Jarvis Smith
Jarvis Smith, the lead singer of rock reggae band The Phoenix Rose heads an impressive array of ambassadors and judges in hosting the inaugural People and Environment Achievement Business Awards this year. Jarvis Smith is a musician, evangelist, publisher and TV personality. He is also the chair for the Friends of the Earth Event Gala Committee.
Green living dominates his personal and professional life and has led him to establish the People and Environment Achievement Business Awards (PEABs) and gather support from an array of similarly ‘green minded’ individuals who want to make green cool.
His vision for the PEABs is to celebrate how green initiatives can be good for business as well as the planet. The new Awards will showcase excellence and innovation as demonstrated by an individual or team within an organisation of any shape or size, from the public or private sector, whose contribution to the ’greening‘ of UK businesses has been genuinely effective. Jarvis’s talent as a songwriter and his musicianship act as powerful vehicles for his green message and set the PEABs apart from other environmental awards. The experience that Jarvis identifies as the turning point in his commitment to green living was his time on Channel 4’s Dumped, where he lived with a group of volunteers on a rubbish dump for three weeks, surviving on other people’s rubbish. Knowing that this was how many people across the world actually live and that a large proportion of the population do not realise the startling effects of their lifestyles, prompted Jarvis to dedicate every part of his life to encouraging change.
Jarvis’s band, The Phoenix Rose, was the first band to sign what is effectively a sustainable record contract, which contains guidelines about travel reduction and, worst case, carbon-offsetting travel, green energy tariffs, efficient CD production, and the use of enviro-friendly products for promo shoots and appearances. Having performed at Glastonbury, Sunrise and the Bristol Vegan Fayre, as well as the main stage at the UK’s Greenest Festival, Croissant Neuf, the band have impressed the star-studded audience at the GG2 Leadership and Diversity Awards, which champions and recognizes ethnic achievement. Jarvis believes music is the best way to spread powerful and determined messages in a peaceful manner.
The Phoenix Rose’s music is a melodic blend of reggae, pop and rock, written to infuse the mind and soul with positive vigour and a feeling of unity, principles of Reiki of which Jarvis is a master. The concept of energy transmission is a driving force for Jarvis’s music, along with a belief in sharing knowledge, positivity and understanding. The Phoenix Rose’s new single, Planet 2012, was written to make people consider their world and realise their own ability to inspire change. On his reasons for insisting on a ‘green’ record contract, Jarvis says: “The music industry seems to shy away from taking on bands like The Phoenix Rose; bands that make great songs but who are also ethical and green. Music changes people’s lives. The industry has so much power to reach so many people, they could make being green cool overnight. We want them to support and promote the green lifestyle choice. But as they aren’t, we are doing it ourselves”. Jarvis’s attitude towards climate change and green initiatives is integral to his personal and professional life. He is CEO of King Lion Media, an ethical publishing company that prides itself on its approach to sustainability by using the media to inspire people to live in a more sustainable way.
The core business produces GREEN magazine the biggest ‘eco lifestyle’ magazine in Europe, formerly co-branded with National Geographic, and now independently distributed with the Guardian. King Lion Media has recently been profiled as a case study for the Lloyds TSB Sustainability Business Seminars, a programme of 200 nationwide seminars that form part of the Lloyds Banking Group 2012 SME Charter and will take place annually. Aside from the PEABs, Jarvis is developing a website that enables consumers to find the most sustainable products on the market. It will be a simple tool, but packaged in such a way to make being green aspirational and appealing. Along with an inspiring group of friends, supporters and colleagues, Jarvis’s plan is ultimately to make green ‘cool and sexy’.
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1. Describe the sustainability goals and objectives of your venture, emphasizing any major achievements and challenges that were overcome.
Jarvis believes that music is the best way to spread powerful and determined messages in a peaceful manner. Being lead singer of the world’s first ‘green’ band, he also instigated the world’s first green label company, Archangel, which provides guidelines on travel reductions, efficient CD production and use of environmentally-friendly products, and for appearances and promo shoots. As one of the first bands to have sustainability written into their contracts, the musicians are wholeheartedly committed to playing only on stages powered by 100% renewable energy. Despite this challenge, The Phoenix Rose has been invited to perform at the world’s largest music festivals: Glastonbury, Sunrise, WaveForm, Bestival and Bristol Vegan Fayre, to name but a few. Being the founder of GREEN, one of the largest ethical lifestyle and business magazines in Europe, Jarvis is determined to promote a more sustainable, natural and organic lifestyle amongst the general public.
