‘It promises to be an incredible Humber Business Week with a full, region-wide programme of events’
Dr Alan Raw with Emma Calverley (left) of the University of Hull and Pat Coyle, Chair of Humber Business Week.(Image: Humber Business Week.)
Humber industrial leaders have been urged to help lead the country on the road to sustainable recovery, at the launch of a major business event. Prominent author, musician, broadcaster, entrepreneur, and sustainability practitioner Dr Alan Raw launched the Humber Business Week north bank programme, calling upon everyone to embrace the key themes of sustainability, collaboration and culture.
He told delegates at the event in the University of Hull ’s Business School how the Creative and Cultural Organisation – which he founded in 1993 – had combined those themes to turn 34 disused shops in Hull into arts centres, music and recording studios, and festival space.
He said: “A lot of these shops when we got them were in a terrible state but we did them up and got them full of people and full of life.”
Of the wider Humber region, he said: “We are responsible and vulnerable. Our perspectives have always been tied to the natural world and like every industrial region we have taken a lot more out of nature than we have put back in.
“We produce more carbon than any other industrial cluster in the UK. We need to innovate to manage with less and still be efficient with less. We are dealing with the fastest coastal erosion in Europe. We are the UK’s second-highest flood risk area, with 90% of the region below the high tide line.
“We are dealing with risks that the rest of the UK is going to have to deal with but we are dealing with it first so we are also the best hope for showing the rest of the UK how to do sustainable business and what that looks like. We have the world’s largest offshore wind farm, award-winning community sustainability project and some of the best minds and innovators on the planet. We have a great deal of knowledge when it comes to sustainability and resilience.
“You can become national role models, so during business week ask each other what future they want to see for the Humber region, and what role they and their organisations are going to play.”
Emma Calverley, who hosted the programme launch event as Director of Knowledge Exchange at the University of Hull, said sustainability is just one element of a Humber Business Week package which offers a wide range of opportunities.
She said: “It’s a defining moment in our region’s calendar, and a celebration of everything that makes the Humber such a dynamic, ambitious and collaborative place to live, work and do business. It’s about bringing people together: entrepreneurs, educators, industry leaders, innovators, and the next generation of talent, to share ideas, spark partnerships, and shape the future of our region.”
Pat Coyle, Chair of Humber Business Week, said nearly 50 events have now been registered on the official Biz Week website, with more being added every day.
She added: “It promises to be an incredible Humber Business Week with a full, region-wide programme of events led by businesses, for businesses. It’s designed to offer something for everybody – leadership, innovation, skills, sustainability, creativity, culture, technology, finance and AI. We’ve got more variety in the programme than ever and there’s still time for people to organise their own event, so we’re encouraging all comers to take a look at the website, come up with something different, and join us in presenting another fantastic pan-Humber festival of business.”
To find out more about Humber Business Week, to add new events and to book places visit the Humber Business Week website here.
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