Conference Report

A for Sheffield From Global Challenges to Local Solutions

Saturday 28th February St. Mary’s Centre, Bramall Lane, Sheffield

Hosted by Sheffield Campaign Against Climate Change

Written by

Gareth Roberts David Hayes Heather Hunt Jenny Patient

Table of Contents

Table of Contents...... 2 Executive Summary...... 3 Introduction...... 4 Background...... 5 The Green New Deal is…...... 5 Aims & Outcomes ...... 6 Informing National Policy...... 6 Re-thinking Regional Development ...... 6 Developing Local Economic Strategy ...... 6 Generating Community Action...... 6 Programme Highlights ...... 7 Keynote Address...... 7 Colin Hines, Convenor, Green New Deal Group ...... 7 Responses from Sheffield City Council...... 8 Councillor Shaffaq Mohammed, Sheffield City Council ...... 8 Andy Nolan, Head of Environmental Strategy, Sheffield City Council...... 8 Presentations ...... 10 Open Space ...... 14 Workshops ...... 14 Recommendations...... 15 Introduction ...... 15 Key Recommendations ...... 15 Employment & Skills ...... 15 Finance...... 16 Buildings ...... 16 Energy ...... 16 Enterprise ...... 16 Production ...... 17 Transport ...... 17 Indicators of progress ...... 18 Bibliography...... 19

Executive Summary

This is a report of the conference 'A Green New Deal for Sheffield: From Global Challenges to Local Solutions' held on 28th February 2009 at St Mary’s Centre, Sheffield.

The primary recommendation of this report is for a radical re-think of the economic policy of Sheffield and the surrounding city-region, prioritising the development of a ‘low carbon economy’ as the underlying principle driving the Sheffield Economic Masterplan.

The report recommends a range of actions on finance, employment and skills, buildings, energy, enterprise, local food production, transport and indicators of progress.

These recommendations are made with the aim to initiate fundamental changes to improve the capacity of Sheffield to recover from the economic recession, deal with the energy and climate crisis, and support Sheffield’s ambition of becoming ‘an Attractive, Sustainable, Low Carbon City’.

In addition the report provides an introduction to the conference, background information to the Green New Deal concept and describes the desired aims and outcomes of the conference. A summary of key speeches, presentations and other conference sessions are also provided.

Conference Report - A Green New Deal for Sheffield: From Global Challenges to Local Solutions

06/05/2009 Page 3 of 19 Introduction On behalf of Sheffield Campaign against Climate Change, we would like to introduce this report of our successful day conference held on Saturday 28th February 2009: “A Green New Deal – from Global Challenges to Local Solutions”.

As a campaign, SCACC was formed in 2005 to raise awareness, campaign and lobby about dangerous climate change, and how we can take action locally, nationally and internationally. As well as organising for demonstrations on the and lobbying MPs, we have always taken on a campaigning role in Sheffield itself - about what Sheffield can do. We have pushed for city targets on and have emphasised the importance of not just our local emissions but the total footprint of our consumption. We have campaigned for the policy changes that are needed for us to live a sustainable life.

We have taken petitions to the City Council which have lead to discussions with the Council and Sheffield First and we have talked about the need for action on transport, insulation, food, , and, more and more, about the economic aspirations for the city and whether they can be reconciled with Sheffield’s carbon reduction commitments.

We were delighted, therefore, in summer 2008 to read the Green New Deal Report and to consider how we can respond to this agenda in Sheffield. Through the autumn this became more and more relevant as we saw the financial meltdown leading to a potential disaster for jobs and communities. From our perspective in Sheffield Campaign against Climate Change we are aware that no matter how bad economic system breakdown is, climate system breakdown would be even more of a disaster.

We see only one credible response, which is to drastically reduce our greenhouse gas emissions, reduce our impact on the , and reduce our reliance on fossil fuels. The beauty of this response is that if we build resilience in local communities, localise our economy, and focus on well-being instead of monetary wealth, it can offer us a happier and more just world, as well as one that is safer from climate threats and resource risks.

Our conference - which attracted over 140 participants, 20 speakers and 10 Open Space conveners - moved from our vision for a low-carbon Sheffield towards practical recommendations for action. We are pleased that Sheffield City Council have supported us both by contributing speakers and participants to the conference, and by listening to the outputs of the day. Their pioneering commitment to using the new Sustainable Communities Act will enable the ideas from the conference to be passed to central government as well, where appropriate.

We see the conference as just the beginning, and look forward to the process of moving together ‘from global challenges to local solutions’ in Sheffield.

Jenny Patient and Heather Hunt, SCACC

Conference Report - A Green New Deal for Sheffield: From Global Challenges to Local Solutions

06/05/2009 Page 4 of 19 Background The Green New Deal is a response to the ‘triple crunch’ of credit-fuelled financial crisis, accelerating climate change and soaring energy prices underpinned by an encroaching peak in oil production. The Green New Deal Group, drawing inspiration from the tone of President Roosevelt’s response to the Great Depression, propose a modernised version, a ‘Green New Deal’ designed to power a renewables revolution, create thousands of green-collar jobs and rein in the distorting power of the finance sector while making more low-cost capital available for pressing priorities. The Green New Deal is…1 • A massive environmental transformation of the economy to tackle the triple crunch of the financial crisis, climate change and insecure energy supplies.

