Introductory Presentations

Various groups spoke in a section titled ‘Stories of Hope’. Including:

• Merchant Adventurers - planning to fit solar panels where not visible from the road and improve energy efficiency of heating.

• York Community Energy - various solar schemes in progress and hope to install an onshore wind turbine. Providing retrofit advice to businesses and the general public.

• York Cares - environmental projects undertaken by a large number of volunteers from the general public and employees ‘loaned’ by their employer.

• Place-Based Climate Action Network (PCAN) Uni of Leeds - works with the Yorkshire and Humber Climate Commission. Worked on commission policies in Edinburgh and Belfast - may be helpful to York.

• Greenhead College - strong focus on the environment in the 6th form.

• York Climate Commission / Council - promoted planting, communal woodland, introduced electric buses, additional car charging points, collaboration with FERA and Askham Bryan College, ‘one stop shop’ for advice for SMEs. Promoting domestic retrofit (although finding a significant level of scepticism in the public).

Working Groups

The main purpose of the meeting seemed to be to establish working groups.

The meeting split into working groups to discuss issues and actions. The subject groups are:

• Energy

• Buildings and Retrofit

• Transport

• Food

• Waste and Circular

• Education and Youth Engagement

• Future Economy and Green Skills

• Connecting with Green Spaces

• Nature Recovery

• Health

Each group had a preselected facilitator and there were a couple of hours of debate regarding how to improve the subject area within York. Each attendee was recommended to join one group going forward, at most 2 groups.

YFOE as a group may be interested in joining most/all groups. 

Each working group is to have a commissioner (initially defaulting to the preselected facilitator) and possibly a deputy. The working groups were encouraged to arrange an initial meeting and meet regularly (3 months was suggested). The commissioners would meet with YCC in around 6 months and there would be another full meeting in around a year.

The facilitators will write up the flipcharts created by each group and distribute to members of their group, as well as details of the initial meeting. If we are not in the group then we miss these details.

General Observations

An artist created illustrations of the event.

A follow-up email was received after the meeting.

We were invited to name who was not present but should be. For this, it would be useful if a list of participants is provided. There was general agreement that council planning officers should be involved as they were frequently cited as thwarting or delaying environmental improvements.

A list of the commissioners for each working group would be useful.

There was little guidance or facilities provided for the working groups going forward. They are intended to be largely self-organised. Is there scope for YCC / Council to be more helpful and involved?

There was no Q & A session and no debate about how to optimise the York Climate Commission.