What was the biggest influencing factor when you decided to open a Triodos Bank Current Account?

The biggest factor for me was wanting to bank with an organisation that I knew wouldn’t put my money anywhere near the fossil fuel industry, and I think Triodos Bank is one of the only options for that in the UK. Triodos put their hearts on their sleeves and say “this is what we’re about” - using money to improve the world. 

What has been your experience of using the Current Account so far?

I particularly like the Triodos banking app. You can separate your incomings and outgoings very easily. If I want to see if I’ve been paid by a particular company, I can choose ‘in’ and can see any payments coming into my account. It’s quite simple, but I find this really helpful. When setting up a new bank account my experience with the customer service team was that I always had someone nice and brilliant to talk to without too much effort.

Why it is important to you that your bank supports your values?

When I’m asleep or on holiday I know that my money is being used to support the things that I want it to do, and that just feels great. I also think about my impact every time I get my card out to pay for something. I often wonder if people around are thinking “what’s that card?” – this reminds me that I’m helping feed and support a system that I care about, not supporting one that I disagree with.

What sectors in society would you like your money to support the most?

Environmental. If we don’t pay attention to our environment and make sure it’s alright, then none of us will be alright. I don’t think there is any point in looking at different issues in silos, as everything is interconnected, but if I had to choose one sector it would be environmental. We should prioritise clean energy, in whatever form that may be, as that would change so many things. I co-founded an organisation called Bank.Green because I wanted to help inform people about what their banks are doing with their money.

Why did you decide to use the Refer a Friend scheme?

When I saw you had a referral scheme, I pounced on the idea of telling as many people as possible to bank with Triodos and help people take their money out of unethical banks. And it worked! Off the back of sharing my Refer a Friend code, two people have opened a Triodos account.

How did you find the Refer a Friend process?

It was straightforward and automated. I received a code and shared it on all my social media platforms for anyone who would be interested. Some months later, I received a couple of emails saying someone had used the code, which was brilliant. Not much hassle at all!

Which charity donation did you choose and why?

The Soil Association. In 2020, I spent three months on a farm while living in Australia which had experienced bushfires. I’ve always lived in towns and cities and never had any rural experience. I learned a lot about the importance of soil, especially for sequestering carbon.