Respected for what we do
Respected for what we do
Retained for how we do it
Retained for how we do it
The birth of Groundswell
We are Groundswell, a leading in-house sustainability provider, supporting some of the world’s most respected organisations.
Our focus is on reframing sustainability. We recognise the flaws in our industry and have created a new and better alternative.
We’re driven by a relentless commitment to achieve the best outcomes for our clients. Combining deep expertise with cutting-edge systems, and the best people in our industry, we help organisations make sense of sustainability.
Our Story
2018
Launching ESG at Octopus
The Sustainability Team was set up to support the investment business (Octopus Investments) and ESG became broadly understood and adopted by the business, but with little consistency in approach across the investment teams.
2021
From siloed to centralised
The team moved from an investment function to a centralised team supporting all group companies. They reported into Simon Rogerson, Octopus Group’s founder and CEO - Jack led on responsible investment and Lucy joined to support the group companies with corporate sustainability.
2025
The journey begins
Jack and Lucy realised that while sustainability had become a capability within Octopus, the wider industry was still working in siloed teams. They saw an opportunity to change that and pitched their vision to Octopus.
Present day
The future
Today we are a growing team of nine, partnering with the best asset managers and their portfolio companies to make sense of sustainability.
Leadership team
Definition
groundswell
[ɡraʊnd.swel] noun
A growth of strong feeling among a large group of people
© 2025 Groundswell. All right reserved.
Reframing sustainability
Respected for what we do
Retained for how we do it
The birth of Groundswell
We are Groundswell, a leading in-house sustainability provider, supporting some of the world’s most respected organisations.
Our focus is on reframing sustainability. We recognise the flaws in our industry and have created a new and better alternative.
We’re driven by a relentless commitment to achieve the best outcomes for our clients. Combining deep expertise with cutting-edge systems, and the best people in our industry, we help organisations make sense of sustainability.
Our Story
2018
Launching ESG at Octopus
The Sustainability Team was set up to support the investment business (Octopus Investments) and ESG became broadly understood and adopted by the business, but with little consistency in approach across the investment teams.
2021
From siloed to centralised
The team moved from an investment function to a centralised team supporting all group companies. They reported into Simon Rogerson, Octopus Group’s founder and CEO - Jack led on responsible investment and Lucy joined to support the group companies with corporate sustainability.
2025
The journey begins
Jack and Lucy realised that while sustainability had become a capability within Octopus, the wider industry was still working in siloed teams. They saw an opportunity to change that and pitched their vision to Octopus.
Present day
The future
Today we are a growing team of nine, partnering with the best asset managers and their portfolio companies to make sense of sustainability.
Leadership team
Definition
groundswell
[ɡraʊnd.swel] noun
A growth of strong feeling among a large group of people
© 2025 Groundswell.
All right reserved.
Reframing sustainability
Respected for what we do
Retained for how we do it
The birth of Groundswell
We are Groundswell, a leading in-house sustainability provider, supporting some of the world’s most respected organisations.
Our focus is on reframing sustainability. We recognise the flaws in our industry and have created a new and better alternative.
We’re driven by a relentless commitment to achieve the best outcomes for our clients. Combining deep expertise with cutting-edge systems, and the best people in our industry, we help organisations make sense of sustainability.
Our Story
2018
Launching ESG at Octopus
The Sustainability Team was set up to support the investment business (Octopus Investments) and ESG became broadly understood and adopted by the business, but with little consistency in approach across the investment teams.
2021
From siloed to centralised
The team moved from an investment function to a centralised team supporting all group companies. They reported into Simon Rogerson, Octopus Group’s founder and CEO - Jack led on responsible investment and Lucy joined to support the group companies with corporate sustainability.
2025
The journey begins
Jack and Lucy realised that while sustainability had become a capability within Octopus, the wider industry was still working in siloed teams. They saw an opportunity to change that and pitched their vision to Octopus.
Present day
The future
Today we are a growing team of nine, partnering with the best asset managers and their portfolio companies to make sense of sustainability.
Leadership team
Definition
groundswell
[ɡraʊnd.swel] noun
A growth of strong feeling among a large group of people
© 2025 Groundswell. All right reserved.
Reframing sustainability