Follow Your Passion
More than 1200 people have now been through the Basic Environmental Skills Training course, or BEST as it's known.
More than 25 years after leaving university, not many people can say they are still working within their academic field. I do, and this is my opportunity to talk about the marine environment and how every day spent on the beach tells us something new about the state of our environment.
Every attendee has their own reason for being there.
There are the ‘change the world folk’, the closet environmentalists, the ‘I’m here because I have to be’ crowd, the managers who realise failure to comply could see them detained at Her Majesty’s pleasure, and the guys and gals who have heard their kids and colleagues from younger generations talk about this environmental stuff and don’t want to be left behind.
The key to success – to holding an engaged audience who leave the course feeling encouraged, inspired and empowered – is to push the right buttons on the right people. Within half an hour on day one, you get a good feel for what will make these individuals tick.
Managers are easy: you explain that by reducing CO2 emissions by x % they can save x pounds. World-changers are with you from the start and spend the 2 days days telling you great anecdotes from their personal experiences.
The 'closets' need a bit of reassurance; it's ok to care about the environment these days without being labelled.
As for the rest, 99% leave the room as if a 💡 has been switched on in their brain. They have a new understanding that this isn't just about edamame beans and 🌳 hugging.
It's about compliance, cool engineering and efficiency, both in cost and effort.
But ultimately it's about protecting the environment. After all, our oceans are the very lifeblood of our existence.
I know I am very fortunate as I get to share my passion through my work. By infusing delegates with this passion and knowledge, I am helping to equip them with the knowledge and skills to return to work and start changing their little part of the world.
