It's official, we are Activists!

That is a term we're still getting comfortable with here because of our preconceptions. But there is a new type of activism forming – employee activism – and last Friday, armed with placards painted by our kids, our team went to Westminster for The Big One, a people's climate protest organised by Extinction Rebellion.

Whilst we've taken action at different events over the last two years, this one was different, We decided to attend as a team and #UniteToSurvive along with lots of different people and groups to ask the government to stop funding all new fossil fuel projects.

There was a mix of nerves and excitement ahead of The Big One. We talked openly about what it meant to each of us to attend, and also shared any reservations, as it was important for every employee to do what felt right for them. Being safe and at no risk of arrest was extremely important to us.

In the end, we unanimously agreed that the power of coming together, to call for urgent climate action, outweighed any of the reservations we had. When we told our families what we were doing, some of our kids asked if they could come too, and we thought why not, this impacts their future too!

The brilliant support from Business Declares played a big part in our decision making. Their leadership made it easy for us to join in with confidence, alongside a 300 strong business community, all powered by purpose. They created a What's App group which was useful to connect members ahead of meeting at the Department for Energy Security and NetZero. It enabled us to share plans and ideas to align our efforts and activity.

Our first employee activism day was a positive experience and something we all agreed to do again. The Big One community were supportive and friendly, and the protest was peaceful with a brilliant atmosphere!

Huge thanks to Ben Tolhurst for welcoming us and involving our kids. The younger generation have an important voice and reporters on the day were keen to hear what climate change means to them.

We were disappointed to see the lack of positive coverage in the mainstream media, but we hope that by sharing our experience at The Big One we might encourage another SME business to take their first employee activism day to protect our planet and our future.

#TheBigOne #EmployeeActivism #BusinessDeclares #AGforPeopleandPlanet #TimeForChange

Check out Danny, Gracie and Ciara being interviewed by XR TV in this clip at 1 minute 25 seconds!