There are reports this morning of scuffles between Insulate Britain climate protesters, who had blocked a roundabout on the M25, and drivers trying to get to work. This is reminiscent of an Extinction Rebellion protest in Canning Town where protesters stopped an electric train of commuters at rush hour and things turned nasty. Both incidents shows what can happen when intellectual purism hits blunt reality.

I’ve never been much of a one for protests as I’m not convinced confrontation achieves anything more than making both sides dig their heels in. Given we need people who don’t ‘get it’ to come on board for climate action, pissing them off strikes me as a really stupid starting point. Because of this pragmatic approach, I’ve often been accused of not taking Sustainability seriously by activists of various environmental cliques, to which my standard response is “you show me what you’ve achieved and I’ll show you what I’ve achieved” – this tends to kill the argument stone dead.

My Green Jujitsu approach to engaging people is based on the idea that punching someone in the face (metaphorically) is no way to get them to change. A jujitsu expert works to their opponents’ strengths to get them where they want them. Likewise, Green Jujitsu works to its audiences’ strengths, finding common ground between their interests and Sustainability. And I do it because it works.