In the first of a regular commentary piece on CHE, its work and its wider role, executive director Osbert Lancaster reflects on the problems, financial and motivational, facing people working for change in the world.

Dear Friend

I feel a surprising amount of sympathy with business leaders who are trying to respond to the climate change agenda. Whether they've made public commitments (like Tesco or M&S) or are still working out how it affects them, if they decide to seriously engage, they have a huge job ahead of them. At the same time they have to keep their business going and - within the current economic system - growing.

They have my sympathy because I find myself in a similar situation. On the one hand I'm trying, through CHE, to support change for ecological sustainability and social justice. On the other hand, much of my time and energy are spent on the administrative tasks of keeping the CHE show on the road, never mind developing CHE's capacity. Sometimes the connection to real change seems tenuous. And, in my darker moments, I find myself asking what difference is CHE actually making to understanding and working on the mess humanity has got the world into.

These dark moments are easy to deal with on the surface - I can bask in the feedback from people we've worked with, whether MSc graduates, participants in a community planning activities, or consultancy clients, who so often tell us how much they have got out of working with us. (See for example Chloe Smee's story below.) And just the other day, a student wrote to a colleague about: "…the real quality of caring that you bring to your teaching. With you and with the other CHE tutors I feel that I have learnt as much from the way that you are with us students, as from the explicit content of your courses. That is to say, a lot in both cases!"

But is this really contributing to the difficulties we face? Or am I just comforting myself and others with sustainability and justice 'busy-ness'? I'm sure that some of the time I do just that. So, in a spirit of honest enquiry, I'm reflecting on my priorities and the tasks on my to do list. I'll let you know how I get on. And if you've got any thoughts to share on this topic, I'd welcome them.

If you already have confidence that we are on the right track, you could help by making a financial contribution. I've been told by fund-raising professionals that appeals for overheads like rent are just not sexy. But the simple fact is that once these basic items are covered, it frees up time to focus on what really matters. You can make a secure donation online or join CHE, from this page: http://www.che.ac.uk/mambo/content/section/14/141/

With best wishes

Osbert Lancaster
executive director