Greening the FE&HE Sectors:Creating a Carbon Reduction Culture

"It is the students in Universities today, who will be carrying on the work to build the low
carbon Britain of tomorrow, it is vital that Universities and Government set a good example."

Rt Hon Chris Huhne, Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change

Govtoday presents Greening the FE&HE Sectors: Creating a Carbon Reduction Culture Conference and Exhibition, which will be held on the Wednesday 27th April, The Brewery, London.

The Climate Change Act of 2008, set the world’s first long-term legally binding targets for a 34 per cent reduction in carbon emissions by 2020, and an 80 per cent reduction in carbon emissions by 2050, against a 1990 baseline.

With the Coalition Government affirming its ambition to continue this agenda and become 'the greenest government ever', ambition turned to reality with the Spending Review, announced in October 2010; the levers for change now a mix of financial incentives, 'green' taxation, as well as regulation under national and international commitments.

With 131 Universities and Higher Education (HE) Institutes in England and 420 Further Education Colleges within the UK, the Further and Higher Education Sector is in an unique position to play a leading role in delivering change, achieving sustainability and cutting carbon emissions as an exemplar of best practice, an educator of future generations, and as an innovator, providing solutions to drive forward the UK’s Green Economy.

The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills leads on the carbon reduction agenda for the Further Education Sector and on 29th November 2010, published ‘Low Carbon Construction’ - The Innovation and Growth Team Final Report.

This taken together with 'The Carbon Reduction Target and Strategy for Higher Education in England' Report revised in September 2010, by the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE), Universities UK and GuildHE, outlines the challenges involved in Greening the FE&HE sectors, moving: "national goals to institutional targets, measured against regular milestones...ensuring our buildings are better insulated, our energy use is better controlled and our purchases more considered."

Greening the FE&HE Sectors: Creating a Carbon Reduction Culture Conference and Exhibition will map out the future direction for the Higher Education Sector regarding this agenda, given current economic austerity and the related funding implications, providing an ideal platform to share knowledge and discuss best practice, whilst debating policy and strategy with those at the forefront of delivery.