• Jobs, more jobs and secure jobs. And, it’s about the skills and training to create and sustain them: in a time of recession, with unemployment already rocketing in the US, and growing here, shifting to green energy will produce countless new jobs, and create many more pound-for- pound of investment, than propping up the current system.

• Investment now to tackle the current recession, and an investment for the future: there are lots of ways we can invest in the future - as a country public spending on a green new deal will reap economic, environmental and social benefits. We can spend ‘better’ by reforming taxes, so that we tax more what we want less of (like pollution and reckless speculation) and less what we want more of (like green goods and services). Investment can come from public and private sources, as well as our savings. Shutting tax havens and ensuring that corporate tax reporting accurately reflects profits made in a country, would raise billions more for public investment in both rich and poor countries.

• New checks, balances and directions for a banking system that has become unfit for purpose: everyone agrees that new rules are needed to prevent a repeat of the banks’ catastrophic errors, but there’s also a new opportunity for change. With the taxpayer now owning several banks we can make sure that they invest and lend at low, affordable interest rates to support the economy’s environmental transformation.

• Greater security for our pensions and savings: many people’s pensions have taken a battering, but now there’s a chance to create new, low risk steady return vehicles for saving. New bonds and pensions targeted at the green renewal of the nation’s infrastructure could help bring mutual long-term benefits to both savers and the nation as a whole.

• Warm homes in winter, protecting us from high and volatile energy prices and ending fuel poverty : too many people can’t afford to keep warm in winter. Whatever the international price of fuel, homeowners seem to have to pay ever higher prices. A Green New Deal will begin by improving insulation and energy efficiency in UK households and start to break our dependence on volatile, expensive and ultimately declining fossil fuels.

• The UK showing real world leadership, setting an example and helping to build global security: unless rich nations like the UK show that they can implement change at home, poorer countries are unlikely to make the shift. The Green New Deal is about setting the economy, nationally and globally, on a path to live within its environmental means. It is also about fair play in a warming world and calls for the new financial mechanisms to help the majority world adapt to climate change as well as breaking the carbon chains of fossil fuel dependence.

1 www.greennewdealgroup.org

Conference Report - A Green New Deal for Sheffield: From Global Challenges to Local Solutions

06/05/2009 Page 5 of 19 Aims & Outcomes Our aims for the day were ambitious: “To consider the Green New Deal and the ideas behind it and work out how we can make a Green New Deal happen in Sheffield - what actions we can take to bring about a resilient local economy here in Sheffield.”

The questions we addressed were: “How can we bring about green jobs, local finance, low energy housing, low energy transport, local food and well being for all?”

We made it clear that the outcomes from the day would feed into the decision making process and initiatives nationally and locally.

We identified four different ways this could happen: Informing National Policy Sheffield has signed up to the Sustainable Communities Act, and is preparing to communicate ideas to government about what Sheffield communities need in order to be sustainable. Where the conference identified changes needed to national policy and the allocation of funding, these should be fed into the Sustainable Communities Act process. Re-thinking Regional Development The Regional Development Agency Yorkshire Forward remains instrumental in providing high level support and funding to initiatives, even at the local level. Yet as the localisation and agendas progress the concept of ‘region’ is being revised, for example the ‘city-region’, the ‘sub- region’ or the ‘bio-region’. Where the conference recommends actions that require implementation at the regional level, or that require the concept of region to be redefined, we urge boldness in this redefinition and implementation.

Developing Local Economic Strategy Sheffield has an Economic Masterplan, which should respond as new challenges emerge, for example, to sustainability and financial crisis. Where the conference identifies strategic action that Sheffield can take as a city, this should be fed in to the Economic Masterplan and decision-making processes in Sheffield City Council and the Sheffield First ‘Strong Economy’ Partnership. Generating Community Action Many changes can be initiated from the grassroots, where an individual, community or business takes initiative to do something new or differently – for example, to generate clean power from Sheffield’s rivers. The conference will bring people together and generate ideas that should be taken up in partnership by businesses and communities, and where appropriate supported fully by Sheffield City Council.

Conference Report - A Green New Deal for Sheffield: From Global Challenges to Local Solutions

06/05/2009 Page 6 of 19 Programme Highlights

Keynote Address

Colin Hines, Convenor, Green New Deal Group A summary of key points made in a speech given by Colin Hines:

“These are very unsettling times with people loosing jobs or becoming homeless or worried about their jobs and the future for their children. But these are also optimistic times because the economic policy of the past decades is busted. An economy based on globalisation and open trade and the god of international competitiveness built on massive debt is finished. The model of regeneration used in our cities based on the 3 Bs: bricks (office blocks ), boutiques (shopping malls) and banks is over.”

“This model – where the market is god – has been bad for the environment, caused vast inequalities between rich and poor and led to third world countries unable to compete with the first world – including now with China and India.”

“This model was thought, by Larry Elliot (Economics editor of the Guardian) and others including myself, to be unsustainable. We thought in our current situation there are parallels with the 1920s, when in America the rich thought that the economy would grow forever, and could be based on debt being used to purchase shares and property, with price increases leading to further borrowing.”

“So, in realising this, and seeing Roosevelt’s solution of the New Deal, we decided we needed a Green New Deal, and in essence the Green New Deal is really the same as Roosevelt’s. There would be a need to reassert control over the banks and finance and separate out ordinary banking from investment banking. But instead of stimulating the economy by vast projects on dam and road building a Green New Deal would take a three-pronged approach: to control finance and the banks; ensure that the tax system results in much more fairness; and then – and this is the main difference – use not just public money but also private savings in green infrastructure, in green collar jobs – to save energy, to change the agricultural system, the transport system, to use resources more rationally.”

