Tag: Purpose-Driven

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Events

Key Takeaways from Circularity 24

What happens when a pair of purpose-driven marketing agency team members from Canada land in one of the United States’ most interesting cities to attend one of the world’s biggest circular economy conferences?

A lot of learning, networking, and reaffirmation that a community of changemakers is dedicated to building a better and more regenerative world.

Earlier this year, Sparx team members Hamish Khamisa, President, and Alexandra Nikitina, Head of Growth, travelled to Chicago to attend Circularity 24, a three-day conference presented by Trellis (formerly GreenBiz Group), that brought together a growing community of individuals, businesses, and organizations passionate about creating a more sustainable future.

With our focus on accelerating awareness and adoption of regenerative and sustainable solutions, we attended plenty of events in the circular economy space. Circularity 24, however, was an entirely new experience for us.

From the sheer scale of the event to the diverse cross-section of individuals and organizations in attendance to the palpable FOMO (fear of missing out) from not being able to attend many of the 130+ talks, activities, and experiences, things felt large and moved fast.

The conference provided a unique opportunity to gauge the circular economy’s current state from a variety of business perspectives, engage with a wide range of changemakers, and gain insights into the role of marketing in accelerating the circular economy.

We can’t possibly do an event of this scale justice in one brief recap, but we’re eager to share several key reflections from our experience at Circularity 24 that we hope provide valuable circular economy insights. Suffice it to say, we understand why people like Garry Cooper, CEO of Rheaply, continue to come back each year. 

Read on for our highlights from Circularity 24, including key takeaways from insightful panels and intriguing exhibits, changemakers we connected with, lessons learned from attending large-scale sustainability events, and more.

Scaling the Circular Economy

Regardless of the company’s size, from large multinational corporations to startups, there was considerable consensus that “scaling up” the circular economy is crucial for a more sustainable world.

Of course, the devil is in the details. Answers to questions like “What is the circular economy?” often had similar components but were different enough to warrant some concerns by various private and public sector representatives. The lack of precise, agreed-upon standards for what constitutes a “circular solution” creates considerable friction when scaling. As a result, many stakeholders who want to take action are moving forward cautiously, using bespoke standards and approaches rather than globally applicable ones.

Encouragingly, when speaking with representatives from large multinational corporations like McDonald’s, Iron Mountain, and L’Oreal about their path to more circular practices, we learned larger businesses recognize the need to adapt to conducting business more sustainably and at scale. Of course, there are complexities and costs associated with reconfiguring their business structures and workflows and the desire to take action as a business is highly dependent on the clarity of standards. However, regulatory pressures, changing procurement requirements, and shifting consumer sentiment are influencing businesses toward a more sustainable direction.

At the other end of the spectrum, we spoke with many early-stage entrepreneurs and business leaders eager to scale their circular economy solutions. Companies such as Refillable, Green Standards, and Sway offered interesting examples of businesses that, if scaled, could redefine everyday consumption. 

Interestingly, smaller companies consistently reported that “leading with sustainability” wasn’t resonating with potential customers. Typical considerations like cost savings or competitive differentiation were more appealing to their target clients than sustainability or circular impact.

Of course, scaling circular solutions and businesses inherently requires capital and resources. One of the most interesting sessions was the panel “Unlocking the Capital Stack for Circular Transformation,” featuring Hanna Friedman, Founding Principal at Planeteer Capital; Jennifer Louie, Managing Director of Closed Loop Partners; and Bill Caesar, President of Generate Upcycle, which delved into the mindset of large-scale investors focused on regenerative or circular businesses. 

One key theme Bill Caesar highlighted was the crucial need for companies that turn waste into resources to ensure a reliable feedstock supply, significantly impacting the economic viability of circular business models.

Conversations, Connection, and Community

While we gained many insights from the sessions we attended, Circularity 24 was also a remarkable platform for making meaningful connections.

