The third annual RACE Report, the UK’s largest analysis of the racial diversity of the environmental charity and funder sector, has been published today.
The latest figures reveal record engagement in racial diversity reporting, with a total of 161 environmental charity organisations, including Butterfly Conservation, representing over 28,600 employees submitting data. This is more than double the number of staff represented in last year’s report and more than triple the number in 2022’s inaugural report - highlighting the growing momentum behind the initiative.
The RACE Report aims to boost transparency and encourage action amongst UK environmental charities and funders when it comes to the racial and ethnic diversity of their workforce and governing bodies, recognising that climate justice requires authentic inclusion of the communities most impacted by environmental issues.
This year also saw participation from all of the UK’s largest environmental NGOs, setting an important precedent for the sector and reflecting a unified commitment to transparency and racial diversity.
Despite an increase in data submissions in 2024 and a rise in the number of larger organisations (250+ employees) sharing their data, racial diversity in the environmental charity sector remains substantially below the UK workforce average, with 4.5% of staff across the sector identifying as people of colour and other racially or ethnically minoritised groups (POC), compared to 16% of the UK workforce nationally.
Whilst this figure is lower than the 6% recorded in 2023, the different, far larger sample size of this year's survey means the two data points are not statistically comparable. Notably, the picture is more nuanced when organisational size is taken into account, with smaller organisations reporting far more diversity across the workforces:
- 14.1% of staff in organisations with 10-49 employees identify as POC and other ethnically minoritised groups
- Only 1.8% of staff in organisations with 500-1,000 employees identify as POC and other ethnically minoritised groups
By averaging the percentage of staff in each ethnicity group across all participating organisations – therefore giving each organisation equal weight – the results are more positive; with 11% of staff identifying as people of colour or from other ethnically minoritised groups.
This highlights the journey some larger organisations still have to take to create more diverse teams and the longer timelines which may be involved in seeing these ambitions come to fruition.
Manu Maunganidze, from The RACE Report team, said: “In just two years we’ve almost quadrupled the number of staff represented in The RACE Report. That’s a huge achievement. Each year we’re building a more complete picture of the state of play in our sector. We’re learning how diversity varies across organisations of different sizes, identifying the steps organisations are taking to improve inclusion, and uncovering areas where progress is still too slow.
“The more we uncover, the more we realise there’s still much work to do – but that’s not a setback, as long as we stay committed and grounded in why racial diversity matters in the first place. People of colour may be minoritised in the UK but, globally, they’re on the frontlines of climate change. Those most affected by
environmental disasters – floods, wildfires, rising tides – are too often those who aren’t given a seat at the table. This is why representation is so critical.
“Each organisation that submitted data this year did so with the understanding that representation isn’t just a box to tick; it’s a fundamental part of making the environmental sector truly effective and just. We applaud them all for taking part.
Of course, we want to see the representation numbers improve year on year, but to make those improvements, we need to stay plugged into reality – especially as places like the USA, often a global trendsetter, begin to roll back equity, diversity, and inclusion measures. The hard-fought progress we’ve made cannot be taken for granted, and we must remain committed to advancing inclusion in our sector.”
In total, 57 organisations from across the environmental charity sector have now submitted data for all three years of The RACE Report - providing a valuable and consistent baseline for tracking racial diversity progress.
The representation of POC and other ethnically minoritised groups in these organisations stands at 7% for 2024. This was the same figure reported in 2023 and reflects a gradual increase from 6% in 2022. Whilst an encouraging move in the right direction, these numbers also highlight the need to increase the pace of change.
Among the participants who have contributed to the report since its inception in 2022, there have been notable improvements in the reported implementation of equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) initiatives. These include:
- 23% of organisations have now fully implemented a policy to ensure racial diversity in recruitment and interview panels (vs. 4% in 2023 and 2022)
- 58% of organisations have now fully implemented a statement on a recruitment page stating areas in which the organisation is underrepresented (vs. 37% in 2023, and 31% in 2022)
- 68% of organisations conduct a regular review of equality, diversity and inclusion activities to ensure they remain effective and impactful (vs. 47% in 2023 and 36% in 2022)
The RACE Report data suggests that organisations with more fully implemented EDI actions tend to have higher racial diversity, though further research is needed to confirm this finding. For example:
- Organisations with 11-15 fully implemented diversity actions report 3.4% representation of people of colour
- In contrast, organisations with 16-20 fully implemented diversity actions report 17.3% representation of people of colour
Commenting on the findings of the RACE report, Greenpeace UK’s co-executive director Areeba Hamid said: "Let's face it - environmental organisations are still very white, especially at the top. I find myself in CEO meetings where I'm the only person of colour in the room, and it just doesn’t feel right in 21st-century Britain. Since measuring a problem is the first step towards solving it, it’s good to see more and more organisations publishing data about their staff’s ethnic diversity. But, as a sector, we now need to move swiftly from talking about the issue to actually doing something about it. There’s no magic formula to fix this problem, but at Greenpeace UK we have tried several initiatives around recruitment, retention and career progression and got some good results, showing that progress is possible. People of colour are at the sharp end of many environmental crises, from climate change to air pollution - they deserve much better representation in the green sector.”
Across all organisations, two EDI actions have consistently been the least ‘fully or partially’ implemented over the last three years:
- Publishing a race equity pay gap report within the last 18 months (17% in 2024, 11% in 2023, 5% in 2022)
- Obtaining accreditation for Investors in Diversity, or similar (7% in 2024, 7 in 2023, 6% in 2022)
This year, mentoring schemes for POC and other ethnically minoritised groups also ranked as one of the least implemented EDI actions, highlighting a gap in support for career development. While these actions may represent useful steps for some organisations, they may not be effective in all settings. Resource and capacity constraints, particularly for smaller organisations,may also present barriers to implementation. Further research is needed to understand their specific impact on advancing diversity and inclusion across different contexts.
According to additional data gathered by Students Organising for Sustainability UK, one of The RACE Report’s founding partners, there is public support for boosting the diversity of UK environmental charities. 40% of UK adults rank ‘involving people who are most affected by issues such as climate change and nature decline’ among the top three actions organisations should take. Similarly, 37% of adults also rank ‘making sure campaigns are accessible to people of all backgrounds and identities’ as one of the top three actions.
In the same survey, POC were more likely to report being concerned about climate change than white respondents (82% vs. 76%), yet they were also more likely to say they would like to get involved with environmental charities but didn't know how (39% vs. 22%), highlighting the need for more inclusive initiatives and community outreach programmes in the sector. In 2024, organisations were offered the option to submit additional information on the intersectionality of their workforce for the first time. 33 organisations chose to provide data on one or more of the following characteristics: age, gender identity, and disability status. This marks an important step forward in the sector’s growing focus on addressing the intersectional nature of diversity, particularly as these characteristics represent identities disproportionately affected by issues like climate change. Key findings from this pilot study include:
- A significantly higher proportion of people of colour or from other ethnically minoritised groups identify as women compared to staff with white identities (66% compared to 59%)
- A significantly higher proportion of people of colour or from other ethnically minoritised groups identify as disabled compared to staff with white identities (13% compared to 6%)
Going forward, The RACE Report aims to further increase the number of environmental organisations participating in the initiative, strengthening best practices on racial equity and working towards a more inclusive workforce across the sector. As political landscapes evolve, the need for diverse representation in the environmental sector remains crucial in ensuring that its work is both inclusive and reflective of the communities most affected by climate change.