PRESS RELEASE - BRISTOL GREEN CAPITAL PARTNERSHIP
PRESS RELEASE - BRISTOL GREEN CAPITAL PARTNERSHIP
Bristol’s pioneering community-led climate action project receives £2.5 million National Lottery boost
Bristol’s innovative approach to community-led climate action, pioneered by Bristol Green Capital Partnership, has received a major boost through a £2.48 million grant from the National Lottery’s
Climate Action Fund. This significant investment reinforces the key role communities can play in
achieving the city’s climate ambitions, whilst also improving quality of life for local people.
Amy Harrison, Head of Community Partnerships at Bristol Green Capital Partnership, commented:
“We are delighted that this investment will enable Bristol's diverse communities to turn their climate plans into action and empower more communities to lead climate action locally. During the pandemic, Bristol’s community organisations proved how crucial they are when a city needs to respond to a crisis. The climate crisis is no exception. Bristol needs it diverse and dynamic community organisations to be at the heart of the city’s systemic transition to net zero.”
Nick Gardner, Head of Climate Action at The National Lottery Community Fund, said:
“Communities have a big role to play in tackling climate change – even small steps can make a big difference. Thanks to National Lottery players, we are able to support the Bristol Community Climate Action project to bring people together to help address climate change locally, and ultimately helping to move the UK towards net zero at the same time as supporting communities to prosper and thrive.
Bristol’s plans, led by diverse communities of geography, identity and interest across the city, help to show how citizens’ voices can be prioritised locally, and we’re excited to see how the community climate plans developed over the last two years will be put into action.”
The lottery award will support an ambitious, three-year city-wide programme to expand the Bristol Community Climate Action project, delivered by Bristol Green Capital Partnership in collaboration with six diverse communities organisations across the city - ACH, Ambition Lawrence Weston, Bristol Disability Equality Forum, Eastside Community Trust, Heart of BS13 and Lockleaze Neighbourhood Trust - and supported by the Centre for Sustainable Energy and Bristol City Council.
Building on the success of the last 18 months, the next phase of the project will fund its expansion to more communities in Bristol, the development of six innovative community climate action projects covering a range of issues and enable community climate action to be embedded in the city for the long-term.
The community climate action projects planned range from a repair hub for mobility equipment to reduce waste to rewilding the estate of Lockleaze by transforming its greens and grass verges to encourage wildlife and support nature recovery. A further twelve communities will also be supported to co-produce their own community climate plans, a new Community Leadership Panel on Climate and Just Transition will be established for the city, alongside a series of citywide and neighbourhood public events and artist commissions to help make climate conversation relevant to more people. See here for full details of the project.
Marvin Rees, Mayor of Bristol said:
“In setting our ambition to make Bristol a carbon neutral and climate resilient city by 2030, we have been clear that environmental and social justice must be delivered hand in hand. That means empowering our diverse communities to take a leading role in Bristol’s response to the climate emergency.
Bristol Green Capital Partnership’s work has been crucial in achieving this, partnering with six communities across Bristol to develop their own Community Climate Action Plans. This allows communities to shape climate action so that it brings the social benefits they want to see. I’m delighted that the National Lottery Climate Action Fund have given us the green light to continue to work with communities to turn their ambitious climate action plans into action.”
The first phase of the Bristol Community Climate Action project saw six community organisations co- produce the city’s first community climate action plans. These ambitious plans were developed by neighbourhoods experiencing inequality and disadvantage along with the communities of Disabled people and Refugees in the city. Leading climate action at a community level provides opportunities to improve the lives of local people and ensure the needs of Bristol’s diverse communities are better represented as the city feels the effects of a cost-of-living and energy crisis.
Emma Geen of Bristol Disability Equalities Forum said:
"Disabled people are among those hit hardest by both the cost-of-living crisis and the climate crisis. Our repair hub for mobility equipment will be taking action on both. By including Disabled people from the start, climate action can improve our lives instead of creating new barriers."
Suzanne Wilson of Lockleaze Neighbourhood Trust commented:
"Really Wild Lockleaze will use 41 acres of grass verges and housing greens to create essential habitat for nature in the area. This will tackle the catastrophic decline of pollinators, respond to Bristol's ecological emergency and mitigate the impact of new housing developments in Lockleaze.’’
To find out more about this exciting new chapter of community-led climate action Bristol, read the new Bristol Green Capital Partnership blog post and be inspired by the Bristol communities leading fast and fair climate action in our city. An official launch event will be taking place at MShed on 8 September.
Links:
• Read more about the Bristol Community Climate Action project including a launch blog post
(live on 7 September): bristolgreencapital.org/bristols-pioneering-community-led-climate-action-receives-2-5-million-boost
• Download accompanying images
• View the Community Climate Action project playlist on YouTube.
Notes to Editors
1. The Bristol Community Climate Action Project sees six Bristol community organisations – Ambition Lawrence Weston, ACH, Bristol Disability Equality Forum, Heart of BS13, Lockleaze Neighbourhood Trust, and Eastside Community Trust play a leading role in shaping Bristol’s transition to a low carbon and climate resilient city with the support of Bristol Green Capital Partnership, Bristol City Council and the Centre for Sustainable Energy.
2. Bristol Green Capital Partnership is a unique network bringing together over 1,000 member organisations from across all sectors, to work towards a zero carbon, socially just Bristol where all our communities and nature thrive. bristolgreencapital.org @bgreencapital
3. The Bristol Community Climate Action Project is kindly supported by the National Lottery Community Fund’s Climate Action Fund Contact: For more information, requests, interviews, further photos please contact: contact@bristolgreencapital.org
About The National Lottery Community Fund
We are the largest funder of community activity in the UK – we support people and communities to prosper and thrive. We’re proud to award money raised by National Lottery players to communities across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, and to work closely with Government to distribute vital grants and funding from key Government programmes and initiatives.
Our funding has a positive impact and makes a difference to people’s lives. We support projects focussed on things that matter, including economic prosperity, employment, young people, mental health, loneliness and helping the UK reach net zero by 2050. Thanks to the support of National Lottery players, our funding is open to everyone. We’re privileged to be able to work with the smallest of local groups right up to UK-wide charities, enabling people and communities to bring their ambitions to life.
National Lottery players raise over £30 million each week for good causes throughout the UK. Since The National Lottery began in 1994, £43 billion has been raised for good causes. National Lottery funding has been used to support over 635,000 projects - 255 projects per postcode area.
