Ahead of World Creativity and Innovation Day this Sunday, Head of Innovation Tom Williamson shares his thoughts on why innovation is something we should embrace to achieve net zero.
There’s a day for everything these days. This month alone we’ve had International Carrot Day, International Pillow Fight Day and International Bat Appreciation Day. Valuable days of celebration, for sure, but – flippancy aside – these official days and weeks, such as National Public Health Week or Workers’ Memorial Day (both also in April), provide an excellent opportunity to mark an important cause or concept. The other great benefit of these events is, of course, providing a hook for this blog post.
And so we come to the UN’s World Creativity and Innovation Day, celebrated globally on 21st April. This day aims to shine a spotlight on the transformative power of creativity and innovation, and their pivotal role in addressing pressing challenges across economic, social, and sustainable development domains.
Creativity might not be the first thing that comes into your head when you think about what we do, here at ScottishPower, day to day. For most of us, the word “creativity” conjures up art and music and story-telling. But creativity is more than this - it’s inventing and problem solving . Or, to put it another way – it’s- Innovation.
In our sector we can see creativity and innovation every day. Ever bigger and more efficient wind turbines. Smart grids and the journey to becoming a Distribution System Operator. New business ventures, such as Green Hydrogen or electric heat networks. Smart solutions in our customers’ homes, turning them into virtual power plants. Building new ways for our customers to interact with us in the way that they want to. Harnessing the power of generative AI technology – which has helped me write this very post – to make our day to day working lives more productive.
On World Creativity and Innovation Day, we’re invited to embrace the idea that innovation is essential for harnessing economic potential, not just that of nations, but of cities, companies and individuals. It drives growth, job creation and solutions to the biggest issues that we face today. And few can compare to the Net Zero mission that sits at the heart of everything we do at ScottishPower. So it is no coincidence that all of the innovations I listed above are designed to drive ScottishPower, Scotland and the UK towards Net Zero. On the innovation conference circuit, this gets called “Purpose-led innovation”.
In the twenty-first century, human creativity and innovation are our true wealth, reshaping policies and driving sustainable development. Let’s celebrate creativity, ignite innovation, and propel progress.
MS Co-Pilot wrote that last paragraph for me -an innovation itself which can we can use to drive future innovation forward – however going by that sentence I don’t think it’s quite ready to replace us when it comes to creativity. ..
So, on 21 April, lets celebrate innovation and commit to using our full creative potential, collaborating within our business and within our sector, breaking down silos and harnessing the power of innovation. That is how we will innovate with purpose to deliver a Better Future, Quicker.