With over 1,400 visionaries, thought leaders, and practitioners from different countries, backgrounds, and industries converging around a shared interest in the circular economy, we were thrilled to participate in both structured and spontaneous opportunities to connect with fellow attendees.

From conversations in lunch lines and on elevator and escalator rides across multiple floors of the venue, to digital interactions through the conference app, and even during an early morning run to the iconic Bean, everyone brought  a sincere and inspiring eagerness to connect and potentially collaborate.

The structured networking sessions were excellent for meeting diverse groups of people, such as first-time attendees, women, BIPOC attendees, and more, as well as creating a sense of belonging.

Sparx  also had the chance to organize a brief meetup of nearly 20 fellow Canadian attendees, including representatives from GEOTAB, Green Standards, Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat, Keurig Dr Pepper Canada, Environment and Climate Change Canada, and Quantum Lifecycle Partners. It was great to share insights on the circular economy landscape in Canada and explore ways to support each other in our purpose-driven endeavours.

Marketing is Critical for the Circular Economy

Among the many conversations at Circularity 24, we were particularly interested in exploring the challenges and best practices related to circular economy marketing, and jumped at the chance to attend relevant sessions.

The “More than a Megaphone: Communicating and Collaborating for Circular Success” panel explored how sustainability communicators can facilitate the faster, smoother adoption of circularity as a business strategy. 

Jeffrey Hogue, Chief Sustainability Officer at Levi Strauss, noted that directly talking about sustainability did not have the impact on clothing sales that the team expected. Instead, a campaign that focused on durability as the value proposition of Levi’s jeans performed much better. This suggests that promoting environmental sustainability indirectly can lead to more sustainable outcomes. Several entrepreneurs echoed this sentiment, stating that “sustainability” is not a primary purchasing driver; traditional factors like price, reliability, and convenience still shape business decisions.

Suzanne Shelton of ERM Shelton, who facilitated part of the session, shared research data showing that most consumers equate the circular economy with recycling, a result of decades of recycling education and awareness building. While we should recognize where people currently are and meet them there, scaling up awareness and understanding means more work is needed in conveying other aspects of the circular economy. 

Finally, Nazlican Goksu, Design Director at IDEO, highlighted the significant impact designers can have in determining sustainable products and solutions at the point of inception. To drive home this point, Goksu shared a story about an IDEO-designed toothbrush that later washed ashore on a beach and was brought back to their offices as a reminder of the consequences of designers’ actions. This anecdote also underscored the importance of storytelling as a powerful tool for impactful communication.

Another excellent example of effective storytelling was “The Blue Paradox,” an immersive exhibit held at the Griffin Museum of Science and Industry.

The Blue Paradox movement aims to inspire collective action by vividly communicating how plastic pollution affects marine life and our daily lives. It encourages individuals, businesses, and governments to protect our oceans by improving how we produce, use, reuse, and recycle plastic.

As we took a detour to navigate the exhibit, we encountered several thought-provoking facts:

  • Around the world, 1 million plastic drinking bottles are purchased every minute, and up to 5 trillion plastic bags are used annually.
  • On average, a single gallon of tap water contains 34 microplastic particles.
  • The Great Pacific Garbage Patch spans 620,000 square miles, more than ten times the area of Illinois.
  • Around 30% of all plastic on the world’s ocean surfaces forms the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, which has increased exponentially over recent decades.

Overall, our experiences at Circularity 24 emphasized the critical role marketing plays in shaping the narrative around sustainable business practices. However, it also became clear that marketing alone is not enough. For sustainable products and services to outperform established offerings, they also need to do so on key parameters like price and convenience. 

Amplify Your Circular Economy Story With Sparx

Circularity 24 was an incredible opportunity for our team to lean into our purpose of amplifying voices that catalyze positive change.

Though this was our first foray into a circular economy conference of this size, it certainly won’t be our last. We learned the value of pacing ourselves and reminding each other to prioritize wellbeing; with so much on the agenda, we had to be selective in how we spent our time and ensure we took breaks to recharge.

