The University is one of the leading organisations to partner with Leicestershire County Council on a commitment to tackle climate change and nature decline through an ambitious set of principles.
The Leicestershire Climate and Nature Pact is based on the principles of the Glasgow Climate Pact, signed by the UK government in November 2021, and supports national and international efforts by bringing together the businesses, voluntary, community and social enterprises, universities, education and research sector, public sector and people of Leicestershire to drive local action and work towards a number of shared environmental aims.
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.
The Pact – which stands as a statement of intent on the county’s climate action pledges – was officially launched at a signing ceremony last week, attended by representatives from more than 40 organisations who gathered to share their ideas on how to work together towards the common goal of making Leicestershire a net zero county by 2045.
The first 18 signatories to the Leicestershire Climate and Nature Pact are:
- Leicestershire County Council
- Loughborough University
- De Montfort University
- National Forest
- Green Fox Community Energy
- University of Leicester
- Midlands Net Zero Hub
- Oadby and Wigston Borough Council
- Cenex
- North West Leicestershire District Council
- LLEP
- Environment Agency
- Charnwood Borough Council
- Tilton Green (community group in Tilton on the Hill)
- Tilton Electric Car Club
- Halstead Hill Farm
- Hinckley and Bosworth Borough Council
- Blaby District Council
The council is now calling on other organisations and groups across the county to sign up to the pact and play their part in combating climate change and nature decline.
Loughborough University’s Environmental Manager, Nik Hunt, commented: “Supporting this pact is in keeping with our Civic Universities Agreement work. It also strongly aligns with our strategic aim around developing meaningful partnerships locally as well as the University’s Climate change and Net Zero theme, both part of our Creating Better Futures. Together strategy. The synergy between what we need to achieve as a business and what we need to achieve as a community and county as well as the role Loughborough University can play in this, makes signing and actively supporting the pact the logical and right thing to do.”
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.