11 April 2007
City of London takes its green agenda global - and acts local
on climate change
Lord Mayor John Stuttard today (11 April) launched a global
campaign to share the City of London's lead in carbon emissions
trading and investment analysis with other countries - and revealed
pioneering proposals for the Square Mile's own green agenda.
Lord Mayor John Stuttard, who spends 90 days a year leading City
business delegations abroad and works closely with UKTI and others
promoting UK-based financial services, said:
"The City of London 's ten-year lead in carbon emissions trading
and its recent
co-sponsorship of the new London Accord investment analysis
project shows why there is strong demand from foreign centres for
expertise. Climate-change issues will now form a key plank of the
visits we make to 20 or more countries a year."
Lord Mayor Stuttard, who will visit a large-scale
"clean-development" project in China on his next visit later this
month, trialled the approach on last month's visit to Russia .
The City of London Corporation is currently examining plans to
build on its existing pioneering status by getting City firms to
reduce their carbon footprint. The City Corporation has already
reduced its own emissions footprint by 35% against 1997 levels and
was until recently the largest single buyer of renewable-energy
electricity.
All City of London Corporation overseas travel, including the
Lord Mayor's extensive travel on behalf of the financial services
industry, is carbon neutral, as is the annual Lord Mayor's
Show.
The City of London Corporation has also set out a detailed plan
to "climate-proof" the City through to the 2080s, whatever
happens.
Lord Mayor John Stuttard said: “ London has become the world’s
leading centre of international financial services by constant
innovation and we have consistently pioneered work in this field.
Sharing our expertise with other financial hubs brings benefit to
all parties. If one thing is more global than financial services it
is the environment; we may live and work on different continents
but we only prosper if we work together on these issues.”
Ends
Notes
1.
Climate adaptation strategy
2.
London Accord
3. In 2001, the City of London Corporation stated "believe
it (climate change) is the most serious threat facing the world’s
environment, with significant impacts on the world's social and
economic well being"
4. All streetlighting, the Guildhall offices, New Spitalfields
Market, the City of London Freeman ’s School, the Central Criminal
Court (including the Old Bailey), the City of London Girls School,
Tower Bridge , Billingsgate Fish Market, Mansion House and the
London Metropolitan Archives are all on 100% renewable energy
contracts.
5. All greenhouse gas emissions from the Lord Mayor’s travel,
elected members’ travel and staff travel have been offset for the
last five years and Lord Mayor’s Show is carbon neutral.
6. The Sustainable City Awards, established by the City of
London Corporation in 2001 were the first national green business
awards scheme to address the issue of climate change and the City
Corporation was one of the founders of the London Climate Change
Agency.
7. The City of London Corporation is the first UK “local
authority”, and one of the only urban areas in the world to have
produced a dedicated Climate Change Adaptation Strategy which looks
at how infrastructure and services will have to adapt in the face
of the inevitable consequences of climate change over the short,
medium and long term.
8. City of London Corporation: The City of London Corporation is
committed to maintaining and enhancing the status of the wealth and
tax-generating business of the City as the world's leading
international financial and business centre through its policies
and services. Examples are the extensive overseas business missions
headed by the Lord Mayor on behalf of UK-based financial services
and the wide-ranging economic development, research and
regeneration effort the City of London Corporation undertakes
across London . It also runs the City Office in Brussels on behalf
of the City and City Representations in Beijing , Shenzhen and
Shanghai – and a City Office in Mumbai. Although the City of London
Corporation provides local government services for the City, the
financial and commercial heart of Britain, its responsibilities
also extend far beyond the City boundaries and include management
of the Barbican Centre, Central Criminal Court at the Old Bailey,
Epping Forest, Hampstead Heath, three wholesale food markets, as
well as acting as the London Port Health Authority – and running
the Animal Reception Centre at Heathrow.