“The First Green New Deal as published in July 2008 prioritises energy efficiency as quick way to create jobs and reduce carbon emissions. It is costed at £50-£70 billion. It envisages every building being a generator of energy by use of energy insulation and renewables. It proposes a vast carbon army trained to retro-fit energy saving, and installation of renewable systems that could also generate income using feed-in tariffs as in Germany. It assumes vast retraining using further education and re-skilling.”

“To pay for it there would be tax changes and clamping down on tax havens and tax avoidance schemes. Plus carbon taxes and encouraging people to save using Government-backed Green Bonds. Pension funds would find it attractive to invest in GND policies rather than on the stock market.”

“At a local level Sheffield could issue Bonds to pay for massive investments in a local Green New Deal to reduce carbon and increase energy savings – to generate jobs, generate business opportunities and provide people with places to put their savings into local projects where they could see improvements around them.”

Conference Report - A Green New Deal for Sheffield: From Global Challenges to Local Solutions

06/05/2009 Page 7 of 19 Responses from Sheffield City Council

Councillor Shaffaq Mohammed, Sheffield City Council

A selection of quotes from a speech given by Councillor Shaffaq Mohammed:

“This event… shows how passionate we are as a city and probably as region in terms of the environment. We have a lot to celebrate to Sheffield we have a long history in Sheffield about the environment. Actually parts of the city are in the Peak District National Park. It’s something we always shout about. We try to badge ourselves as being the greenest city in terms of its environment and we have opportunities to make it the greenest city in the UK in terms of its industry.”

“I have been lent a Smart Meter in my property. It has shown us a family how we should switch off lights start using more efficient appliances.”

“The Sheffield Communities Renewables project that I’ve seen… is something I’m really looking into. How they can help or support how we make each individual house or flat a mini power station. How we can work with them? How we can give them the capacity to move forward?”

“I think that a lot of the ideas will come from the community and that’s why I am proud that we as Council have signed up to the Sustainable Communities Act.”

“So when it comes to ideas about talking climate change I don’t think one particular group of people have a monopoly, there are lots of ideas right across political parties in Sheffield and we have to work together.”

Andy Nolan, Head of Environmental Strategy, Sheffield City Council

My primary responsibility is carbon reduction, and how the city is going to achieve a low carbon economy. To achieve this we need an evidence base and we need to understand what the options are for the scale of change required. Sheffield First and Sheffield City Council have done a lot of work to build up this picture – some of which is summarised in this graph of the impact of possible actions:

The graph shows the emissions target reduction of 30% by 2020. Business as usual would take us in the wrong direction, and our aspirations for economic growth would have taken us in the wrong

Conference Report - A Green New Deal for Sheffield: From Global Challenges to Local Solutions

06/05/2009 Page 8 of 19 direction - the Economic Masterplan will need to include cognisance of the targets. The potential areas for reduction we have modelled include:

o A city-wide Affordable Warmth programme, which provides a 16% reduction

o Greater vehicle efficiency

o A modal shift in transport use away from single-occupancy car use

o A high growth in renewable and take-up

o High take-up of organic and vegetarian food

There are three things we are going to need to take this agenda forward within Sheffield: policy changes, infrastructure changes and behaviour changes. Carbon reduction is a priority for the Council and the City, and we are focusing on three main areas: Domestic energy consumption, Transport, and Business/Public Sector.

We have specific programmes covering local procurement – these are being achieved by the council and other public sector organisations such as the universities. The Eco-Business initiative encourages all small and medium enterprises to reduce their waste and energy use. We are working through the planning process and collaborating with other cites to produce better planning guidance, and develop low emissions strategies.

We want Sheffield to be known as a thriving low carbon city and we will be making commitments in those areas over the next 1 to 2 years. We will look at new transformational approaches as we cannot rely on the market alone to deliver these changes. Our biggest challenge as a local authority is the up-front capital to invest in the right things for infrastructure change – London has shown it can be done! We need to take the public us over these long term changes required, and there is now an encouraging movement to talk about these issues – of which this conference is part.

Conference Report - A Green New Deal for Sheffield: From Global Challenges to Local Solutions

06/05/2009 Page 9 of 19 Presentations A summary of presentations given at the conference.

From Passenger Transport with a particular challenge when • Manages several food growing Authorities to Integrated addressing the issue for the sites and community gardens Transport Authorities development of a sustainable local • Grow and distribute locally grown food strategy. organic vegetables, herbs and David Young fruit South Yorkshire Passenger Local food can mean anything from • Help deliver the educational 'Food Transpot Executive home grown carrots to Danish pork in Sheffield' programme slaughtered in the UK. Attempts to • Run a 'Healthy Eating Café’ The Local Transport Act 2008 examine the real benefits of local • Support local Farmers Markets gained Royal Assent on 26 food have struggled with difficulties • Supply vegetable and herb plants November 2008. It aims to put in in defining what constitutes local • Support Sheffield and Barnsley place the framework and tools for food not only on the basis of origin schools to learn about and grow Local Authorities and Bus Operators but also on the basis of the their own food to work together to boost bus use, distances travelled by consumers. • Work with the Soil Association, reduce congestion and help tackle Furthermore how we define local in Garden Organic, Federation of climate change. the context of food has varying and City Farms and Community differing impacts on the key agendas Gardens, Morrison’s Let's Grow David will look firstly at Governance of a sustainable environment, and Expert Gardeners project, Blue changes which have converted economy, ethical consumption and Peter children’s TV programme Passenger Transport Authorities into social cohesion. and many other partners Integrated Transport Authorities and what this might mean in the future. This presentation provides some • [email protected] insights into the implications of key

