Our approach
Mitigation and adaptation
To respond to climate change, we need to:
- reduce emissions to prevent the worst effects of climate change - known as mitigation
- prepare for the impacts which are likely to happen - known as adaptation
How we go about mitigating and adapting to climate change is based on understanding our role and influence as a council.
On average, local authorities and their activities are directly responsible for around 2% of UK emissions but can influence a further 33% through their place shaping powers. We are focusing our mitigation actions on the emissions within our direct control or within our influence.
We need to prepare our organisation, people, services, and assets to be resilient to the impacts of climate change, like flooding and heatwaves. We can use our place shaping powers as a council to help prepare the city for these impacts.
We provide leadership in bringing people and organisations together to help tackle mitigation and adaptation challenges which lie outside of our direct control or influence.
Our approaches to adapting to and mitigating climate change cross over 3 categories.
| Direct action | Place shaping | Partnerships and engagement |
|---|---|---|
| Activities to reduce the council’s own emissions and improve resilience to climate change. | Using the council’s place shaping powers to lower the city’s emissions and build resilience. | Working with other stakeholders and residents to reduce city emissions and prepare for climate change. |
A fair transition
Our response to climate change needs to be fair. Our actions should improve access to public transport, quality housing, and green spaces, rather than worsen existing inequalities.
Decisions should be made in an open and transparent way with consideration for how actions impact people and their livelihoods. We must prioritise helping those in our city who are most in need.
| Fair process | Fair to workers | Fair prioritisation |
|---|---|---|
| Developing our climate policy in an open, clear, and fair manner, involving Birmingham’s communities. | Supporting our residents and their livelihoods as we transition to a more sustainable society. |
Ensuring the impacts of climate action are fairly distributed and the most vulnerable protected. |
How we are delivering a fair transition
Fair process
- Openly sharing progress via our Route to Net Zero Annual Reports and through .
- Delivering a programme of communications to share progress on our response to climate change.
- Involving residents in our work and activities as described in the Corporate Vision for Public Participation.
Fair to workers
- Providing grants for re-skilling in green qualifications and decarbonising small and medium-sized enterprises.
- Supporting the housing sector through a partnership with retrofit trainers to upskill built environment professionals in sustainable practices.
- Providing grants to support small and medium-sized businesses to introduce energy saving measures.
Fair prioritisation
- Using the to identify which communities are most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change.
- Improving the climate resilience of Birmingham’s most vulnerable wards through the and .
- Prioritising fuel poor and poorly insulated households through our retrofit programme, and those with limited transport options through our Transport Plan.
Page last updated: 25 October 2024