De Montfort University has become one of the first organisations to sign a newly-launched pact aiming to accelerate Leicestershire’s goal to become a net zero county by 2045.
Leicestershire County Council’s The Climate and Nature Pact brings together, local councils, businesses, voluntary, community and social enterprises, universities and education sectors, the public sector and the people of Leicestershire to drive local action and work towards a shared set of environmental goals.
This mirrors a similar agreement with Leicester City Council to support its Climate Ready programme, which included the residents’ guide to dealing with climate risks published earlier this year.
Organisations involved will share energy saving strategies and work together more strategically to make the region greener.
The core requirements of the pact are the need to act on climate change; reducing carbon emissions to net zero; reducing the impacts of climate change; halting ecological decline and supporting climate recovery; enabling climate action; and working together to deliver greater action.
DMU’s Environmental Sustainability Theme Lead for the Universities Partnership, Dr Andrew Reeves, said: “This pact is something which DMU can strongly support, building on our existing commitments and projects to support climate action by citizens and organisations in Leicester and Leicestershire.
“This mirrors our pro-active approach in partnership with Leicester City Council, through which DMU is a founding member of the city’s climate partnership, and further highlights DMU's role as part of the Universities Partnership Civic University Agreement.”
The first signatories to the Leicestershire Climate and Nature Pact include:
- Leicestershire County Council
- De Montfort University
- North West Leicestershire District Council
- Charnwood Borough Council
- Hinckley and Bosworth Borough Council
- Blaby District Council
- Oadby and Wigston Borough Council
- National Forest
- Green Fox Community Energy
- Loughborough University
- University of Leicester
- Midlands Net Zero Hub
- Cenex
- Environment Agency
DMU’s commitment to the pact is further reflection of the university’s commitments to the city and the county and forms part of its own climate change commitments.
Professor Simon Oldroyd, PVC for Sustainability at DMU, said: “Being a signatory to the Leicestershire Climate and Nature Pact is really important to us as a university and as a community in Leicestershire.
“Big challenges such as climate change and the need to reduce carbon emissions require meaningful partnerships of local organisations. I’m proud DMU is involved in this way”
Councillor Blake Pain, cabinet member for the environment and green agenda, said: “The Leicestershire Climate and Nature Pact underlines the urgent need for organisations in the county to work together to deliver our climate commitments, and highlights the fact that we can’t reach net zero on our own – we need a team effort.
“We are leading by example and encouraging partners, businesses, groups and organisations to get involved to help shape a greener future for the county, and for generations to come.”
The newly-launched Pact supports Leicestershire County Council’s Net Zero Strategy and Action Plan, which sets out the scale of the climate emergency, declared in Leicestershire in 2019, and the need to urgently reduce carbon emission. It shares how the authority will lead, enable and inspire people in Leicestershire to achieve the net zero goal.
The Net Zero Leicestershire Strategy and Action plan can be found on the Council’s new Net Zero web pages, which have been developed to make the Council’s Net Zero information and resources easier to access and to increase involvement.