This presentation will then go on to agendas in the determination of a ……………………………………… explore how Authorities might sustainable local food agenda in the Dealing with A Throwaway influence bus delivery through the context of an urban economy, Culture . options of: serving a broad spectrum of socio-

• Voluntary Partnerships with Bus economic groups. Tim Cooper Operators Sheffield Hallam University • • [email protected] Statutory Quality Partnership

Schemes, and is unlikely • ……………………………………… the Quality Contract (franchised) to be achieved as long as the Towards a Sheffield Local Food delivery model. volume of household waste Strategy: Heeley City Farm as a generated in industrial nations Practical Example Re-regulation remains outside the continues to rise. One factor law so will not be considered as an underlying this trend is the short life John Le Corney option. span of many household goods. Heeley City Farm

• [email protected] This paper considers the Sheffield does not have an agreed significance of product life spans to local food strategy. ……………………………………… achieving .

Local Food Agendas A theoretical model is developed in Local Food Strategies can link order to demonstrate how, by together the availability, accessibility Jane Eastham contributing to efficiency and and affordability of freshly grown Sheffield Hallam University sufficiency, longer product life spans local food to all communities, may secure genuine progress improving the health of the Local food production has become towards sustainable consumption. , promoting the local an issue of note for many Empirical research on consumer economy, improving community stakeholders. Local and National attitudes and behaviour relating to cohesion, developing and increasing government, academics from a the life span of household products quality education and training and variety of disciplines, key is reviewed and factors that contributing to improving the local stakeholders throughout the supply influence the market for longer and global environment and chain, including farmers, processors, lasting products discussed. A need reducing CO2 emissions. retailers/caterers and consumers are is identified for further research on calling for the localisation of food product life spans and a new wiki- As a voluntary/not-for-profit sector supply. Yet the wide interest of such based resource presented as a a range of bodies provides Sheffield partner Heeley City Farm:

Conference Report - A Green New Deal for Sheffield: From Global Challenges to Local Solutions

06/05/2009 Page 10 of 19 means of increasing knowledge and Using real examples and case employment in energy efficiency and stimulating debate. studies, Mark will outline a strategy technology • [email protected] to bring together jobs, skills, product processes, such as in ……………………………………… housing, finance and the , green investment/finance, The Waste Challenge - an example development of more sustainable , insulation installation, sustainable resource utilisation communities in North West England. energy home & workplace surveys, and the implications for This thinking is at the forefront of assessment and action plan and communities activity under the Green New Deal cycle repair. initiative and also of the newly Rob Murfin formed 20/20 Group, looking at • [email protected] Yorkshire & Humberside social housing as a stimulus for • [email protected] Assembly sustainable economic intervention. ……………………………………… How to be eco-ethical and have Rob will be looking at the Mark is a member of the UK Green business savvy significance of waste management Building Council and has over 15 for climate change, methods for years experience in regional Julia Gash achieving a significant reduction in environmental, sustainability and Bag It Don't Bin It emissions and what difficult development issues. challenges this will pose to local Bag It Don’t Bin It has seized the communities. • [email protected] initiative to develop an eco-friendly ……………………………………… business solution to an international, There will be a focus on practical Skills for Energy Empowerment – environmental problem. Raising solutions, but Rob will explore the Taking Green Wash to the conscientious on environmental truly difficult issues we will need to Cleaners issues is integrally linked with our face in order to achieve any sort of operations and our success. As such meaningful progress. Issues like David Garlovsky we are one of an increasing number sustainable consumption choice, Solar-Active of new business that are at the public participation and the forefront of a new industrial age, "recycling plateau" will be discussed, John Grant which is driven by an ethical and as well as an honest view on the Sheffield Hallam University environmental business model. Our application of lessons leant from success as a start up business is other countries and the emerging The principal aim of The Sustainable evidence of the massive number of "new cynicism" about the role of the Communities Act 2007 is to promote opportunities in the green industries. public vs that of the state. the sustainability of local communities, encouraging the • [email protected] Rob is a Policy Manager for the improvement of the economic, social ……………………………………… Yorkshire & Humber Assembly and or environmental well being of a Extending Localisation is involved in national projects for Local Authority’s area. central government on sustainability Karen Leach issues. In the past he has worked for In order to accomplish this aim within Localise West Midlands local government, Sheffield Hallam the Sheffield City Region (including University and UK. Barnsley, Doncaster, and ‘Localisation' is our shorthand for an Rotherham) there is a need of approach that prioritises sourcing • [email protected] educational opportunities to provide local materials, selling to local ……………………………………… direct experience and knowledge in markets, local circulation of money, The Vision Quest - Bringing about how energy efficiency and and creating localised employment Transformative Change using renewable energy technologies work where it is needed. Extending "Econosystems" Thinking and are applicable to the UK climate. Localisation came from our recognition that whilst many Mark O'Reilly The New Strategic Directions for the localisation good practice activities Just Ask Scarlett Sheffield Economy & Sheffield exist (local food projects, support Economic Master plan recognizes schemes for independent retailers The current problem - 10,000 the need for better paid and to etc), they often stay at the niche, construction related jobs lost since create green-collar jobs within the 'pilot' level and have little to do with start 2008. Plummeting housing and existing SME’s in Sheffield region. the mainstream of economic activity manufacturing markets. Lack of and policy-making. So the project available credit. Need for social and Education programmes are essential involves analysing good localisation low-cost housing. Need for new to focus on creating employment practice around the West Midlands financing models. The need for opportunities where there are major region and from it identifying the increased standards in sustainability skills shortages within the workforce, policy changes and local support and low-carbon building. e.g. plumbers and electricians. In mechanisms required to help turn addition, to gain vocational skills and excellent pilots into a regional norm.

