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Three years after declaring a Climate Emergency, Wirral Council has received international recognition for its commitment to carbon reduction.
The council has been achieved Bronze status as a Carbon Literate Organisation, awarded by the Carbon Literacy Trust, and becomes the first authority in Merseyside to do so, joining councils such as Stockport, Salford and Warrington.
Carbon literacy is defined as ‘an awareness of the carbon dioxide costs and impacts of everyday activities and the ability to reduce emissions, on an individual, community and organisational basis’.
A Carbon Literate Organisation (CLO), therefore, is an organisation that is making a substantial commitment to carbon literacy. The award is internationally recognised and shows that the Council are prioritising action to tackle the climate crisis.
When Wirral Council declared an Environment and Climate Emergency in 2019 it pledged action to ensure council operations would be net carbon zero by 2030. Since 2019, more than 223 council representative – including elected members, managers and staff have received Carbon Literacy training.
Climate Literacy training is key to help employees understand the council’s ambitions and ensure they have the awareness to make changes in their own roles. It is helping the council to develop and deliver their Climate Emergency Action Plan, targeting the reduction of carbon emissions throughout all service areas.
The Council is now working towards the Silver accreditation which requires more than 15% of employees to be certified as Carbon Literate as well as meeting several other requirements.
