Our story
Climate Action Leeds is an ambitious five-year programme funded by The National Lottery Climate Action Fund providing a platform for people, organisations and communities to come together to take action on climate change, in Leeds and beyond.
Our collective purpose is to help shape a Leeds which is zero carbon, nature-friendly and socially just by the 2030s.
We aim to do this by focusing on mobilising communities, campaign groups and sectors to plan and act together. Over 40 groups in Leeds contributed to planning the project, and it is supported by many more.
The programme is delivered by five key partner organisations, and many more that contribute. The five core delivery partners are: Voluntary Action Leeds, Our Future Leeds/Leeds Love It Share It, Together for Peace, Leeds Tidal and CAG Consultants.
We aim to create a city that can take effective climate action through three strands of work:
- Firstly by creating community hubs; this will facilitate community-led climate action within neighbourhoods.
- The programme is also supporting sector groups and campaigns; this is so they can build capacity and bring together sector groups and campaigns to support community-led climate action.
- Finally, we are enabling city-wide planning and action; informing, empowering, connecting and mobilising communities and acting strategically across the city – a movement of communities.
For us, climate action is about empowerment. Climate Action Leeds supports communities to take action that meets the challenges ahead and is based on local needs. We want communities to be empowered to take action, build alternatives and learn new skills.
The key thing is to 'think big, act small and start now'.
Our advice
We've learnt that there are huge numbers of organisations and groups who want to engage with climate action.
We've learnt that connecting those groups together can be valuable.
We've learnt that it takes time to work effectively across organisations and cultures, and that patience is vital.
We've learnt that enabling and working with communities is essential, as is effective communication and trust.
Our metrics
As a new project, we are still in the process of determining core objectives and measurable targets.
Broadly we'll be linking in with other groups to analyse city-level statistics, to ensure we are helping to move towards a zero-carbon city, a greener city, and a city where social inequalities are being reduced.