Conference Report - A Green New Deal for Sheffield: From Global Challenges to Local Solutions

06/05/2009 Page 11 of 19 Pete North teaches geography at [email protected] Liverpool University and has studied • [email protected] ……………………………………… alternative currencies worldwide ……………………………………… since 1992. He is the author of the Financing the Transition Economy forthcoming Transition Guide to Future-proofing and fuel poverty - A Proposal for a Community Money, to be published by Green action all in one – the future for Bank Books later in the year. His talk will existing homes? draw on his global research to David Midgley discuss the contribution of LETS, Nick Parsons Schmacher North Time Money and recent transition South Yorkshire Energy Centre currencies like the Totnes Pound to In the light of the profound problems a Green New Deal. The problem: “About 3.5m currently affecting the global households in Britain spent more financial system, and the urgent • [email protected] than 10 per cent of their income - the need to bring economic activity back ……………………………………… trigger point for fuel poverty - on heat to the local level in order to reduce ‘Weatherizing’ the Housing Stock and fuel in 2006. And with recent impacts on the global environment, huge increases in gas and electricity especially with regard to climate Andrew Jeffrey prices there could be 3.5m change, I propose establishing a South Yorkshire Housing households in England alone local Community Bank to provide Association officially classified as suffering from finance for small-scale, sustainable fuel poverty. (The Daily Telegraph, and ethical local businesses that SYHA is currently running two 2/10/08)” could bring about the transition to a projects which would help ensure locally based, zero-carbon economy. Sheffield City Region could offer The solution? Mike Gibson, emeritus affordable, energy efficient housing professor of planning at London In this presentation I will set out the that contributes towards local energy South Bank University is researching rationale for this initiative, explain my generation. ‘balance trading’: the idea that ideas about how the Community developers who miss zero-carbon Bank would operate, and my The first considers new build standards could offset emissions by approach to forming a Consortium to housing. We have developed homes improving the sustainability of take forward this initiative in Leeds, at Henley Rise in Rotherham that existing nearby homes. If economic with a view to exchanging ideas and achieve high levels of insulation and problems slow progress towards information with those in the incorporate the largest complete zero-carbon homes, he suggests, Sheffield area who may be solar roof in Europe. We are “the government could take on board interested in taking a similar monitoring how residents use eco- the idea of balance trading, and initiative. This idea can be explored features in order to learn how we meet its carbon emission reduction further in the afternoon workshop. could effectively enable residents to targets even without reaching the get the most out of their new home. 2016 zero-carbon target.” (‘The • [email protected] This study is being completed with Future is Retrofit’: Sheffield Hallam University and will http://www.forumforthefuture.org/files ……………………………………… contribute to an area which is /The_Future_is_Retro-fit.pdf) currently under-researched: how to The Contribution of Alternative enable positive behaviour change. The discussion: What would this Currencies to a Green New Deal mean in Sheffield? How would we The second project involves have to change our homes? Would it Pete North considering the existing housing work? What’s been done elsewhere? University of Liverpool stock. Our architects team have developed an eco-refurbishment • [email protected] In past recessions and depressions, project. An average home produces ……………………………………… a popular response from approximately 8 tonnes of carbon Clean Energy Technologies for communities has been to create their dioxide per annum. We believe that Social Development and own forms of money. The jobs aren’t an average investment of £7,000 Reduction of Poverty there, and the money has dried up, would reduce these emissions to 2 but needs remain. Avoiding tonnes. Prof. I. M. Dharmadasa (Dharme) dangerous climate change means Sheffield Hallam University cutting as much carbon out of our Currently, we are exploring economies as we can, and we can opportunities to pilot this scheme This presentation has two main do this by cutting unnecessary with a number of local authorities in themes; Summary of Dharme’s transport through localisation. How South Yorkshire and North efforts on research, development can local money facilitate this? Derbyshire. We have identified a and commercialisation of solar number of funding streams which energy conversion over the past could be used for work of this type. three decades, and his renewable

Conference Report - A Green New Deal for Sheffield: From Global Challenges to Local Solutions

