Carbon in the City - Events at Sustain' Magazine

Sustainability, the Media and the City
15th May 2006

'CSR in the City', Sustain' Magazine's symposium on Sustainability, the Media and the City, will showcase the issues surrounding Corporate Responsibility and how it is addressed, expressed and understood by government, corporates, stakeholders and audiences.

Carbon - the New Currency of Business
Sustainability, Climate Change and the City.
2nd October 2006

The core element of the symposium on Sustainability, Climate Change and the City is the one-day conference programme, compiled under the direction of the Sustain¹ editorial team. In addition, there are three complementary sponsored workshop seminars, plus structured networking opportunities.

Click here to read the full details on the events

Item added - 12th May 2006

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Run-away energy costs
Are energy costs a significant factor to your business? We are running courses designed to help you to make your business more energy efficient and so save you money.

If your business has high energy costs – examples include bakers, foundries, plastics, food manufacture and chemicals – we can help you to control your use and reduce your energy bills.

Electricity prices have risen by 29% for small businesses and between 41% and 56% for large businesses, while gas has jumped from between 40% and 77% depending on company size. (source DTI)

If you are a low energy user we can advise you on simple, but effective methods to reduce your energy costs.

The course is 3 half days over 3 weeks which enables you to start to apply what you’ve learned from week one. You will receive individual advice and feedback on your company needs and will learn from other companies’ experience.

The course is free to selected small and medium enterprises. There will be a very competitive fee for large companies.

Please contact Hifzi Naji 0115 848 8216 for course dates, eligibility and fees

Item added - 5th May 2006

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The Sustainable Communities Bill – what is and why it is important

The key to this is the Bill’s use of participation and not consultation. Local Works is holding local meetings to spread the word about why the Sustainable Communities Bill is good news

The Bill before Parliament is aimed at reversing what has been called ‘Ghost Town Britain ’ – the decline of local economic activity, jobs, shops facilities and services and environments with the knock-on effects that these matters cause

Ghost Town Britain - We use this to mean the decline of local activity such as:

• local shops, post offices, pubs, chemists etc closing; local jobs lost – the decline of local economic activity
• health care, doctors, schools, open spaces, housing, transport – the decline of local facilities and services.
• in short – community decline which then leads to environmental degradation and social exclusion

Sustainable Communities or local sustainability we use this to mean communities in which

• There is thriving local economic activity and service and facility provision: local shops, post offices, health care, schools etc.
• The local environment is protected.
• All people can enjoy the benefits of society. The ‘buzz-word’ for that is social inclusion.
• All people can democratically participate in shaping how their community will be protected and developed.

Click here for the dates and venues of the local meetings

Item added - 4th May 2006

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Supermarket WM Morrisons opens the UK's First Bioethanol E85 Pump
LONDON - British supermarket group Wm Morrison has opened the UK's first bioethanol E85 filling pump on 15/03/06, tying in with the first deliveries of the Saab 9-5 BioPower flex-fuel car.

Bioethanol E85 (a blend of 85 percent bioethanol and 15 percent petrol) will retail for two pence per litre less than petrol, and can contribute to a cut in the harmful effects to the environment caused by burning fossil fuels, Morrisons said.

Click here to read the full detailst

Item added - 1st April 2006

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World Resources Institute – Climate change, energy and transportation

“In this short paper, WRI reviews some of the major discoveries from the past year. Taken collectively, they suggest that the world may well have moved past a key physical tipping point.

In addition, the science tells us the effects of climate change are at a scale that adds enormous urgency not only to the efforts to prevent additional change, but equally important, to efforts to adapt to the impacts already occurring.

Finally, the science makes it clear that additional climate impacts will result even if emissions of greenhouse gases are halted immediately.” World Resource Institute, March 2006.

Click here to access the full report on the World Resourse Institute website.

Item added - 30th March 2006

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Cardiovascular Disease and Air Pollution (COMEAP):
A report by Committee on the Medical Effects of Air Pollution
Recognition that air pollution might impact on cardiovascular disease, the commonest cause of death in the UK , came as a surprise to most when first identified as exposure to air pollution, both in the long and short term, contributes to initiation and exacerbation of disease.

It is likely that even modest reductions in exposure will result in significant health gain. A huge amount of research has been undertaken to ensure that these initial findings were supported and to define potential mechanisms for these effects.

COMEAP undertook an extensive review of the evidence to assess possible mechanisms and identify areas for future research. An understanding of the size of the effect of air pollution on cardiovascular disease is very important in terms of the contribution to public health. COMEAP’s report will contribute to a formal quantification of the effects of air pollution being undertaken by the COMEAP.

Click here to download the full report from the Department of Health website. (1.75 MB pdf)

Click here to download the appendix for the report (465KBpdf)

Click here to access more reports on the Department of Health website.

Item added - 13th March 2006

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When the Rivers Run Dry:
What Happens when Our Water Runs Out by Fred Pearce
Fred Pearce is a respected freelance writer on environmental, development and demographic issues. In his latest book he has spent five years examining the water situation world wide.

After a dry winter the SE is already being threatened with water restrictions. In the UK a survey in 2004 indicated that seven new reservoirs were planned and planners were reviewing plans for a national grid.

Yet 30 years ago the public sector predecessors of Thames Water concluded that repairing leaking mains and fitting new valves to toilet cisterns would be cheaper and as effective as building a new reservoir. We lose between 20% and 30% of water before it reaches the customer through leaking mains, but water engineers are fixated on large schemes rather than controlling the demand side or managing water more effectively.

