News

What is ‘COP’?  COP stands for Conference of the Parties – and it is the annual United Nations Climate Change Conference, now in it’s 28th year. The ‘parties’ are the original countries which signed up to the UN Climate change treaty in 1994. . The president of this year’s COP, which begins on 30 November in Dubai  is Sultan Al Jaber, who is the president of the state oil company of the United Arab Emirates – a highly controversial choice.  Over the years there have been numerous targets, agreements, hopes and disappointments at different COPs.   The Paris agreement in [...]

And we're winners! We were very proud indeed to receive not one, but three awards on Friday night at the Community Energy England awards in Salford. We took home the Community Energy Organisation of the Year (large) award and the Climate and Environmental Impact award. We were also highly commended for the Fuel Poverty Action award. The awards are recognition of the work, passion and dedication of all of the team here at CAfS, and acknowledge the breadth of work that we do. Our projects from our Cold to Cosy Homes, through to our Solar Made Easy work to make [...]

Monday 4 December sees the world's largest climate education-and-action training event - Carbon Literacy Action Day - and we are very proud to be playing our part! Carbon Literacy Action Day (CLAD) is led by the Carbon Literacy Project and coincides with the UN Climate Change Conference; COP 28. And whilst world leaders gather in Dubai, Carbon Literacy learners everywhere will undergo training that educates and inspires them to take meaningful action on climate change. It offers an opportunity for as many learners as possible from organisations, sectors, backgrounds and nations all around the world, to complete their Carbon Literacy [...]

Brilliant news this week: we are finalists in three categories of the Community Energy England Awards this year. We're shortlisted for the Climate & Environmental Impact, the Community Energy Organisation of the Year and Fuel Poverty Action.  The Community Energy Awards is an annual event that recognises and celebrates outstanding achievements in community energy. This ceremony brings together individuals, organisations, and initiatives that are making significant contributions to the advancement of sustainable and locally-driven energy solutions. This year's ceremony, supported by Electricity North West, will take place in Manchester on Friday 17 November, 6-10pm. Karen Mitchell, our CEO explains what the shortlisting [...]

CAfS and several industry partners are delighted to have received a significant funding boost of £571,359 to establish a pioneering business decarbonisation hub. The initiative, set to exclusively support the Westmorland & Furness area, is funded by the UK Shared Prosperity Fund and aims to bolster the sustainability efforts of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), charities, community businesses, and social enterprises. Up to 300 local organisations looking to reduce their carbon footprint and save costs will be able to benefit from a range of free and subsidised services, a comprehensive ‘one stop shop’ of carbon reduction support. The services available [...]

Marjolein Thickett comes on board this October to work as a freelance language advisor, editor/proofreader and subtitler for Cumbria Action for Sustainability. Marjolein runs The Native Crowd from the South Lakes, where she lives. In her business, she collaborates with smart and creative individuals and organisations to safeguard our world and promote a healthy and ethical lifestyle. The Native Crowd works with businesses that work in and on the environment, specifically in sports and sustainability. As part of her company’s commitment to the environment, Marjolein has chosen to volunteer her expertise to CAfS each month. She will be collaborating with [...]

CAFS staff and volunteers heard a talk from Joe Human this week about the growing crisis for the coffee industry suffering because of the impact of climate change. The enlightening talk went through the journey of coffee and the stories of coffee farmers that Joe, who has worked with coffee farmers for over 15 years, has visited. With over 2bn cups of coffee drunk worldwide every year the impact of climate change on coffee growing countries, such as the increase in annual temperatures and the decrease in rainfall cannot be underestimated. In Ethopia, farmers have reported weather patterns becoming more [...]

We're really excited to announce, along with our Zero Carbon Cumbria partners,  that we are are launching a new online chat to explore challenges, barriers, opportunities and solutions in response to the climate crisis. The informal events will be a conversation style; guest speakers with a wide range of experience and experts who can answer questions. And at just half an hour long they will be easy to catch up with in your break. Each Climate Cafe will have it's own theme, and they will be recorded to listen to or watch at a later date. Nigel Jenkins, Zero Carbon [...]