06/05/2009 Page 12 of 19 energy promotional activities over leading Islamic environmental NGO. the past two decades. • [email protected] His work displays a sustained effort ……………………………………… to unite people of all persuasions in The first part on R&D will be dealing with a common threat and explained in simple language using An Islamic Response to the Green also a deep commitment to the animation, for easy understanding by New Deal cause of environmental justice for all sectors of the society. The latest the poor in developing countries. achievements and the activities to Dr. Fazlun Khalid form a spin-out company in Sheffield Islamic Foundation for Ecology • [email protected] will be presented. and Ecological Sciences ……………………………………… It's not a ‘financial crisis’, and it The second part summarises the The financial meltdown we are didn't begin last year results of a DFID funded and British witnessing now is good for the Council managed Higher-Education- environment. The root cause of John Smith Link programme, its main outcomes environmental degradation is the University of Sheffield and the present situation. The system of financial intermediation design of a “Solar Village” and its which we have invented for This paper argues that substituting implementation plans in developing ourselves, based on the universal low-wage labour for relatively high- countries will be discussed. The use superstition that the money we carry wage labour by relocating production of both R&D and promotional in our wallets really exists, which of processes to Mexico, Bangladesh, activities to attract high-calibre course it doesn’t. There is something China etc has been critical to scientists from different countries to profoundly wrong with the political maintaining profits and social peace Sheffield, and train them at PhD and financial institutions that have in the so-called ‘advanced nations’; level to build capacity and establish led us today to this state of affairs. without this, the deflationary crisis green energy development round the Can the system that caused the now radiating from these nations to globe will be presented. problem produce the solutions? the rest of the world would have broken out decades ago. • [email protected] We have lost a sense of nature, of ……………………………………… belonging to something bigger than I will discuss how the outsourcing of Councillor Andrew Cooper ourselves. Our consumerism has production relates to the Kirklees Council driven us to distance ourselves from 'financialisation' (i.e. the vastly- the natural world and dominate it, to increased weight of finance) of the A Green New Deal in Action - the extent that there is no awareness US, European and Japanese Kirklees Warm Zone and RE- that, as we destroy the natural world economies, and show that the Charge we destroy ourselves. This 'financial crisis' is merely a symptom presentation will attempt to examine of a bigger problem rooted in The UK’s first ever free insulation the Islamic responses to these capitalist production itself. scheme for all householders issues. regardless of income is well Current attempts to refloat the underway in Kirklees. The £20 Fazlun Khalid has established for banking system with public money million scheme is halfway through a himself a world wide reputation as are therefore doomed to fail, and will 3 year programme with 18,000 lofts an indefatigable advocate of only result in destroying the already and 9000 cavity walls insulated so environmental protection rooted in limited capacity of governments to far. Over £4.5 million will be saved religion and traditional beliefs and is maintain economic activity through by householders in fuel bills and now recognised as one of fifteen massive public works, i.e. a 'New nearly 200 jobs have been created. leading eco theologians in the world Deal'. Kirklees has also initiated a £5million alongside the Dalai Lama and the scheme providing microgeneration Pope. As an example of his work he • [email protected] for householders with no upfront chaired a major gathering in Japan ……………………………………… costs nor monthly payments with the in 1995 and produced the Ohito capital cost of the installation being Declaration for Religion, Land and repaid upon sale of the property. Conservation which pledged all the Councils around the country are major faiths to work together in seeking to emulate these award addressing environmental problems. winning projects. Subsequently as Director of Training for the Alliance of Religions and These schemes were the brainchild Conservation he tirelessly promoted of Green Party Councillor Andrew this declaration world-wide from Cooper who was number 59 in The 1995 to 2000. He also founded the Independent on Sunday's list of top Islamic Foundation for Ecology and 100 Environmentalists and was the Environmental Sciences which is only Councillor appearing on the list. now established as the world’s

Conference Report - A Green New Deal for Sheffield: From Global Challenges to Local Solutions

06/05/2009 Page 13 of 19 Open Space Open Space was an opportunity for conference attendees to suggest any topic for a ‘round-table’ discussion during the lunchtime break. The topics reflect areas of general and specific interest for the conference, beyond the formal conference programme.

A list of questions discussed in Open Space:

1. How can we make Sheffield Train Station an ‘eco-station’? 2. What do we think national & local government should do about private business and current economic collapse and job loss? 3. What role should Transition Towns play in creating a more sustainable Sheffield? 4. Question Time with Colin Hines 5. Ideas for a project in the Leadmill area to use empty buildings and create open space 6. What mechanism could the Local Authority create / use for saving & investment in housing, energy, transport & food? (A New Sheffield Local Bond) 7. How can we save energy with no extra cost? 8. What can Trade Unionists do about climate change? 9. Is there a distinctive contribution the Faith communities can make? 10. How can we be moving to ? Workshops The broad aim of each workshop was to discuss, develop and record ideas of how Sheffield can respond to the triple crunch of financial, energy and climate crisis. Workshops were led by facilitators, and reflected the conference aims to inform national policy, develop local economic strategy and generate community action.

A list of titles and topics discussed in the Workshops:

• Rethinking Actioning 2 the Green New Deal Macro Economics, Policy & Politics

• Localisation of the Economy Local Employment, Finance & Investment

• New Directions for Food, Transport & Waste

• Low Carbon Housing & Energy Housing, Energy & Skills

The recommendations made by these workshops can be found in the following section.

2 Amendment made to reflect change in title demanded by workshop attendees.

Conference Report - A Green New Deal for Sheffield: From Global Challenges to Local Solutions

06/05/2009 Page 14 of 19 Recommendations

Introduction The Green New Deal for Sheffield conference and this subsequent report recognises we currently face global financial, energy and climate crisis. The global financial crisis has since developed into a national economic recession, whilst the energy and climate crisis continue to present a significant challenge to us all.

The local impacts of the national economic recession on Sheffield have been recognised 3 by the Council and Strategic Partnership, and in response a range of actions designed to minimise the impact of the recession have been identified, and their implementation prioritised. 4

A selection of these actions which address issues relating to energy and climate change are welcomed, particularly: • Affordable Warmth: Inform those at high risk of fuel poverty of the grants and financial assistance available to them to reduce energy use in their homes, and carry out cavity wall and loft insulation measures on an area basis. The Council will purchase plug-in ‘Smart Meters’ which measure energy efficiency in people’s homes, made available to borrow from libraries and first point receptions • Sheffield Eco Business Programme - Launched in January 2009 as a one-stop solution for businesses of all size and all sectors who wish to address their environmental performance.

