On March 25, 2020, the eco-energy provider Polarstern will visit Munich Business School once again to discuss the topics of experience marketing, relationships with customers and stakeholder groups, but also sustainable entrepreneurship and social responsibility in a guest lecture. The event is part of the courses “Relationship Marketing” with Prof. Dr. Sophie Hieke and “Conscious Business” with Prof. Dr. Christian Schmidkonz. After having already talked in detail about social entrepreneurship in an interview with one of Polarstern’s founders, Florian Henle, we will now take a closer look at the topic of sustainability and present selected measures and products used by Polarstern to actively motivate energy- and climate-conscious behaviour.
Social Business Map
It is not that easy to use the products and services of social businesses in everyday life. Neither the legal company name nor any other characteristics make them easy for non-experts to identify. Polarstern has therefore developed an interactive map. It lists companies that are either members of the Gemeinwohl Ökonomie, the Social Entrepreneurship Network Germany (SEND e.V.) or an Impact Hub, or that are certified according to B Corp. The Social Business Map thus differs from other ‘sustainable maps’, where it is sufficient to fulfil single sustainable measures. Rather, Polarstern’s aim is to strengthen a different type of business – one that strives for holistically sustainable action and thus seeks to solve social challenges.
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Company Magazine With Articles on Energy-Conscious and Sustainable Living
Polarstern publishes articles about energy and climate conscious living in its company blog. By examining individual aspects of the topic, Polarstern takes up everyday questions and current issues and discusses them in an easily understandable and vivid way with concrete examples as well as the latest studies and analyses. Through active promotion of the articles in newsletters and the social media, readers should be made aware of the topics and inspired to act in an energy- and climate-conscious manner. The articles are also search engine optimised, so that people looking for solutions online can find answers to their questions easily and directly. In terms of text, Polarstern pays attention to a motivating and positive style in order to arouse interest in trying things out in line with the motto “just imitate” – not out of a guilty conscience, but because it is fun and part of today’s lifestyle.
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Events – Such As Earth Hour or the Annual Polarstern Isar Clean Up
At events, Polarstern sees itself as an initiator, bringing together as many actors as possible to achieve more attention and thus more impact together, following the motto “achieving more together”. At the annual Polarstern Isar Clean Up, the company was recently able to win 16 associations, a large number of companies and also the House of Arts, Munich as partners. More than 200 participants, who populate the banks of the Isar on a Saturday morning and collect rubbish from meadows and waters, attract the attention of passers-by and automatically make them think. Again, there is a conscious decision not to roll out banners or hand out flyers with calls for action, but to set a good example by taking action – and having fun doing so.
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Tenant Electricity – Decentralized Energy Supply for Multi-Party Buildings
By offering tenant electricity, Polarstern supports the energy transition in the cities and enables tenants to participate more strongly in and even benefit from it. Locally generated energy is increasingly being used for heat supply and for mobility services such as charging stations, so that tenants benefit from it in various ways. Electricity costs are also at least 10 percent below the basic supply rate.
