Few people embody the power of reinvention quite like Britton Jones. After building some of the most successful trade shows in the fashion industry, he is now channeling his experience in convening people and ideas into a purpose-driven mission: tackling the climate crisis.
The result is The Nest Climate Campus, which began as a virtual gathering in 2020 and has since grown into the largest U.S. climate event, bringing together business leaders, policymakers, innovators, and advocates to accelerate solutions. Ahead of this year’s Climate Week NYC, during which We Don’t Have Time will once again be broadcasting from The Nest, we sat down with Jones to talk about his journey from fashion to climate, the unique value of in-person collaboration, and how The Nest is turning dialogue into action.
You’ve built some of the most successful trade shows in the fashion industry before launching The Nest Climate Campus. What moved you to pivot from fashion to climate?
My team and I built our fashion portfolio to the point where we were too big to be small, but too small to big. We grew to the point where we could only fit into the largest convention centers and all of our competitors were multi-billion-dollar international companies. In that environment it was getting very hard to continue to add value for our customers and it became clear that it would be best for the industry to move on. When I did, I found myself full of passion to start a purpose-driven organization focused on making the world a better place. Climate was a movement where I believed our expertise and resources could have a meaningful impact and thankfully that has come to fruition with The Nest Climate Campus.
The Nest started as a virtual event in 2020 but has since grown into the largest U.S. climate event. Why do you think in-person, live events are uniquely powerful for mobilizing climate action?
The Nest Climate Campus was always planned as an in-person event, but the pandemic got in the way and given the pace of acceleration in climate change, running virtually in 2020 seemed far better than doing nothing. One thing that is very clear in the climate space is that real collaboration is critical to creating meaningful impact in advancing climate solutions and bringing people together is key to building these collaborative efforts. It’s how people most effectively learn from, and inspire each other, share best practices and discover new resources and expertise. No matter where one is in their climate journey, these connections drive change farther and faster than siloed, individual initiatives.
The Nest’s mission is to turn dialogue into action. Can you share any examples of collaborations or initiatives that were born at The Nest and are now making an impact?
Yes, and these real-world experiences and collaborations that have originated on The Nest Climate Campus are truly exhilarating. Some of the examples include a beauty company finding a source for regeneratively grown ingredients by attending a session on the Campus. A company that has a computer program to help companies reduce their carbon footprint was flooded with new customers after appearing on the Main Stage and a major supplier was able to refine and enhance their decarbonization tools based on input they received on the Campus.
These have been a tumultuous few months in the climate space, internationally but especially in the U.S. What is your sense of the general feeling among the speakers and attendees ahead of The Nest Climate Campus 2025?
Unfortunately, there has been tumult in the climate space over the past few months. However, in that same time period the devastating impact of climate change has affected an ever-growing percentage of the world’s population. This in turn has intensified the quest for answers and solutions. Despite all of the terrible headlines, the climate community is proving to be very resilient, dedicated and committed. Thankfully, as will be very evident on The Nest Climate Campus this year, there is still a lot of very important, impressive, and substantive work being done to accelerate and scale climate solutions.
Is there anything on the agenda for this year’s event that you’re especially excited about?
I am very excited with the journey of this year’s programming. It starts with a session on Project Drawdown’s Explorer, an online, open-access platform that provides intelligence on 100 climate solutions that, if scaled, would stop climate change. Across the Campus on the Main Stage, in Co-Hosted events and in the Climate Collective, our programing then features examples of how climate leaders are embracing and scaling solutions and provides access to expertise and resources that can help people build resilience and sustainability more fully into their personal and professional lives. The Campus then concludes with content around how the communications industry can more powerfully propel the behavioral change needed for meaningful climate action.
If you could leave every attendee with one takeaway message after their time at The Nest Climate Campus, what would it be?
I hope every attendee leaves feeling empowered and motivated and with the understanding that their climate action does matter. No one person or organization is going to stop climate change, but it is through our cumulative action that we can have real impact. My belief in the power of collective action is why we offer the climate community complimentary registration to The Nest Climate Campus. We will only succeed by inspiring more people to embrace solutions and take effective climate action.
