Partners and enterprise from across Rushcliffe have come together for Rushcliffe Borough Council’s Big Business Carbon Club, sharing learning, views and skills to make even greater impact on their carbon reduction journeys.
The club’s inaugural meeting on April 28 chaired by the authority, saw a host of local organisations discuss common goals and priorities on where they could make short, medium and long term impacts on carbon levels within their operations and strategies.
Key influencers University of Nottingham, Artex, the British Geological Survey, Ideagen, DMRC, Spire Healthcare and MHR Global were among those attending, keen to hear and share learning.
They wish to support other businesses in the Borough and County, acting as future champions of low carbon to influence the actions for small and medium sized businesses, applying understanding and insight from local experts on priority areas for a wider action plan.
Part of the Council’s Carbon Clever mission and its key environmental priority, it is seeking to engage with many larger businesses who have over 250 employees to find ways to work towards becoming carbon neutral.
Rushcliffe Borough Council’s Director for Neighbourhoods and Deputy Chief Executive Dave Banks said: “A huge thanks to all businesses who participated so enthusiastically in our first meeting, it was fascinating to make comparisons of where we are on our respective carbon reduction journeys and identify solutions to the common challenges we face.
“We will now take forward opportunities for collaboration in areas such as business travel, offsetting emissions and lowering the carbon footprint of our workforce through further engagement.
“Such was the success of the session we have brought forward our next meeting to the summer months and wish to invite more organisations to join us by emailing their interest to communities@rushcliffe.gov.uk.
“It’s heartening to see so many key organisations in Rushcliffe making the environment one of their top priorities.”
Director of Sustainability at the University of Nottingham Andy Nolan said: “The University of Nottingham is delighted to support the club and be actively involved.
“We have a collective responsibility to tackle the challenges of climate change and sustainability and we will be happy to share our expertise with businesses – and learn from them too.”
Professor Melanie Leng, Chief Scientist for Environmental Change, Adaptation and Resilience, British Geological Survey added: “”At the British Geological Survey in Keyworth we are delighted to be a part of Rushcliffe’s Big Business Carbon Club, supporting the group in particular by providing information on our environmental sustainability strategy.
“We are aiming to reduce our carbon footprint through upgrading the estate at Keyworth through initiatives like installation of solar power, better management of waste, and considering our need for business travel. We look forward to collaborating with local businesses on sustainable carbon for the future.”
