News and Events

Helping to make Greater Manchester a world-leading Green City Region is our priority. Our environment underpins all aspects of our daily lives. We face urgent and significant challenges presented by a changing climate that require us all to take action now if we are to achieve our goal of carbon-neutrality by 2038.

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Schools Climate Action Planner logo
Schools
Published: 24/01/2022
News
Schools Climate Action Planner

NEW Schools Climate Action Planner, providing a free, online and easy-to-use action planning tool for teachers and students to help schools reduce their climate impact through practical steps.

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Andy Burnham speaking on the main stage at the Greater Manchester Green Summit 2021
Green Summit 2021
Published: 27/10/2021
Blog
Blog: A review of the Greater Manchester Green Summit 2021

Back in person at the Lowry, Salford Quays, the fourth Greater Manchester Green Summit welcomed over 850 attendees and exhibitors.

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Image of a bird box on a living wall
Natural Environment
Published: 20/10/2021
News
IGNITION Hackathon

The IGNITION team are inviting university students, schools and youth groups to take part in a free-to-attend, in-person hackathon event to mark COP26.

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Image of Green Bee with caption Bee Net Zero
Zero Carbon Business
Published: 20/10/2021
News
Bee Net Zero

Greater Manchester launches bid to become easiest place in the UK to be a zero carbon business.

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GMCA
Published: 20/08/2021
News
Have your say: Public consultation opens on Places for Everyone joint development plan

Eight-week public consultation begins on 9 August, closing on 3 October. Residents, businesses and local stakeholders asked whether plan meets defined criteria and complies with councils’ duty to cooperate.

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GMCA
Published: 20/08/2021
News
Green light for electric chargers as Greater Manchester’s local energy plan gathers pace

Two hospitals in Greater Manchester have begun a trial of vehicle to grid (V2G) charging points as part of the Greater Manchester Local Energy Market Project (GM LEM).

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Events

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Latest Past Events

COP26 North West Power to the People: Enabling a Smart Energy Transition

Escape to Freight Island Escape to Freight Island, Mayfield Depot, 11 Baring St,, Manchester

Tuesday 9 November 2021 Escape to Freight Island, Mayfield Depot, 11 Baring St, Manchester, M1 2PZ  Main programme 9.30-13.30 Smart talk sessions 13.30 -15.00 The North West has long been […]

Take action…

To make a big change, we must all take small actions. Becoming greener and making an impact is easier than you might think. We have put together a range of blogs, articles, toolkits and checklists to help you make a start.

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I committed to being a cycling Eco-birder 2 years ago and have since clocked up 5000 miles pedalling around the urban jungle of Greater Manchester. Bird Races are great fun on a bike and in Greater Manchester we have ten boroughs that are all a perfect size for an all-day birding and cycling session. I have been birding in the city region for more than 30 years, but I am still discovering new sites on the bike and have found some great birds whilst in the saddle such as osprey, kittiwake, great egret, black-necked grebe, Mediterranean gull, and green sandpiper.

James Walsh @MancunianBirder

Although becoming carbon neutral is important to our organisation, it’s a lot of work for a small team to put the measures into place. The Journey to Net Zero course has given me practical, step-by-step advice that has made it easy for me to lay the foundations for our organisation to be able to take action and achieve our goal of becoming carbon neutral.

 

Kat Mulhall, Victoria Baths Trust, Manchester

I guess I’ve always been what you would call a conscious consumer. I’ve always detested plastic bags, all of my skin care products at home are plastic-free, vegan, and sustainable. My toothbrush is made of bamboo, there’s no plastic anywhere in the house. Everything in the salon has to be vegan – that was the first rule for me. We started with one brand of haircare products that was vegan, organic, and Fairtrade, but the distributor in the UK was wrapping all of the deliveries in plastic, and it felt really needless, so we ditched them.

 

Rachael, Gronn eco-salon in Bury

We think our water fountain is INCREDIBLE, it’s the perfect place for people to ‘refill’ and help themselves to any of the free edibles we’ve got growing in Market Place. We’re so grateful to all the organisations that helped make this happen. Alongside the plastic free motion that was passed by council and helped us achieve our first Surfers Against Sewage objective and in turn our Plastic Free Community status, it shows real commitment in reducing plastic waste and supporting our community.

 

Pete Fillery, Plastic Free Rammy and Incredible Edible Ramsbottom

I’ve not really been a cyclist throughout my life, more of a runner to be honest. And certainly not commuted. But I just thought if I’m going to change, surely now is the moment to change. I’m feeling the personal benefits of doing it. You just feel better when you come into work. It clears your head. There are benefits of cutting congestion, cleaning up the air. Everyone benefits when people cycle.

Andy Burnham, Mayor of Greater Manchester

The Business Growth Hub has given us focus and extra knowledge. They’ve helped us form the base to grow sustainably and work efficiently as a team while making us conscious of our environmental impact as a business.

 

Ollie Birchall, Founder of Nutri Bar

Although becoming carbon neutral is important to our organisation, it’s a lot of work for a small team to put the measures into place. The Journey to Net Zero course has given me practical, step-by-step advice that has made it easy for me to lay the foundations for our organisation to be able to take action and achieve our goal of becoming carbon neutral.

Kat Mulhall, Events Manager at Victoria Baths Trust in Manchester

Kat Mulhall, Events Manager at Victoria Baths Trust in Manchester

We used to think we didn’t have enough time to shop on our local market because we were working; how wrong we were?  We discovered it is an amazing place to shop for plastic free. We swapped tea bags for tea leaves and coffee jars for beans which we buy from The Market Grounds on Ashton Market – well worth a visit as the homemade cakes are delicious. All the stall holders have been amazing, not one of them minds us taking our containers to be filled with meat from the butchers. We get our bread, cheese, fruit and veg from the market too.

Julie from Ashton-under-Lyne

Kat Mulhall, Events Manager at Victoria Baths Trust in Manchester

The reason I signed up to the Green Homes Grant scheme was two-fold, selfishly the measures will add value to the properties and make them more valuable in the future. But more importantly it benefits the tenants, keeping them warmer and prevents problems like damp and condensation. Ultimately measures like external wall insulations should keep tenants happier and ensure they remain in the house for longer.

Neil, Rochdale property owner

The Green Recovery Challenge Fund is providing a further boost to the ambitions of the Great Manchester Wetlands Partnership to create a thriving, inspirational and connected landscape. It supports the recovery of wildlife through habitat creation and improvement as well as community recovery through providing opportunities for local people to develop skills, knowledge and beneficial connections to their local natural environment.

Jo Kennedy, Coordinator of the Great Manchester Wetlands Partnership

The best part of upcycling is that old furniture is often better made than the equivalent flat-packed furniture we get today and with a little bit of time, love and care, you can create a completely unique piece of furniture for your home that no one else will have. I also love that these pieces of furniture have a history of their own and through transforming and updating them we can breathe a new lease of life into them.

Hannah from Tread Softly

Although we set out with a simple mission to reduce plastic waste, we’ve quickly realised that it’s just one piece in the sustainability puzzle. One of the biggest, but most easily attainable actions we can achieve is to look at where our goods come from and reduce the carbon footprint needed to get a product from manufacturer to consumer. Many of the products we stock are made by local, independent manufactures, who provide us with a wide range of things from reusable face wipes, wax food wraps, face coverings, soap bars, plant pots, kitchen cloths/sponges and butty bags.

Carl from Lentils and Lather

Our aim is to start changing the habits of families in Greater Manchester by getting them to ‘borrow’ rather than ‘buy’ brand new toys. We’re making sure that toys can be reused again and again by children who need and want them – and they are not just sitting in a cupboard or under someone’s bed.

Kim from That Toy Thing

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