However, the primary recommendation of this report is for a radical re-think of the economic policy of Sheffield and the surrounding city-region, prioritising the development of a ‘low carbon economy’ as the underlying principle driving the Sheffield Economic Masterplan.

Therefore, this report recommends a range of actions to supplement those already in place, and improve the capacity of Sheffield to recover from the economic recession, deal with the energy and climate crisis, and support Sheffield’s ambition of becoming ‘An Attractive, Sustainable, Low Carbon City’. 5 Key Recommendations This section describes a range of key recommendations made by the conference.

Employment & Skills The report recommends a Sheffield Short Time Working Initiative and a Sheffield Low Carbon Skills Action Plan.

• Sheffield Low Carbon Skills Action Plan – identify and address skills gaps for a low carbon economy through a comprehensive revision of Sheffield Skills Strategy to include skills and training for a low-carbon / green / resilient future. A particular recommendation is for a scoping document relevant to insulation of Sheffield’s solid wall housing (about 50% of housing stock), identifying skills required, capacity for training and costs.

3 SCC Cabinet Report (28.01.09) ‘Local action for local needs: Dealing with economic downturn’

4 Sheffield First Strong Economy Partnership ‘Sheffield’s Recession Action Plan’ identifies a range of actions to help alleviate the effects of the recession on the residents, businesses, voluntary and community sector and housing market in Sheffield.

5 Sheffield First Environment Partnership ‘Environmental Excellence’ is the framework for Sheffield’s sustainable development and the Big Ambition in the City Strategy of Sheffield being, “An Attractive, Sustainable, Low Carbon City”.

Conference Report - A Green New Deal for Sheffield: From Global Challenges to Local Solutions

06/05/2009 Page 15 of 19 • Short Time Working Initiative – establish city-wide short time working initiative, massively increase availability of volunteering, p/t & self- employment opportunities, co-ordinate labour pool management activities to ensure demand for low-carbon labour is met

Finance This report recommends a Sheffield Local Finance Action Plan to address the problem of available credit for low carbon public works and green business and to provide a safe and reliable return for local investors. To include:

• Expanded role and responsibilities of Sheffield Credit Union – enabling it to support low-carbon initiatives e.g. buying Community Supported Agriculture shares and re-structuring to weekly payment • Set up / re-launch Sheffield Bond to support a local low-carbon investment fund, supported through local authority backing • Explore feasibility and requirements of a new Sheffield Community Bank, with a possible link to community-supported Post Offices

Buildings This report recommends a Sheffield Low Carbon Buildings Action Plan, including:

• Continue rollout of Affordable Warmth programme • Identify viable solutions for solid wall housing and create a retro-fit rollout programme • Establish low-carbon housing improvement programme • Make housing stock information / mapping / addresses etc. more readily available to enable research, design and delivery of city wide low-carbon housing improvement programme • Encourage & co-ordinate whole street approach • Identify low-carbon strategy for Commercial & Industrial Buildings

Energy This report recommends a Sheffield Low Carbon Energy Action Plan to provide leadership and direction on the issues of energy security & resilience, energy descent, energy generation and energy reduction & efficiency, including:

• Support (through planning, Local Authority procurement, national government funding leverage) creation of local renewable energy generation schemes • Devise city-wide energy descent plan for a post-oil future • Support university research and scenario planning into city / city-region energy security & resilience • Engage in a city-wide schools and community programme to promote energy saving measures • Implement council tax reductions for households with smart metering and energy saving/reduction measures • Bid for national government funding to support energy efficiency and reduction schemes • Support Sheffield Community Renewables through council procurement and any other means

Enterprise This report recommends a Sheffield Low Carbon Enterprise Support Programme to provide dedicated support for start-up / existing businesses in the low carbon / green industries, including:

• Change strategic direction of enterprise support and development activities AWAY from creative and digital industries TOWARDS low-carbon industries • Increase support for innovation / research & development / knowledge transfer activities to enable transition to a city-region low carbon economy

Conference Report - A Green New Deal for Sheffield: From Global Challenges to Local Solutions

06/05/2009 Page 16 of 19 • Develop a strand of dedicated support within existing programmes for start-up / existing businesses in the low carbon / green industries • Identify part-time / full time / self- employment opportunities in retro-fitting, re-use, recycling, conversion, composting, food growing-related, eco-engineering, renewable energy generation, • Provide business rate relief for start-up green / low-carbon / eco-tech businesses • Establish range of public works that accelerate type activities eg. Public works department for low-carbon future, re-direction of green space use, city wide allotment renewal, housing insulation, house cladding, micro-generation

Local Food Production This report recommends a Sheffield Low Carbon Food Action Plan including a city-region scheme of Community Supported Agriculture and Urban Food Growing projects, including:

• Support a city-region wide scheme of Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) projects, to enable: o Increased local o Reduced o Reduced reliance on supermarkets o Reduced reliance on non-local / non-regional food production and distribution systems o Create part-time / full time / self- employment opportunities o Increased levels of wellbeing, social inclusion & healthy living