Overall, Circularity 24 left us feeling encouraged about how we can help accelerate the transition to a more circular economy. Yet, the most inspiring takeaway is knowing we are part of a community of like-minded businesses and organizations that believe in a better world and work daily to make it a reality. These are the stories that we believe need to reach a wider audience in order to accelerate a shift to a more circular economy.Are you looking to share your circular economy story? We would love to team up and amplify your impact. Contact us for a free marketing consultation.

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Events Impact Inspiration & Initiatives

Key Takeaways from the National Magazine Awards: 2023

At Sparx, we pride ourselves on being masters of our craft. That’s why in 2021, we launched our own purpose-driven magazine, Make The World Better Magazine, a publication that shares incredible stories of individuals and organizations who are driving positive impact.

Of course, part of mastering a craft is looking for inspiration and learning ways to make your work even better.

In June 2023, we had the pleasure of attending the 5th annual National Magazine Awards: B2B Luncheon, hosted by the National Media Awards Foundation (NMAF), a charity dedicated to promoting excellence in journalism and visual creation in Canada. 

Connecting With Canada’s Premier B2B Magazine Publishers

Sparx was thrilled to be one of roughly 100 attendees, all of whom directly work in the magazine/publishing industry, to celebrate the best of the best in Canadian B2B magazine publishing and mingle with nominated writers, editors, and contributors. 

In a beautiful room overlooking Toronto’s vibrant downtown district, including Toronto City Hall and the Eaton Centre, the event ran seamlessly with winner announcements and breaks for food, including a delicious multi-course lunch, and plenty of time for networking. 

Learning and Sharing Our Purpose-Driven Vision 

While this event was awards-based, that didn’t stop us from absorbing as much as we could from our various conversations with professionals in the space. 

We learned more about the current state of the Canadian B2B magazine industry, various distribution channels for magazines, target audiences of different B2B magazines, and monetization paths — all useful information to apply to our Make The World Better Magazine as well as the other magazines that we publish on behalf of our clients. 

We were thrilled to spread awareness about our magazine portfolio and share copies with interested individuals. As representatives of the only purpose-driven magazine at the event, Make The World Better Magazine stood out from the crowd of publications for lawyers, university alumni, and other B2B-focused groups.

Even though we weren’t nominated (yet!), we found the value in seeing the best practices and celebrating outstanding publications.

Inspiring Quality Storytelling 

The room was filled with vibrant discussions, but there’s no doubt that the rise of artificial intelligence and competition for attention were topical. Among the concerns: publishers run the risk of producing hastily-made, filler content that doesn’t inspire, represent, or engage readers. 

What the NMA:B2B Awards Luncheon does well is encourage the difficult but important journey of quality storytelling by empowering writers, editors, designers, and content creators to continue to focus on producing quality content and communicating the value of it. 

Overall, we hope to attend this event again and applaud their sensitivity to sustainable event programming, like avoiding disposable cutlery and plates and being mindful of their paper footprint. 

It was a valuable experience for us to learn about and celebrate B2B magazine publishing and see a clearer path forward for our own magazine initiatives. 

Let Sparx Help You Produce Impactful Content 

Want to bring your content ideas from the notepad to the page? The experts at Sparx can help bring your story to life. Contact us for a free marketing consultation.

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Impact Inspiration & Initiatives Work Life & Culture

Marketing with Purpose: What Makes Sparx Special

Sparx Publishing Group is not your typical digital marketing agency — we’re a team of purpose-driven marketers on a mission to make the world better. And the journey toward better begins with walking our talk.

We don’t just amplify the efforts of purpose-driven organizations; we are purpose-driven. We don’t just champion diversity; we are diverse. We don’t just offer marketing services; we believe in being good at what we do for others by doing it for ourselves.

Here are the core traits that make Sparx, Sparx and empower us to live out marketing with purpose, every day.

We’re Purpose-Driven

Our story began over 10 years ago with a spark of an idea to level the playing field for Canadian self-directed investors via a free online resource called Sparx Trading. To reach and engage this audience, we grew a passion for creating content marketing that has a positive impact on people and planet.