GREEN with the Guardian reaches the general mainstream with a readership of 1.2 million and an additional 80,000 subscribers to show readers how they can live a more sustainable life. The magazine is published with a 100 percent recycled paper and has a minimum environmental footprint. With the help of experienced environmental campaigners and writers, such as Tony Juniper, Deirdre Vine, Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall, Jo Fairley, and Jo Wood, Jarvis’s ultimate goal is to make green cool and sexy and to become an integral part of everyone’s day to day life whether it be at work or at home”. Businesses that advertise with GREEN and sponsor the PEA Awards receive an excellent return on investment. King Lion Media Ltd has very clear criteria and guidelines on deciding who they partner, promote and champion through their many ‘green’ initiatives. Promoting and communicating our corporate values has enabled us to overcome challenges that may have compromised our standards, and still enabled us to be financially successful and robust in our decisions.
2.) DESCRIBE HOW SUSTAINABILITY IS REFLECTED IN THE ETHOS OF YOUR BUSINESS OPERATIONS AND EMPLOYEES’ COMMITMENT.
King Lion Media Ltd is an ethical publishing house with all embracing corporate core values that are embedded in our day to day activities and the choices that we make. KLM’s employees and consultants amount to approximately thirty people with at least 80% of people working from home 90% of the time. Our commitment to re-cycling and reducing waste is reflected through our use of 100 % renewable energy and re-cycled paper for our magazines. Our long term business plans are completely focused on sustainability. King Lion Media continues to promote and champion this ethos by taking action and making decisions that reflect their core corporate values, not only on whom we work with but how we produce and distribute our products. Both employees and associates fully embrace the company’s ethos and stance on ethical living and are committed to fulfilling our promises to the environment. From selection through to the development of our people, we retain, recognize and reward in line with our core values of sustainability and saving the planet. These are our common goals. 4.) HOW
3.) HAVE YOU CONTRIBUTED TO THE WIDER BENEFIT OF THE ENVIRONMENT AND SOCIETY THROUGH YOUR BUSINESS OPERATIONS?
King Lion Media raises funds for Project GreenHands, a colossal tree planting and culture shift initiative with an objective to re-forest Tamil Nadu in Southern India, purely by educating and captivating every segment of society to enable them to save their environment. The Phoenix Rose played at a Project GreenHands’ fundraising event last year and was so enchanted by the work of the charity, Jarvis travelled to India to ‘see what was happening with his own eyes’ and was ‘called-to-action’ by the tree planting initiative’s capacity for mass mobilization and social change. Based on the success of this initiative, Jo Wood, founder of Jo Wood Organics, ventured to India with Guru Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev, honored by many, to explore the works of Project GreenHands, and climb Mount Kailash. All made possible by King Lion Media and the efforts of Jarvis Smith. Jarvis also introduced Project GreenHands to Yellowbrick Events who recently raised over £40,000 at charity fundraiser event India Rocks. Project GreenHands has been given the top environmental award in India by the Indian Central Government. All of this hard work combined currently now shows 10million saplings have now grown in more than 427 nurseries and planted by 1800 rural communities and 3 main industrial cities.
4.) DESCRIBE HOW YOUR ORGANISATION HAS DELIVERED ON THE TRIPLE BOTTOM LINE: MAXIMIZING PROFIT AND SUSTAINABILITY BENEFITS
We deliver 100 % recycled products, distributed as efficiently and economically as possible, reducing any wastage, without lowering our print standards. This approach has gained respect from advertisers willing to pay that little bit more for ethical advertising. All our activities involve following clear and robust guidelines that are beneficial to the planet as well as industries wanting to show commitment to their shareholders, potential customers and the general public. Similarly, operating costs are kept lean and to a minimum through a commitment to reducing waste, using renewable energy and promoting working from home where possible. Our operating model is simple and reflects our organizational core values around sustainability, resulting in a company turnover of just over £1million in our first year. By providing guidelines to current and potential clients, we also indirectly promote an ethical awareness that paves the way for them to make significant improvements and informed choices in how they run their businesses in relation to protecting their environment. King Lion Media has many close relationships with Heads of CSR across a range of industries.
5.) HOW DO YOU ENDEAVOUR TO DELIVER ON SUSTAINABILITY COMMITMENTS AS YOU EMBRACE EXPANSION PLANS FOR YOUR BUSINESS?
King Lion Media is an ethical media house promoting ethical businesses, recognizing and rewarding both individuals and businesses for their achievements around sustainability and forging partnerships with networks and businesses that embrace our ethos of sustainable living and protecting the planet. As a media company we will continue to expand and increase awareness through different media channels, seek sponsorships for ‘green’ events and partner with businesses that embrace and share our clear commitment to the environment. All future ventures, i.e. business and travel magazines, will reflect the integrity of our flagship magazine GREEN, using distribution and operating models that again reduce waste and adopt recycled components for our final products. The PEA Awards will continue to be sponsored and funded by like-minded people and businesses that share our values and ethos, and our peaceful messages of ethical living will continue through our music events and festivals. As our network and partnerships grow we will continue to promote sustainable living as that is integral to everything King Lion Media promotes.
