Inspiration for Climate-Conscious: VERGE San Jose Takeaways

A week before Election Day, environmentalists, business leaders, and techies united at Trellis Group’s VERGE Climate Tech Conference in San Jose. At a time with so much environmental uncertainty, the conference brought bright, innovative minds together for a moment of climate optimism. 

The conference was a breath of fresh air in the media landscape, where we’ve become accustomed to monitoring gloom-and-doom headlines. From emerging carbon credit startups to longstanding tech companies, VERGE offered a look into a hopeful future. In conversations with attendees at our booth, one thing was clear: These climate solutions need storytelling.

Telling the Whole Story

I attended a comms workshop on Credible Climate Claims at VERGE and worked on a hands-on roundtable full of industry experts. With companies pledging to move toward net zero, their stories must be told effectively and credibly. The workshop aimed to answer the question: How do we approach the general public after a client makes an environmental promise they can no longer keep? 

In a world where companies are setting ambitious climate goals, this is a more common-than-not situation. As communications experts, it’s our responsibility to provide the greatest amount of transparency to the general public while also holding our clients accountable for their commitments. This workshop explored different methods of transparency tactics, such as internal employee communications and formal external statements. Veterans in the field, from communications professionals with decades of experience to attorneys who can speak to the legal side of PR, came together to share the best accountability approaches.  

It’s an exciting time to be a communications professional in this industry. We’re in a new age of energy, and moving these stories to the masses is key to driving the transition forward. 

Optimism Ahead

But one of my more personal experiences at VERGE was the opportunity to meet a large number of people in such a short period. In this field, new technologies are emerging left and right, and at VERGE, we were lucky enough to be among the first to learn about them. 

My experience at the Sun PR booth opened my eyes to just how many people are working to solve the climate crisis, which was inspiring and stimulating. At a time with so much political uncertainty, it’s reassuring to know the sheer amount of people who are working toward environmental solutions. 

I left VERGE feeling excited about the opportunity to share the stories of all the hard-working and committed individuals we met at the conference. As federal leadership priorities shift, the need to amplify the significance of climate technology and sustainability work has never been greater—and that’s where PR professionals must help steer the course of conversations.