• Explore measures to provide specific support for the provision of land for CSA projects: o Identify suitable local authority owned land that could be made available either through rent or sale for exclusive use by CSA projects o Explore use of compulsory purchase powers to increase stock of land suitable for food production o Conduct land use reappraisal examining marginal land, urban-rural periphery, green space, park land, street trees, reclaimed brownfield sites, and strategy for bringing this land into use for food production o Provide a easy to access service to provide site specific soil testing for pollution / contamination / heavy metals etc., and confirm suitability for food production o Assess economic argument for change of activity on farm land currently rented out to farms. Could alternative use, or CSA scheme increase food production, and subsequently increase land value, thus generating higher rental income (plus resulting in other associated social benefits)

• Explore further measures to provide more general support to CSA projects and other urban food growing initiatives: o Revise allotment policy re. shared use, sale of produce, tree planting o Revise market licensing policy to increase occurrence of local non-charitable markets, enabling localised food distribution and sale o Make empty shop units available, with reduced / waived business rates for use by CSA / urban food gorwing schemes to support distribution and sale of locally produced food o Devise local food strategy to support production of a target amount of fresh weekly vegetables for entire population through city-region wide CSA programme

Transport This report recommends a range of measures to improve the Sheffield transport system, including:

• Introduce Quality Bus Contracts as soon as possible and then progress to a full integrated transport system for our city region

Conference Report - A Green New Deal for Sheffield: From Global Challenges to Local Solutions

06/05/2009 Page 17 of 19 • Implement integrated ticketing on all bus and Supertram routes within the Sheffield travel to work region • Provide new direct bus services to the Royal Hallamshire Hospital, Childrens Hospital and Sheffield University from Sheffield S8 Chesterfield Rd corridor areas • Provide flat rate fares to encourage Sunday travel on buses • Provide free off peak travel to under 18s • Increase bus priority measures on all main roads • Cycle Hire Scheme – using cycle docking station, use it as you like, and then return it to a cycle docking station at your final destination: roll out the scheme based on the London initiative for 2010 • Create a Freight Consolidation Centre – possible located off Parkway or Ring Road. To reduce or eliminate the number of inappropriately sized vehicles entering particular urban area, and to avoid the need for vehicles to deliver part loads into city centre. These objectives can be achieved by providing facilities whereby deliveries (retail, office or residential) can be transhipped and/or consolidated for subsequent delivery into the urban area in an appropriate vehicle with a high level of load utilisation. Consolidation of goods can have both economic and environmental benefits (See http://www.dft.gov.uk/rmd/project.asp?intProjectID=12079 ) • Improve phasing of traffic lights on main routes to reduce energy consumption • Enforce 20mph speed limit and increase 20 mph zones in residential areas

Indicators of progress

The Sheffield City Strategy is based on three principles of prosperity, inclusion and sustainability. At present, prosperity tends to be measured using indicators of economic growth (such as GVA), whereas there are no high-level indicators identified to measure inclusion or sustainability. The implication of the Green New Deal is that reducing carbon emissions in Sheffield, as well as increasing sustainability, could increase both inclusion and prosperity by unlocking co-benefits such as warmer, healthier homes, people getting more exercise, and more local employment. In pursuing this agenda the city needs to find ways to measure progress that integrate indicators of sustainability, inclusion and prosperity.

This report recommends that this approach is developed by Sheffield City Council and Sheffield First (working with the Health, Economy and Environment Partnerships especially), and learning from work done elsewhere such as the Sustainable Development Commission’s recent report ‘Prosperity without Growth’ and the New Economics Foundation’s work on the ‘Happy Planet Index’.

Conference Report - A Green New Deal for Sheffield: From Global Challenges to Local Solutions

06/05/2009 Page 18 of 19 Bibliography A selection of resources relating the Green New Deal and Low Carbon Economies.

A Green and Fair Future: For a Just Transition to a Low Carbon Economy Trades Union Congress http://www.tuc.org.uk/touchstone/Justtransition/greenfuture.pdf

A Green Deal for the Manchester-Mersey Bioregion http://greendealmanchester.wordpress.com/

An Outline of the Case for a ‘Green’ Stimulus LSE / Grantham Research Institute http://www.lse.ac.uk/collections/granthamInstitute/publications/An%20outline%20of%20the%20cas e%20for%20a%20%27green%27%20stimulus.pdf

Cities Outlook 2009 Centre for Cities http://www.centreforcities.org/index.php?id=722

Creating Green Jobs: Developing Local Low-Carbon Economies Local Government Association http://www.lga.gov.uk/lga/aio/1509491

The Happy Planet Index New Economics Foundation, http://www.happyplanetindex.org/

Home Truths: A Low Carbon Strategy to Reduce UK Housing Emissions by 80% By 2050 University of Oxford’s Environmental Change Institute http://www.eci.ox.ac.uk/research/energy/downloads/boardman07-hometruths.pdf

Prosperity without growth? The transition to a sustainable economy Sustainable Development Commission http://www.sd-commission.org.uk/publications/downloads/prosperity_without_growth_report.pdf

Sustainable Cities CABE / Urban Practitioners http://www.sustainablecities.org.uk/

Transition Towns Wiki http://transitiontowns.org/

Unlocking Green Enterprise: A Low Carbon Strategy for the UK Economy Trades Union Congress http://www.tuc.org.uk/touchstone/unlocking/unlockinggreenenterprise.pdf

Zero Carbon Britain Centre for Alternative Technology http://www.zerocarbonbritain.com/

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