Anthropy23: UAL connects with the social purpose movement
In early November, UAL’s Chief Social Purpose Officer Polly Mackenzie, and Nigel Ball, Director of the Social Purpose Lab, joined the Anthropy23 conference at the Eden Project to learn about how other organisations and sectors are changing to have a more positive impact in the world.
Following the launch of the university’s Social Purpose Implementation Plan in November, and a commitment to embedding purpose into everything UAL does, Anthropy provided a rich opportunity to learn and contribute to the broader social purpose movement.
This story will share insights based on the 3 events in which we participated:
- How organisations can align around a meta-purpose of human and planetary wellbeing
- How creativity is vital to the future of cities
- How a focus on outcomes can drive cross-sector collaboration
Decision-making is where the magic happens
An organisation is made up of a million decisions of consequence, both big and small. To orient organisations around a social purpose that prioritises the wellbeing of people and planet, our purpose needs to be a part of every decision.
That said, it is not enough to expect that every member of an organisation is equipped with the capacity and knowledge to connect their everyday task with their social and environmental implications. Our Social Purpose Implementation Plan advocates an approach that changes the very architecture of our University, so that plans, policies and systems enable staff to make purposeful decisions in their day-to-day work.
We learned from the British Standards Institute about their work to identify the worldviews, principles and behaviours of a social purpose-driven organisation. Their latest guidance explores how a meta-purpose of human and planetary wellbeing can be embedded in organisations.
It was the best of times: creativity and the sustainable city
Urbanisation has been the unstoppable trend of human life in recent centuries — by 2050, 70% of the global population will dwell in cities. We know all too well the social, economic and environmental issues that are wrapped up in urban living, expansion and consumption. What is less appreciated is the importance of creativity to unlocking cities of the future.
We need powerful and purposeful creative institutions to bring joy and meaning to our lives, to envelop urban experience with the richness of our stories, and contribute to a high quality of life and to social cohesion. We need creative capacity to design and build cities in characterful and sustainable ways. We need thriving cultural scenes to attract the human and economic capital that drive growth. The creative industries and professions accounted for 1 in 5 jobs in London in 2021, adding £55 billion to the UK economy before the pandemic.
We believe that creativity should be at the heart of any vision for the future of our cities.
It takes a village to embed our social purpose
Climate change, discrimination, inequality — the problems that we face take the form of complex systems that affect life across the planet in innumerable ways. It is common sense to suppose that collaboration between organisations, communities and sectors is necessary to turn the tide.
The how of cross-sector collaboration is a much tougher question! At the conference, we discussed the value of adaptive and wise leadership, research insights on building trust between partners, and navigating clashes in values to build a collaborative culture.
Sharing learnings from ‘A leader’s guide to cross-sector collaboration’, the event discussed how focussing on outcomes over outputs can help ensure a successful collaboration. A focus on longer-term outcomes requires adaptability and resilience, with leaders showing openness to test approaches and change paths where necessary, with the long-term goal in mind.
To learn more about UAL’s journey to becoming a purpose-driven organisation, read our Social Purpose Implementation Plan.
