GreenTech Brings New Energy to Tech 500 Power List

As we enter a new decade, it’s undeniable that a sea change around sustainability is afoot. Trends show us that consumers increasingly engage with sustainable brands, while activists such as Greta Thunberg and Extinction Rebellion make headlines. It’s clear that there’s a charge towards a new era, one in which business can no longer afford to ignore its footprint on the environment.

Even within our own industry of communications, the legendary Sue Garrard, former global communications lead at Unilever, implored communications professionals to cease work with climate deniers, while alluding to the notion that businesses who fail to invest in sustainability will struggle to survive. Sustainability is a discussion that is certainly not going away. 

This shift is reflected in this year’s Tyto Tech 500 Power List, which sees a demonstrated rise in UK GreenTech influencers. Technology’s most influential individuals follow the societal shift towards sustainability.  

Last year, the Tech 500 Power List included both activists and several government officials in the GreenTech space: Doug Parr of Greenpeace, Caroline Lucas of the Green Party, and Parliament’s Molly Scott Cato, thus demonstrating that it is within the halls of Westminster where change can be made. This year, however, prominent journalist Emily Gosden, Energy Editor at The Times, features as top influencer on the overall Power List. In the past twelve months, Emily has written about topics ranging from wind farms, electric cars, solar technologies, carbon emissions, and climate change.  

 The fact that a journalist is tops both lists this year demonstrates the intersection between sustainability and the public consciousness. Increasingly, media both reports on and forms the dialogue. It provides a voice to those looking to create a greener world and reports on the technologies and innovations making changes in this direction. 

This does not, however, diminish the importance of government’s influence in the space. While Caroline Lucas’ influence has dropped eight places from last year, overall, government players in GreenTech continue to be well-represented within the Power List, demonstrating that government’s continuing importance to the cause. To wit, this year the Green Party’s Natalie Bennet rose by 11 places to 124 on the Tech 500 Power List.  

Michael Liebreich of BloombergNEF is another noteworthy influencer in this year’s Power List, rising by 20 places from his place on the list last year. BloombergNEF is a research group focusing on clean energy, advanced transport and innovative materials. We expect to hear more from this organisation in the coming year, along with the environmental think-tank E3G, whose Chairman, Tom Burke, stormed this year’s the Tech 500 Power List by rising 624 positions to 119 on the Power List overall.  

If this trend continues, we can expect GreenTech to feature heavily in future Tech 500 Power Lists. Download the full report, today.

Tyto Tech 500: Top 10 Influencers in GreenTech