Sparx has come a long way from our humble beginnings. We have since expanded into a purpose-driven marketing agency dedicated to working with companies and organizations who are thoughtful and intentional about making the world a better place. For us, quality, attentiveness to detail, and innovation are reflections of our principles and key aspects of delivering on our purpose. And since our values are so integral to who we are, we want to work with other values-aligned organizations to make their impact shine, amplify their good, and help ignite the spark in other individuals and businesses to be purpose-driven.

Every member of the Sparx team is invested in driving positive change. 

We’re a small team with big dreams, and the biggest one we all share: to make the world better. This is exemplified in our initiatives, Make The World Better Day, which grew out of a place of both loss and hope, and our publication, Make The World Better Magazine, where we amplify the voices of changemakers because we’re inspired by their stories and are rooting for their success.

But making the world better is more than just a dream — it’s a mission we’re working to advance in our day-to-day work too. That’s why all our content is crafted with purpose, as evidenced by our blog, our commitment to the UN Global Compact’s Sustainable Development Goals, our enrollment in the United Way Social Purpose Innovators Program, our circular economy spin on Secret Santa, and the marketing work we’ve done for organizations like Sea Smart and Galt Foundation. 

We also participate in various initiatives that enable us to give back and help others, such as Movember, Kiva loans, and our personal seasonal gifting practices, where we donate funds to causes that are important to our clients. As of 2021, this gifting practice has led us to jointly donate a total of 5,000 meals to various local food banks across Canada and the US and to amplify donations to the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto and a local humane society in Florida.

Beyond traditional marketing goals, our purpose-driven communications also reflect our belief that being equipped with the right knowledge is another critical part of making the world better. By sharing our takeaways from purpose-driven events we’ve participated in, such as Brand Battle For Good and Make The World Better Day, and raising awareness of mission-aligned recognition days, observances, and organizations through social media and in our newsletter, we hope to inspire others, hold ourselves accountable, and spark meaningful conversation.

We’re Diverse

As a CAMSC-certified minority-owned and -led organization, our team is certified diverse. We’re open to new ideas and every staff member is encouraged to bring their unique perspectives to the table. We’re passionate about amplifying diversity and applying our diverse set of backgrounds and experiences to drive innovation and create marketing that speaks to the plurality of the places we live and the audiences we serve. 

Championing diverse voices and learning about identities different from our own is incredibly important to us. As open-minded marketing experts, we want to help others communicate their diversity story and to do our utmost to help further the diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) cause.

One way we’re championing diversity is through Make The World Better Magazine. Our fifth edition, which launched in July 2023, is the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion issue. We’re so thrilled to share the inspiring stories of organizations and individuals who are helping to make the world more diverse, equitable, inclusive, and accessible.

Since DEI is a central part of who we are and our purpose-driven communications, we will continue to seek more ways to incorporate it into our Sparx-owned marketing and to amplify more and more diverse voices. As we learn and grow, we will continue to share our DEI learnings, pitfalls, and wins with our audience in the hope of making our own diversity story better.

We Offer Services That We Use Ourselves 

At Sparx, we invest time, energy, and resources into our own marketing because we believe in being good at what we do for others by being good at it for ourselves. 

Our expertise is first-hand — we’re professionals who work in the marketing space, so we know the problems, limitations, and opportunities different workflows bring to client work. Not only does this increase our adaptability and ability to plan, scope, and execute effectively, it enables us to create the best work possible for our clients as we’re constantly refining our processes and skills in our owned brand marketing efforts. 

Everything we do is tried-and-true, and we dedicate ourselves to making the best content, solutions, and strategies possible for us and our clients. We will never deliver solutions we would not feel proud to use for Sparx. 

