The Prince’s Mayday Network is a group of businesses committed to taking
action on climate change
and was founded by HRH The Prince of Wales in
2007.
The Network is convened by Business in the Community
and over 3000 businesses have signed up to date. The 'May Day' name is derived from the May Day
distress signal, and was chosen deliberately to communicate the urgency of the climate change message
Mayday Journey
The Mayday Journey is an online resource for businesses that want
to take action on climate change. It helps them to realise the benefits of
taking action on climate change, explaining what they can do to reduce carbon
emissions, as well as what the benefits are. It directs them to low-carbon case studies and
sources of support, and is independent and peer reviewed.
Mayday case studies
Businesses in the Prince’s May Day Network
are encouraged to take action on climate change by sharing best practice through
publishing case studies of best practice. These profile a range of businesses that are taking steps to
reduce their carbon emissions and who are engaging their employees, suppliers and
customers to do the same.
Mayday report-back
Every year, HRH The Prince of Wales requests that every business in the
Prince’s May Day Network report-back on the progress they have made against
their May Day pledges in the May Day report-back. The report-back opened in March this year and closes in May. In 2009, over 500 businesses reported-back against
their pledges.
2007 Summit
The first Prince’s Mayday Summit on climate change took place on 1 May 2007.
It was held as a call to action on the urgent issue of climate change. Over
1,000 business leaders made over 5,500 pledges to take action on climate change
at the event.
The Summit uniquely networked one hub event at St. James’s Palace and nine
regional events across England through video conferencing technology provided by
BT. Companies discussed the science behind climate change and the business
imperative of taking action on the issue, with contributions from HRH The Prince
of Wales, Jonathon Porritt and Sir Crispin Tickell.
This initial event was followed by 2 further Summits in Scotland and Wales in
November 2007.
2008 Summit
The second Prince’s Mayday Summit was held on 1 May 2008. Over 1,600
business leaders attended the Summit at 12 locations across the UK which were
linked by satellite to a 'hub' event attended by 160 Chief Executives of leading
businesses. Attendees were asked to commit to up to 6 pledges on climate change.
Nearly 7,000 pledges were made on the day and:
- 76% of attendees committed to calculate their carbon footprint over the
next 12 months - 60% of attendees committed to report their carbon footprint over the
next 12 months
Businesses got involved in the Summit by attending an event, watching online
and holding in-house events for their employees and suppliers.