our story
Futerra arose from the experiences of its co-founders, Solitaire Townsend and Ed Gillespie, in the late 1990’s, while reading for Masters degrees in sustainable development. They weren't new to the field then either. Soli and Ed had worked extensively in the environment sector and CSR consultancy.
They were frustrated by the unsophisticated communications around sustainable development, and the dull and worthy messaging of corporate social responsibility. Everyone assuming that an ‘environmentalist’ meant sandals and brown rice didn’t help either. From research to short films, events to PR, the early days of Futerra were full of experimentation and learning. Supported by a grant from the National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts, they started a major research programme to develop guidelines for sustainability communications, now known as our popular 10 Rules. The short films One Minute and Seasons Alter (starring Keira Knightley) are also products of these early days.
Soon after the ‘Futerra project’ went live, more team members joined. In the years following, we’ve built an award-winning international agency true to the principles on which we were founded:
To make sustainable development so desirable ... it becomes normal.