Whether it’s building websites, blog posts, whitepapers, downloadable guides, marketing collateral, advertisements, brand guides — you name it — we’ve done it for ourselves. This includes:

  • Publishing our own magazine, Make The World Better Magazine and doing this as a service for clients as well, including Canadian Securities Exchange Magazine.
  • Maintaining and regularly crafting new content for our blog and extending this service to our clients, which can be seen in the one-time, series, and monthly blog posts we made for Galt Foundation. 
  • Staying active on our own social media channels and building, publishing, and managing social media content for our clients.
  • Creating downloadable purpose-driven marketing guides, with adjacent marketing campaigns (ads, landing pages, email drip campaigns) to raise brand awareness, and offering this service to our clients as well, including TPD and Work With Us Foundation.

We’re also well-versed when it comes to data. The Sparx team uses data and analytics extensively to inform our decision-making to make sure our own campaigns work as effectively and efficiently as possible. We extend this to our clients in order to provide them with the data and solutions necessary to get the results they need, when they need them. 

And since we know how to manage our workflows and pace ourselves properly, we always deliver quality results. Working against timelines and within budgets? We do that daily.

Conclusion

Walking our talk is an intrinsic part of Sparx because our team members bring a genuine interest, enthusiasm, and passion for the work they do. We’re driven by our purpose to make an impact, as we believe that it’s the right thing to do and that we should always bring our best. This unique combination of elements is what makes our brand special.

Are You Marketing With Purpose?

We’d love to work with your values-aligned organization. Contact us for a free consultation and to help market your one-of-a-kind impact story.

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Impact Inspiration & Initiatives Purpose-Driven Marketing Tips Sustainability Tips

20+ Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Resources for Purpose-Driven Organizations

Making the world more diverse, equitable, and inclusive is a collective effort. That’s why it’s important to educate ourselves, assess our personal and professional DEI efforts, and find actionable ways to participate in and support the cause.

We’ve compiled a list of helpful DEI resources you can use to deepen your understanding and enact positive change.

DEI Resources from Organizations Featured in Make The World Better Magazine 

Check out these inspiring guides, toolkits, ebooks, and DEI resources from individuals and organizations that have been featured in Make The World Better Magazine.

Bakau Consulting – Resources Toolkit: Bakau Consulting has compiled an exhaustive list of DEI articles, books, podcasts, and other resources covering a wide range of topics, from fundamentals of anti-oppression to strategies for 2SLGBTQIA+ inclusion and everything in between. Available in English, Spanish, and Russian.

Benevity – Belonging: The Third Piece of the Diversity & Inclusion Puzzle ebook: Benevity fosters a culture of diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging and is sharing this fundamental part of their workplace culture with everyone. This guide, directed at corporate social responsibility leaders, teaches companies all about belonging, its importance, and how it benefits the workplace.

Benevity – Your Guide to Creating and Promoting a Culture of Gender Equality: Benevity’s free, downloadable guide is designed to help companies build a workplace culture of gender equality through four actionable steps.

Canadian Centre for Diversity and Inclusion – Glossary of Terms: The Canadian Centre for Diversity and Inclusion (CCDI) has put together a comprehensive 76-page glossary of terms important for understanding and discussing DEI. 

Canadian Centre for Diversity and Inclusion – Responding to social issues – The ‘when’ and the ‘how’ of workplace responses: This guide from CCDI educates employers on if and how to respond to social issues and how to develop a response framework that will ensure employees and communities feel heard and supported.

Diversity in Sustainability – Mamadou Abou-Sarr: Bringing Intentionality to ESG: This interview with Mamadou Abou-Sarr, international financier and Co-Founder of V-Square Quantitative Management, explores the importance of sustainable investing, pressing issues in sustainable finance, and his experiences, achievements, and advice.

QMUNITY – Gender Inclusivity Language: QMUNITY has created a resource that offers ideas for gender-inclusive greetings to ensure mindful language. 

Raven Indigenous Capital Partners – Raven Impact Measurement Framework: Raven Capital’s framework, the Raven Impact Measurement (RIM), provides insight into how they measure the impact the businesses in their portfolio are having on Indigenous Peoples, communities, and on the ecosystem, along with sharing their epistemology, philosophy, investment practices, and alignment to the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.

