As part of its commitment to sustainability, De Montfort University is encouraging staff and students to join in in Leicester’s Climate Emergency Conversation consultation.

The consultation explains how life in Leicester might be different in a ‘carbon neutral’ city, and actions that can be taken to make Leicester carbon neutral at home, at work, through changes in how we travel and more.

Staff and students are invited to come along to a drop in session on Wednesday 29th or Friday 31st of January in the atrium of the Campus Centre between 12 noon and 1.30 pm to find out more and to contribute their thoughts.

There will be information about the consultation, experts to chat to, and the opportunity to contribute ideas and feedback to the City Council’s consultation.

If you can’t make it to either of these events, displays will be up from the 29th through to the 31st, so you can visit the atrium, learn about the proposals, and leave your feedback.

You can also respond personally to the consultation by going to Leicester City Council’s website: https://consultations.leicester.gov.uk/sec/climate-emergency/

Background

Leicester City Council declared a ‘climate emergency’ in February 2019. They are now consulting on proposals for how Leicester might change, and have suggested a list of possible actions to achieve this change. The council has looked at what experts are saying needs to happen in cities like Leicester, and at what they think the council and others could do about it.

The council are now seeking feedback from the public about these ideas and they are also inviting people to suggest their own ideas. They will use the responses they get to help prepare their action plan and to develop a vision for what Leicester could be like as a ‘carbon neutral’ city, ready for a changing climate.

Why has Leicester declared a climate emergency?

In 2018 the world’s leading experts on climate change warned that urgent action is needed. They say we will need to reduce carbon emissions from human activity to almost zero. The quicker this can be done, the better the chances of preventing climate change becoming unstoppable.

Doing this will need national governments, local councils, businesses and individuals to take action. It will mean making big changes to the way we all live and work. This includes how we heat and power our homes, how we travel and what we buy, use and throw away.

What else can I do?

DMU is making Carbon Literacy Training available to students and staff to help them understand the climate change impacts of the university and effective changes that can be made linked to issues such as food, transport and home energy use.

Participants will be supported to develop action plans to support changes that reduce these impacts, whether through their own actions or influencing change by the university or further afield. Find out more here: https://esdg.our.dmu.ac.uk/projects/carbon-literacy/