Close×

Can we, the baby boomers and Generation X’ers, keep up with the new circular economy?

According to Accenture, the circular economy is an industry that will be worth $4.5 trillion in the next 15 years.

You don’t know about the circular economy? Then clearly you are not a Millennial (those born between 1982 and the year 2000).

Oh who am I kidding? The truth is I knew nothing about the circular economy until I attended the inaugural Sustainable Brands conference in Sydney this week. Attendees were told that by 2025, 75 per cent of the global workforce will be Millennials. This is the generation so often labelled as entitled, self-indulgent and selfie-obsessed.

But apparently we have it all wrong. New data shows that Millennials are significantly more engaged with sustainability and social justice than previous generations. Seeing beyond financial reward and status.

Millennials are looking for purpose, sustainability and social impact when it comes to the brands they work for and the brands they buy. This act of embracing the decoupling of growth from natural resource consumption is known as the Circular Economy, and to be successful, businesses need to take it seriously.

If there is any industry that can keep pace with this change it is HVACR. This is an industry that is already adapting with energy efficiency labelling and more global efforts, like the HFC phasedown.

Details of Australia's HFC phasedown were just announced this week. At the same time, federal government policy advisor on greenhouse gas policy, Patrick McInerney, made a telling observation when he said: “The Australian RAC industry has always shown a willingness to deal with environmental issues.” I agree. I also think our industry is doing just as well when it comes to the "regular economy". This was evident at the recent 2016 ARBS Exhibition.

Dare I say it? The Australian HVACR industry is in good health. While I am no ARBS veteran I did attend in 2014 and 2012, and this year there was a noticeable upswing in activity (or was it just an upswing in enthusiasm?).

As a reporter, out there taking the pulse of industry, I noticed that in 2012 everyone was still a little nervous post-GFC while in 2014 budgets were still tight. I am not going to get crazy and say business is booming, but I suspect the purse strings have loosened? Tell me what you think at sandravandijk@yaffa.com.au.