Sxwpilemaát Siyám / Chief Leanne Joe and Lily Raphael – Step into the River: A Framework for Economic Reconciliation: This Framework draws on Indigenous worldviews about wealth, sustainability, and lived experiences of Indigenous thought leaders and offers values, practices, and ideas for action, providing a deep exploration of the ways in which economic reconciliation could transform our economic system and create positive impact.

DEI Resources from Other Changemakers

AccessibleEmployers – Workplace Accommodation Guide: This guide provides actionable ways to accommodate for both visible and invisible disabilities, proving that increasing workplace accessibility doesn’t need to be complicated or expensive.

Reclaiming Power and Place: The Final Report of the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls: Read the 231 individual Calls for Justice directed at governments, institutions, social service providers, industries, and all Canadians in this two-volume report on the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls, and Two-Spirited People (MMIWG2S) epidemic in Canada.

The Employer Assistance and Resource Network on Disability Inclusion – 10 Tips for an Accessible Website: Discover 10 actionable tips you can start using right away to ensure your website is accessible for all.

The Human Rights Campaign Foundation – Talking About Pronouns in the Workplace: This resource highlights the importance of using pronouns in the workplace, offers helpful background information, and provides examples of opportunities to ask for/offer pronouns. 

Good Good Good – 13 Sites to Find Diverse Stock Photos & Why It Matters: Check out this article for stock photo databases that offer a wide range of diverse and inclusive images, including sites that ethically source authentic photos and help support diverse content creators.

LinkedIn – Inclusive Language For Marketers: A Pocket Guide: LinkedIn has created a guide to help marketers incorporate a more inclusive lexicon in all of their communications. The guide includes best practices and alternatives to common exclusionary language.

McLean & Company – DEI Strategy Research: This DEI guide helps HR leaders create a people-first DEI strategy, empowering them to assess their current efforts and gaps, determine a clear purpose and how to carry it out, implement organization-wide DEI, and measure progress.

One Mind At Work – 2022 CHRO Insights Series: Neurodiversity: Uncover key learnings and best practices surrounding neurodiversity in the workplace from leading experts in this 2022 report.

Ten Thousand Coffees – Create an Inclusive Work Environment During Black History Month and Beyond ebook: Ten Thousand Coffees has designed a guide that shares advice, strategies, and experiences from 15 Black business leaders to help workplaces celebrate Black History Month, take year-long inclusive action, and nurture Black and BIPOC talent.

UBC Sustainability Scholars Program – Exploring a Just and Inclusive Circular Recovery: Part of the UBC Sustainability Scholars Program, this report explores the benefits of the circular economy and the social enterprises that intersect with it, offering insight into the jobs that a transition to the circular economy can generate and share, reuse, and repair businesses within marginalized communities.

Veza – Anti-Racism Sample Statement: Equity, diversity, and inclusion organization Veza Global has provided an anti-racism sample statement, which companies can adapt to create their own anti-racism commitment statement and steps.

Sparx PG’s Resources 

Since DEI is so important to Sparx and a crucial part of our DNA, we have created some DEI marketing resources of our own that we hope will benefit you and your purpose-driven organization:

  • Why and How to Add More Diversity Into Your Marketing Efforts: There are many benefits to adding diversity to your marketing efforts, but in order to avoid performative or disingenuous “woke-washing,” we’ve created a guide on how to do it in an authentic, actionable way to truly make the world better.
  • How to Avoid “Rainbow-Washing” during Pride Month: June is Pride month, which means it’s a great time for your organization to live its values and support the 2SLGTBQIA+ community. However, it’s important to make sure your efforts aren’t “rainbow-washing.” Be sure to read our guide on how to be a true ally this Pride month, and beyond.

Join Forces with Sparx

Sparx would love to work with your purpose-driven organization to build a more diverse, inclusive, and equitable community. Want to team up? Give us a shout for a free consultation. Together, we can help make your diversity story shine.