Message from the IPRA President: The aspirations of Gen Z June 2022
(Comments)
1 year, 10 months ago
Hello from Tokyo, where the weather has been getting warmer and warmer like midsummer.
Communicating about the environment
The upcoming 5 June is World Environment Day, a global commemoration established in 1974 by the United Nations Environment Programme to raise awareness of environmental issues. This year Sweden will be the host country with the theme of Only One Earth. Environmental issues are now becoming an important element from a PR perspective. Environmental considerations enable companies to develop sustainable businesses, as a component in their ESG approach. ESG is Environmental, Social, and Corporate Governance, a way to evaluate the extent to which a corporation works on behalf of social goals that go beyond the maximization of profit.
Sustainability and Gen Z
While there are many companies working on an ESG approach, it has its issues. For example, strategies such as carbon offset are being questioned, and the definition of green energy can be troublesome. The trust placed by consumers in a company today reflects the extent to which their ESG approach may overcome such issues. This mirrors the fact that people value environmental concerns more than before, an outcome that may well be the result of the efforts of long-standing initiates such as World Environment Day. For Generation Z, the population cohort born between the mid 1990s and the 2010s, sustainability is a major factor in their decision-making process. For a message to resonates with them, information on the environment and other aspects of sustainability are increasingly more important than factors such as the image or coolness of their brand.
Around the globe
As IPRA President, I recently sent presentations and letters to IPRA associates and colleagues in Uganda and Iran. In Uganda, I was amazed at the percentage of Generation Z in the population, whilst regarding Iran, it was interesting to see the relationship between technology and communication. I hope to pay a physical visit to these energetic countries sometime soon.
The Golden World Awards 2022 has now closed, and we had a wonderful selection of highly creative and innovative entries. Now the hard process of judging starts with our 2022 judges from all over the IPRA world gearing up to read all the entries. I know from my own experience in previous years as a GWA judge that it is a fascinating and enjoyable thing to do. All judges learn from the diverse and unique approaches taken by our PR colleagues.
As we talk with Generation Z and learn from the GWA I hope to expand the possibilities of what PR professionals can do for the world today.
Etsuko Tsugihara
IPRA President 2022
Share on Twitter Share on Facebook
Comments