Learning Through Leadership Talk – May 2025

‘What does it mean to be radical in these times?’ with Hugh Knowles (Class of 1993)

In this blog post, Rosalie Kerr, Rank’s Alumni Development Officer, reflects on our recent Learning Through Leadership talk, ‘What does it mean to be radical in these times?’, delivered by Hugh Knowles (Fellow, Class of 1993). The event took place on 21 May 2025 at The Rank Foundation’s offices in Shoreditch, London.

About the guest speaker:

Hugh Knowles has over 20 years of experience in executive leadership, innovation, and environmental ventures. Until July 2024, he was the co-CEO of Friends of the Earth, a leading grassroots environmental campaigning organisation, represented now in 74 countries. During his time as CEO, Friends of the Earth successfully sued the government (twice) in the Supreme Court and worked with communities to stop major fossil fuel infrastructure in locations over England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Hugh has led on environmental issues across the not-for-profit and private sectors and in prior roles has worked with everyone from CEOs of multinationals to founders of new startups, in the UK and abroad. He has a degree in Zoology and Ecology and has sidelines in unusual creative projects including an electronic waste sculpture on the Southbank to a coffee disloyalty card that spread around the world.

The Learning Through Leadership Talks are a bi-annual event where members of the Fellowship are invited to deliver a talk on their leadership journey and reflect on what leadership has looked like and felt like to them in their careers and beyond.

We launched our 2025 Learning Through Leadership series with a powerful and thought-provoking talk by Hugh Knowles (Class of 1993), exploring what it truly means to be a radical leader today. Drawing on his extensive career in third-sector climate activism, Hugh framed the conversation around both systemic challenges and the role of the everyday individual.

The session was wide-ranging, covering urgent issues like the climate crisis, the growing influence of AI, and the enduring importance of hope and action in the face of global uncertainty.

Hugh began by reflecting on formative experiences that shaped his path—from an eye-opening stint with WaterAid in Nepal at age 18 to inspiring lectures on global ecology during his time at the University of Edinburgh. These moments, or “interventions” as he called them, sparked a lifelong commitment to addressing the environmental harm caused by human activity.

“Why are we so intent on fouling our own nest?” he asked, before walking us through his diverse career. From building sculptures made of e-waste on London’s Southbank, advising multinationals on sustainability strategy, to developing air quality monitors for prams in Tower Hamlets, Hugh’s work has spanned creative activism, policy, and innovation. In 2017, he became Director—and later Co-CEO—of Friends of the Earth, a role he held until the summer of 2024.

Much of his work with Friends of the Earth, he noted, was intentionally “invisible.” The organisation focuses on empowering communities to oppose unwanted fossil fuel infrastructure—offering expertise but letting local voices lead. A standout example came from Merthyr Tydfil in South Wales, where residents in 2016 successfully stopped an open-cast coal mine encroaching on their village. “None of them would have called themselves activists,” Hugh said, but they ended up enacting massive change in their local community.

Taking the helm of Friends of the Earth in February 2020, just before the pandemic, Hugh argued that we now face a moment where “only radical futures remain.” Leaders and societies must either enact profound change themselves or be forced to endure profound change, with no possibility to stay on the current course. He illustrated that while concern about climate change is high (about 80% of people recognize its seriousness), only around 9% have made significant changes. A similar gap exists in policy action among governments. This is described using the “diffusion curve”—indicating that society is stuck before the “chasm” that separates early adopters from widespread change.

Hugh also discussed the limited effectiveness of recent radical climate protests, noting that many have failed to generate actual change despite creating noise and attention. He suggested that digital activism sometimes circumvents the slow, necessary work of building real power and connections within communities.

Despite the scale of the challenges, Hugh struck a hopeful note in closing. He offered several ways we can find our way out of the “dark wood”:

• Reduce Reliance on Digital Media: Highlighting links between excessive phone use and declining civic engagement, he urged a return to face-to-face connection and community involvement.
• Lead with Empathy: Building bridges across difference is essential for social cohesion and change.
• Rebuild Trust in Democracy: With public trust in politics eroding, Hugh advocated for citizens’ juries and assemblies as tools to restore agency and accountability.
• Share Economic Benefits: Echoing lessons from the Industrial Revolution, he called for community-owned renewable energy projects to ensure no one is left behind.
• Find Joy: Quoting Hannah Arendt, he reminded us that “finding joy is a radical act”—a necessary sustenance as we navigate global crises.

The event ended with a rich Q&A session that covered everything from the environmental impact of AI to practical ways educators can help students lead local sustainability projects—without placing the burden solely on younger generations.

Overall, it was an inspiring and timely talk that sparked thoughtful discussion on how we can each contribute to radical change in a rapidly shifting world.

About the author:

Rosalie Kerr joined The Rank Foundation in January 2025 as our Alumni Development Officer through the Time to Shine programme. She graduated from the University of Leeds with a degree in International History and Politics. Her role focuses on strengthening engagement across the Fellowship, helping to build meaningful connections and ensuring that both past and present Fellows continue to benefit from being part of the Rank Network.