Ethos magazine

12/12/2025

Ten years later, there are no quick fixes.

As we celebrate ten years since the launch of Ethos, we took the opportunity to catch up with the launch team, reflecting on what these ten years have taught us – the setbacks, surprises and the stubborn power of hope.

Fiona – the power of persistence. Change isn’t linear. The fight for fairer, greener, more humane business keeps stalling and starting again – but each story told and each small act of progress still matters. Hope, however bruised it feels right now, keeps us moving forward.

Andrew – holding on to values. Business can, and must, still be a force for good. Even when global challenges multiply and commitments falter, stories of integrity and purpose remind us why we started – and why we can’t give up on the idea of business as a driver for change.

Lucy – seeing the world through new eyes. A decade on, Lucy’s reflections move from global impact to the magic of small moments – from telling stories of changemakers to watching her son discover the world. It’s a reminder that real change starts close to home and that care and curiosity are timeless.

Patrick – beginnings and belonging. Looking back to Ethos’ roots in Liverpool’s International Festival for Business, Patrick reminded us that most things worth doing are hard – and that great ideas often begin with chance meetings, shared values and a lot of patience.

Read the full story now on our website: https://ethos-magazine.com/ten-years-later-there-are-no-quick-fixes/

And get your copy of our landmark issue, Ethos 23, here: https://ethos-magazine.com/shop/

10/12/2025

“What we can do is move. Forward, however haltingly.

“Progress has always been a clean line rather than a stuttering rhythm – one step, a pause, sometimes even a slide backwards, before another push ahead.

“And that’s what makes reflection useful: not as a map of regret, but as a compass for where we go next.

“Looking back tells us where we’ve come from, what was lost, and what still matters enough to carry forward.”

- Fiona Shaw’s publisher’s note in Ethos 23, our tenth anniversary landmark issue.

Thanks for supporting us all these years! You can get your copy now and subscribe on our website: https://ethos-magazine.com/shop/

08/12/2025

We asked Colin Herperger, CEO of Ventete, to tell us his ethos in issue 23 - our tenth anniversary special🚴

“To learn. To try to do something that you know is hard, or on the edge of possibility and act upon it. And to bring together other people with the same desire to find the edge of possibility,” he said.

“It’s being able to construct company or a life that allows that to happen each day.”

Ventete is doing just that. Designed and prototyped in east , Ventete’s incredible, innovative inflatable cycle helmets far exceed UK and EU safety standards and have the style to match their substance.⁠

You can read all about them, hear more from Colin, and learn more about Ventete’s amazing journey in Ethos 23 - out now: https://ethos-magazine.com/product/ethos-23/

📸 - Dan Tobin Smith and Maria Lax

05/12/2025

Christmas is just around the corner🎄❄️

If you’re still looking for great gift ideas, a subscription to Ethos might just be the perfect prezzie for the people in your life who love to read, be inspired and dream of a better world.

A subscription means they won't miss an issue. We’ll send you a voucher that you can put in a card or email to them and they’ll also get our Ethos ‘welcome’ pack in the new year – a great way to cheer up a dreary January day.

Click here and take the stress out of Christmas shopping: https://ethos-magazine.com/shop/

03/12/2025

In a column for Ethos 23, Lisa Riemers and Matisse Hamel-Nelis explore the evolving landscape of accessibility in the workplace for organisations and consumers, and discuss how they can approach sustainability.

To strive for a more inclusive society, they emphasise the importance of reshaping consumer expectations and business strategies, both in physical spaces and – given the significant rise in remote work – within digital environments, ensuring they remain on the right side of cultural change.

From Tokyo to Toronto, London to Melbourne, how organisations approach accessibility and inclusion signals their values to an interconnected world.

What began as a compliance exercise has grown into a movement that is reshaping consumer expectations and business strategies.

Read their thoughts here on our website: https://ethos-magazine.com/the-role-of-accessibility/

Lisa Riemers and Matisse Hamel-Nelis explore how global organisations approach accessibility and inclusion, and how it signals their values.

01/12/2025

“And so in year ten of the Ethos story, perhaps what Ethos stands for is more important than ever.

"The challenges we face are intensifying: global warming, biodiversity loss, worsening inequality, cuts to the DEI programmes, regulatory retreat from environmental social commitments.

"It’d be easy to feel deflated, or even defeated, by what feels like mounting challenges and setbacks to causes, but in a time when many are retreating we must keep looking forward – lifting up stories of what works, pushing for transparency, for accountability.”

- Andrew Beattie, co-founder

You can read more of the thoughts our founders from our special tenth anniversary issue here: https://ethos-magazine.com/ten-years-later-there-are-no-quick-fixes/

And get your copy of Ethos 23 here: https://ethos-magazine.com/product/ethos-23/

28/11/2025

Today is Colour Friday! Created by the wonderful Holly & Co, encourages us all to shop with small businesses to support them instead of falling for Black Friday hype.

You can find out more about Colour Friday and how the movement helps small, local, independent businesses here: https://holly.co/campaigns/colour-friday

It’s a campaign we like to get behind - and, to do our bit, we’ve created a Christmas guide featuring innovative small businesses, the incredible products they provide and more.

