Manchester's Green Dream

DREAMING of a low carbon future for Manchester?  

If you’re keen to discuss practical actions for building a greener tomorrow in our city, you can attend the second annual climate change conference, Manchester: A Certain Future, which will take place on 16 March.

Scheduled to coincide with National Climate Week, the free half-day event will be held in the Pennine Suite of Manchester Metropolitan University’s All Saints Campus, Oxford Road, from 12:30-5:30pm. 

The plan, which outlines actions to take until 2020, forms the starting point for bringing about radical changes which by 2050 would make large-scale emissions of CO2 in Manchester a thing of the past.  

The theme of this year’s conference is ‘behaviour change’, focusing on changing the way we live, move, grow and work in our city and how we adapt to our changing climate. 

Further aims include strengthening and accelerating action through building networks, extending relationships and sharing learning of what works.  

Workshops will be offered on: vision, culture, knowledge, environment related to behavior and incentives, and community.  Further satellite events will be held by partners and stakeholders – these are being planned for the run-up to climate change week.

Manchester has the potential to be a low carbon economy, says conference organisers, and they have set out an action plan for homeowners, community groups, businesses or public agencies to participate in.

The plan, which outlines actions to take until 2020, forms the starting point for bringing about radical changes which by 2050 would make large-scale emissions of CO2 in Manchester a thing of the past.  

Conference organisers hope to attract a diverse audience and welcome not only researchers and members of climate change action groups, but also hope to involve members of the business community, residents associations, schools and anyone who is interested. 

 “We would really like to reach out to the people who aren’t the usual suspects,” said Steve Connor, chair of the climate change steering group. “We would like to see as diverse a range of people as possible.”

Places for the conference are limited and will doled out on a first come, first served basis. Interested persons should click here to register.