“Sustainable”, “Ecological”, “Carbon Neutral”, “Eco Manager” – do we really know the meaning of these new words that have recently accompanied many commercial communications we see in the media? Do we also apply these concepts to the processes of the advertising industry itself? Do you know what the competencies of an Eco Manager are? And if so, what are they?
No sector is unaffected by the ecological transition and the rise of this trend is also an opportunity for advertising production. Brands with serious environmental commitments have started to require their suppliers to comply with their corporate responsibility policies.
Today, sustainability has become a competitive priority for supply chains, alongside traditional priorities such as quality or flexibility. The use of clean technologies, environmentally friendly transport or the implementation of policies that improve and promote the well-being of workers are examples of this.
One of the most important challenges that companies face in terms of sustainability management is to extend good practices to their suppliers.
Few concepts are as relevant today as sustainability. The advertising industry faces a very contradictory situation, on the surface at least, when it comes to this issue.
Being sustainable is part of the strategy, it is in the interest to promote proper management internally and externally. Suppliers, as a basic pillar in the supply chain, have an enormous influence on progress towards sustainability.
Thanks to innovation and technological development, the advertising production industry has long been working together to achieve more environmentally friendly and responsible techniques. This is possible thanks to the role played by Eco managers, who focus on environmental and legislative trends in the audiovisual sector, environmental impacts, the environmental footprint of productions and alternatives to avoid, reduce and compensate for environmental impact.
The Eco Manager is a new job position that is being implemented in the production department of all fiction and non-fiction productions that want to reduce their environmental impact. This is the person who supervises all the project’s sustainability variables on the ground in collaboration with the production company’s consultant. Therefore it is a key point in sustainable management.
Although there is still a long way to go, time is running out and change must be immediate. The basis of any action along these lines is based on a simple premise: introducing environmental impact reduction as another variable in decision-making.
It will be necessary for production to generate a Sustainability Plan (SP). This will serve as a guide, drawn up by professionals in the social and environmental fields, which will accompany all the production phases for decision-making in all departments.
The strategies of Europe and of the brands themselves will include sustainable development criteria in their decision-making and society will join in with these demands. Will the sector be able to absorb this transition?
Many of us are sure that it will. Not only because it will be mandatory in the not too distant future, but because we have a planet to save.
It is not a question of doing less harm, but of doing more good.
