Key Achievements

Celebrating 10 years of Sustainability East

Sustainability East started life in 1998 as The Sustainable Development Round Table for the East of England (SDRT East), an independent organisation with representation from a wide range of sectors, to 'bring sustainable development to the heart of policy making in this fast-growing region'. Its aim was to consider important issues for the region which others were not tackling.

Much of the early work focused on natural resource issues. We were the first organisation to identify that water resources were a key concern for the region - an issue which is now being taken seriously alongside other regional infrastructure pressures. We also recognised the potential our region has for generating renewable energy, particularly from wind. Following extensive research and consultation, we were able to promote and adopt the highest regional targets for renewable energy generation by 2010, which the region is on course to achieve.

We were also the first organisation to research and produce an extensive study on adaptation to climate change, recognising that whatever was done to mitigate it, we were in any case going to have to learn to live with some of the consequences . We produced practical guidance for local authorities, businesses and other service providers, and as a spin-off to this research, educational guides were produced for teachers for curriculum key stages 2 and 3.

Other 'firsts' included the production of Toolkit East - on-line sustainability appraisal toolkit, based on the region's sustainable development framework . Since its launch more than 1070 users have registered to use the toolkit; recent uses have included appraisals of the Environment Agency’s draft water resources strategy, a carbon management and waste saving process at Felixstowe docks, the Regional Sports Facilities Strategy, and Local Development Frameworks and Sustainable Community Strategies. Sustainability East also produced the first themed strategy, for the construction sector, addressing this sector as being particularly resource intensive.

Within the last 2 years Sustainability East has used a grant from DEFRA to fund a range of regional initiatives aimed at raising the bar for sustainable working practice amongst local businesses and agencies. As well as assisting with the su ccessful establishment of Waterwise East, the region’s centre of excellence for water efficiency, and supporting the work of the region’s Climate Change Partnership, these projects included:

Carbon modelling

In 2007 we commissioned UK CEED to produce a CO2 emissions inventory of the East of England, delivering 3 scenarios for the reduction of those emissions at 60%, 75 and 90% rates. The work supplied Local Authority colleagues with baseline emission and individual targets to help inform their climate change action plans.

Sustainable coastal management

In 2006/7 our research with CoastNet revealed that the sustainability of the region’s coast was compromised by a complex but poorly coordinated policy framework and largely ineffective management arrangements. The result was confusion at all levels and poor decision-making. The work advocated a new approach to the future configuration of the region’s coasts, to provide a common policy goal, and to ensure fair treatment for all those living and working in the coastal zone.

Informed by this work, Government Office for the East of England (GO-East) set up a regional coastal initiative to enable a range of stakeholders to connect policy and delivery, address common concerns through joined up action, and provide a focus for developing an integrated approach to coastal management. Sustainability East will continue to work with regional partners to deliver this project throughout 2009.

Sustainable Construction

Sustainability East has worked successfully with Sustainable Construction East to help the region’s construction industry to improve its sustainability. We launched a sustainable procurement guide to help small to medium size construction enterprises make smarter, more sustainable choices.

We also sponsored a technical debate on the merits and demerits of heavyweight and lightweight construction techniques in meeting the challenges of climate change and sustainable development. Both the supply and demand sides of the industry were represented. The findings helped to influence regional policy-makers and practitioners on what form of house construction should be promoted in the region.

Embedding sustainability in Local Area Agreements

During 2007, we ran a project to help the region’s local authorities to incorporate sustainable development into their Local Area Agreements (LAAs). We provided constructive feedback to two local authorities on their emerging Sustainable Community Strategies.

We also ran workshops in partnership with GO-East on local sustainability for all county and unitary authorities in the region as well as GO-East Local Area Agreement (LAA) leads. The purpose was to improve skills and knowledge on sustainable development and to demonstrate how it can be embedded into Local Area Agreements.

The workshops comprised an interactive simulation putting delegates in the leader’s shoes of a virtual Local Strategic Partnership and challenging them to design an ideal community by investing public resources across the entire spectrum of sustainable development. Feedback showed that participants developed a better understanding of the interrelationships between the different parts of the community and improved their analytical and decision-making skills. The outcomes from the project were summarised in a report.

Despite the success of Sustainability East over the past 10 years there is no room for complacency. As a region we continue to live beyond our means and there are new challenges we must overcome. Our Strategic Plan 2008-2011 sets out the key threats to the long-term sustainability of the region and outlines the actions Sustainability East will take over the next few years to help address them.

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