It comes down to this: we must move from high-carbon/high-waste to net-zero/zero-waste.
Carin Charlton, Net Zero Lead (Director of Capital, estates and facilities management)
A responsible consumer
The sustainable alternative to high-carbon/high-waste consumption is a constantly revolving system of renewal where fossil fuels are rapidly replaced and everything that must be thrown-away is carefully and consistently fed directly back into the supply chain at the highest value possible.
This net-zero/zero-waste system is known as a ‘circular economy’. To see CUH’s essential consumer role, click here to see it illustrated on page 12 of our Action 50 Green Plan:
To halve emissions inside ten years and then go on to net-zero in the following fifteen, we must also include actions to rapidly reframe decision-making in relation to what and how we consume - building climate safety and a secure natural environment into every choice we make as a matter of course.
Richard Hales, Energy and sustainability manager
For CUH to become a responsible consumer in this transformation there are some key strategic steps to put in place:
- Drive down the intensity of our energy use (e.g. fewer kilowatt hours per square metre or miles travelled per patient contact) through building design, active travel measures, amended processes and adjusted behaviour. We will also install or directly account for new renewable energy in the process of decarbonising all our building services and travel energy requirements.
- Create value and reduce carbon by directly linking our purchases with repair, reuse and sustainable disposal by design so that as little as possible is wasted or lost.
- Secure staff engagement for the process and provide community leadership across our CUH family and local community. We will work with our local, regional and national partners to share this vision. A renewably powered circular economy can only become a reality where care is integrated, commercial partners are innovative, local authorities are facilitators, and the wider community acknowledges and experiences the benefits.
To find out more about reframing our decision making on the way to becoming a net-zero/zero-waste responsible consumer see Part 2: Learning from experience and mapping a way forward in our Action 50 Green Plan.
Our approach
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