If you want to shop slowly, whether it’s treating yourself or browsing for the perfect gift for somebody else, there’s something for everybody - from festive candles, adaptive clothing and ethically-sourced treats.

So, for a more sustainable Christmas, how about:

- Colourful and fun cards created by talented artists with learning and physical disabilities from Arthouse Unlimited

- Regenerated denim jeans made from 100% recycled cotton by MTTR

- Biodegradable jumpers, hoodies and more that use wool from farms with carbon-negative practices from sheepincluded

- An Ethos subscription for those who love long reads and discovering more about ethical, innovative businesses doing it better.

All of this and so much can be found in our sustainable Christmas gift guide. Read it here now: https://ethos-magazine.com/ethos-2025-christmas-gift-guide/

✍️ - Faaiza Akbor

🎨 - Rebecca Strickson, Holly Tucker, Holly Carter

26/11/2025

Now that our landmark 23rd issue is wandering in the wilds (with a decade of other mags at its side) we wanted to ask you something.

What’s been your favourite Ethos story from the past ten years? 🤔💖

Share it with us below – we’d love to know! 👇

(And, if you need inspiration, you can get our latest issue and discover ten years' worth of stories in our shop! https://ethos-magazine.com/shop/)

24/11/2025

“As launch editor of the print magazine, I revelled in telling stories of ethical businesses around the globe.

“I still hold a lot of those stories close to my heart. Like the story of Chatterbox, a translation business, created in response to the 2015 migrant crisis.

“I’m looking forward to reading Ethos’s take on the disruptive business innovators yet to come, over the next ten years, as it has so deftly told the stories of them over the past ten.”

– Lucy Chesters, editor - launch issue

You can read more of the thoughts of our founders from our special tenth anniversary issue here: https://ethos-magazine.com/ten-years-later-there-are-no-quick-fixes/

And get your copy of Ethos 23 here: https://ethos-magazine.com/product/ethos-23/

21/11/2025

Storm Claudia floods the UK. And, 7,513km away at in Belém, indigenous leaders call out a world still burning fossil fuels.

As Samoan Brianna Fruean told the BBC: “We know all too well what it's like to live on the frontline of climate change.”

Holly Carter spoke to Publicis Kitchen for Ethos 20, about its bold UN logo rebrand – a reminder that climate action needs more than a new look.

Design can spotlight the crisis. But only action will stop the water from rising 🌍🔥🌧️

Read all about it here! https://ethos-magazine.com/design-for-a-better-world-flood-warning/

And get a copy of Ethos 20, other back issues, and our tenth anniversary landmark issue Ethos 23 here: https://ethos-magazine.com/shop/

19/11/2025

Ten years. 23 issues. Countless stories worth sharing. A decade of better, not more.

Inside our landmark issue of Ethos 23 you’ll find future-focused stories, honest insights and practical wisdom from people who are doing, who are innovating and inspiring 🤩

- Our exclusive chat with cover star Chilly's explores how they’ve transformed the humble water bottle for 15 years, blending sleek design with rigorous responsibility.

- Designed and prototyped in east London, Ventete’s inflatable cycle helmets far exceed UK and EU safety standards and have the style to match their substance.

- Best-selling author and happiness research expert Meik Wiking reveals the stats, facts and concepts we all need to know about in his latest book, The Art of Danish Living.

- We reflect on ten years of Ethos and what we’ve learned - with contributions from our founders.

- We spend 48 hours in Kampala discovering what life is like in Uganda’s capital.

- Design for a better world highlights Shado and the importance of protecting the protest.

- Jonathan Berry discusses the impact of The Kindness Forecast’s social experiment in amplifying acts of kindness to people and planet.

- We meet Michael Gah, a Ghanaian artist using recycled fabric as a catalyst for change.

- We raise a glass to consciously-curated wines with the sustainable specialists at Wonder.

- And so much more!

Ethos 23 is more than just our 23rd issue, it's a decade of experiences (not only ours, but everybody who’s been a part of our journey), delivered to you.

Order your copy of our tenth anniversary issue today here: https://ethos-magazine.com/shop/

And thank you for being with us the entire way 🙏

17/11/2025

With COP30 in full swing, we’ve been thinking about some of the amazing people and stories we’ve previously featured in Ethos about those doing things that make a big difference for our planet and the wider green transition.

Jessie Stevens contributed to Ethos 15, for instance, with her story about her 570-mile bike ride from her home in South Devon to Glasgow, for COP26.

The journey took 12 days to make, with Jessie arriving in Glasgow on a Sunday - as COP26 started – with the last leg taking in a group of fellow cyclists who all arrived in Glasgow together.

“I believe it is so important for people of all ages and backgrounds are represented at these talks,” she told us in 2021.

“With this in mind, I began researching the best way I could travel to the summit from my home in Devon. This was the moment I got ‘stumped’. It became clear to me that we still live in a society where the most polluting modes of transport (aeroplanes, cars etc.) are the cheapest.”

So, she set off on her bike, documenting her incredible journey. It’s live on our site, and you can read it here: https://ethos-magazine.com/pedal-power/

You can also get a copy of Ethos 15 here, and subscribe to read more fantastic stories of people around the world : https://ethos-magazine.com/shop

📸 - Images by Catherine Dunn & Jack Reed.