://localenterprise.wordpress.com/2009/06/09/my-favourite-enterprise-podcast-ever/

[Rob Greenland]

Thanks for the comments. I agree Mike, this deserves to heard in a wider arena! Aidan I think this was picked up by the Guardian wasn't it? It might be worth following it up.

The pragmatism point is an important one. I, like many social entrepreneurs, will wear the pragmatism badge with pride - showing how we are far more in the real world than those activists who stick to their guns who, we believe, are doomed to fail.

When you see Graeme this evening, ask him about what he's written about the dangers of what he calls neo-pragmatism.