Click here to read the full details on the book

Item added - 03rd March 2006

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What has the retail sector got to do with sustainable communities?
Sustainable communities are defined in a number of ways;

• “Sustainable communities are places where people want to live and work, now and in the future. ….
• They are safe and inclusive, well planned, built and run, and offer equality of opportunity and good services for all.
• They balance and integrate the social, economic and environmental components of their community ….
• Sustainable communities are diverse, reflecting their local circumstances”. (ODPM).

But there is an increasing emphasis on localisation with local food being seen as one of the key components. Local food reduces food miles, should ensure produce is fresh, benefits the local economy and encourages people to shop in their community.

Click here to read the full article

Item added - 24th February 2006

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Get Business Support with NISP

NISP is a business led initiative which facilitates links (industrial symbiosis) between businesses from different sectors to improve resource efficiency and create commercial opportunities.

Membership to the programme is FREE however successful projects require commitment and energy from participating organisations to achieve bottom line benefits.

NISP supports, manages and monitors the regional rollout of industrial symbiosis programmes in 9 regions in England: North East, North West, Yorkshire and Humberside, West Midlands, East Midlands, East of England, London, South West and South East as well as Wales.

Visit the NISP website ...

Item added - 17th February 2006

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Towards a Cyber-Urban Ecology :

A report from the Foresight Project on Intelligent Infrastructure Systems set out to explore how science and technology could, over the next 50 years, be used to deliver infrastructure for transport, and its alternatives, that would be sustainable, robust and safe.

The project considered the three central aspects of sustainability – economic, environmental and social.

Click here to download the full report from the Foresight website
(pdf 1.1 MB)

Visit the Foresight website ...

Item added - 14th February 2006

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Intelligent Infrastructure Future. The Scenarios – Towards 2055

The Foresight Project on Intelligent Infrastructure Systems (IIS) set out to examine the challenges and opportunities for the UK in bringing ‘intelligence’ to its infrastructure – the physical networks that deliver such services as transport, telecommunications, water and energy.

In particular, the project explored how, over the next 50 years, we can apply science and technology to the design and implementation of intelligent infrastructure for robust, sustainable and safe transport, and its alternatives.

Click here to download the full report from the Foresight website
(pdf 1.7MB)

Visit the Foresight website ...

Item added - 14th February 2006

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Sweden plans to be world's first oil-free economy

The Guardian writes "Sweden is to take the biggest energy step of any advanced western economy by trying to wean itself off oil completely within 15 years - without building a new generation of nuclear power stations.

The attempt by the country of 9 million people to become the world's first practically oil-free economy is being planned by a committee of industrialists, academics, farmers, car makers, civil servants and others, who will report to parliament in several months."

Click here to read the full article on the Guardian website...

Item added - 10th February 2006

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No Valentine cards for Exxon from the insurance companies

“Governments are almost certainly wrong to believe that action on climate change means economic stagnation” writes Larry Elliott, economics editor of the Guardian.

In an article on the impact of climate change on the board room, Elliott draws on a number of sources to show how some boardrooms are taking a lead on climate change while governments, including the UK Government has not grasped the nettle which requires it to influence public attitudes and behaviour.

While governments drag their feet many companies are too and may be putting their stockholders’ assets at risk. Read the article at

Click here to read the full article on the Guardian website...

Item added - 10th February 2006

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Some more recommended reading
Three publications that are worth a look

• Agricultural Commodities, Trade & Sustainable Development
  Edited by Thomas Lines
  
• Capitalism As If The World Matters,
  Jonathon Porritt
  Publication date November 2005.
  
• Environment and Health
  Published by: EEA (European Environment Agency) OPOCE
  Publish date: 04/01/2006 .

For the full details on the publications click here ...

Item added - 13th January 2006

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New Book - Sustainable Fossil Fuels
More and more people believe we must quickly wean ourselves from fossil fuels – oil, natural gas and coal – to save the planet from environmental catastrophe, wars and economic collapse.

Professor Jaccard argues that this view is misguided. We have the technological capability to use fossil fuels without emitting climate-threatening greenhouse gases or other pollutants.

For the full information click here ...

Item added - 14th December 2005

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What can you do with a £5000 grant?
I am sure you could do many things for example buying some equipment for your company. The New Technology Initiative Network (NTI), funded by the East Midlands Development Agency, is offering grants to help small and medium size company acquire state of the art environmental and energy technologies.

For the full information click here ...

Item added - 02nd December 2005

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Trevor the Tree goes tropical
Staff at The Institute for Sustainable Development in Business are pleased to announce that they are now the proud sponsors of a couple of acres of rainforest through Trevor the Tree Fund.

For the full information click here ...

Item added - 18th November 2005

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Ask an Expert - New section on the website
Do you have a question you would like to ask but don't know where to start? Ask our team of technical experts any question within the Sustainable Development field and we will endeavor to answer it or put you in contact with someone who can help.

For the full information click here ...

Item added - 10th November 2005

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'High Growth' Business Support in the East Midlands
We have been approached by John Ventham, the programme manager for the High Growth Company Support Programme, (HGBSP) to identify any SMEs that might be able to apply for support under the HGCSP.

For the full information click here ...

Item added - 4th November 2005

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For any more information on future events involving the Institute, or if you have an event or news item you feel would be suitable for the section please submit you suggestions using the details below: