Facilitated and coordinated by the Bristol-Brussels Office, the council and other organisations, including the University of Bristol, are taking part in events in Brussels as part of the biggest annual conference on European environmental policy, this year with the theme of Green Cities for a Greener Future.
The conference is showcasing policy developments on a range of topics and best practice from across Europe in creating sustainable urban futures.
Professor Rich Pancost, Director of the University of Bristol’s Cabot Institute, is part of the delegation from Bristol attending the conference.
He said: “It is a pleasure representing Bristol at EU Green Week. The University and the Cabot Institute are committed to global, national and of course Bristol sustainability, and this event allows us to share what we have learned as well as to learn from our peers from across Europe.
"We are keen to share the story of the Green and Black Ambassadors, a partnership including Ujima Radio and the Bristol Green Capital Partnership which illustrates the importance of inclusion, diversity and equality in the environmental movement - but also how rewarding such initiatives can be.”
Cllr Kye Dudd, Bristol City Council’s Cabinet Member for Energy, will be leading a Bristol delegation and speaking at a session on air quality to explore the work to reduce air pollution in Bristol and the challenges the city faces.
Bristol is raising its ambitions around finding sustainable solutions and recently launched the new City Leap prospectus, which is a series of energy and infrastructure investment opportunities available to local, national and international businesses to help reach the city’s goal of becoming carbon neutral by 2050.
Cllr Dudd will be sharing the platform with the EU-funded ClairCity project, which recently launched the ClairCity Skylines game app in partnership with the council and the University of the West of England. The game challenges players to run Bristol and build a clean air future for the city.
Cllr Dudd said: “EU Green Week is a great opportunity for Bristol to share the important work underway to improve our environment. We know that air pollution in Bristol is at unacceptable levels and it is essential that we collaborate and share ideas with other European cities to tackle this and other sustainability issues.
“There are so many fantastic projects taking place in Bristol on both a large and local scale, from work to attract international investors involved with our City Leap prospectus to the collection of local views via projects like the ClairCity Skyline game app.
“The opportunity to present our work with city partners at prestigious events like this will help to develop our policies as part of our ambition to become carbon neutral by 2050.”
Opening in Utrecht and closing in Madrid, most of the week’s events will take place in Brussels, with the Bristol delegation visiting 22-24 May.
Bristol will also be represented by Ian Townsend, Chief Executive of Bristol Green Capital Partnership, who will speak at a conference session alongside other European Green Capital winners, co-organised by the Bristol-Brussels Office, about Bristol’s partnership approach to the European Green Capital 2015 legacy and the long-term impacts the award has had on the city.
Ian Townsend said: “It is great to be part of a strong delegation of Bristol Green Capital Partnership members, sharing our environmental sustainability story and learnings with our European counterparts, with members back in Bristol getting involved in EU Green Week too.”
The Bristol delegation also includes Savita Willmott, Chief Executive of the Bristol Natural History Consortium, and Alastair Callum, ClairCity Game Designer from UWE Bristol, who are taking part in events on citizen engagement, science and innovative tools for engagement.
In addition, the Bristol-Brussels Office will host an event with the delegation on Bristol’s activities as a sustainable city. It will bring together the ‘Bristol in Brussels Network’ of Brussels-based alumni and key contacts, which meets regularly and reinforces their role as informal city ambassadors.
At the same time, local businesses, including Stride Treglown and Burges Salmon, will be running programmes of activities alongside EU Green Week, while the Big Green Week is running again this year in Bristol to encourage personal behavioural change from citizens.