Climate emergency

What is the climate emergency?

Since the 18th century, the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere has increased by more than 40%, mostly caused by human activity like burning fossil fuels. This and other greenhouse gases have contributed to global warming – the world is now over 1ºC warmer than it was at the start of the industrial revolution in 1760.

Rising temperatures, extreme weather

Global warming will create many problems for us, such as rising sea levels and more extreme weather like heatwaves and floods – in recent years we have seen many temperature records being broken, as well as extreme flooding. It will affect food production and water availability in many parts of the world, impacting our lives both directly and indirectly.

In 2015 the Paris Agreement concluded that we need to limit global warming to 1.5ºC, and that any rise above this would have severe impacts.

Islington’s pledge

In November 2020 the council set out its Vision 2030 strategy to reach net zero, which includes plans for buildings, transport, sustainable and affordable energy supply, green economy and planning, and natural environment and waste. The council also signed the UK100 Net Zero pledge, meaning it will work with other councils to draw more support from the government to meet our climate crisis ambitions.

What you can do

The council can only do so much by itself. We need every business and resident of the borough to do their best to reduce carbon emissions, and we can help you do this with initiatives like these:

• Solar Together, a scheme to provide cost-effective solar panel installation
• Ecofurb, helping to make homes and buildings energy efficient and low carbon
• Islington Sustainability Network for businesses who want to reduce their emissions and improve their commitment to the environment 

You can also continue the efforts we are all making already like reducing electricity and gas use, consider transferring to renewable energy, using public transport, walking or riding a bike more often, and recycling and composting your waste. This website contains information on how to reduce carbon emissions in many areas of your life.

Businesses will know that customers want the most sustainable and ecologically-friendly companies they can find, which includes shopping local. Embed green principles into your business and let your local customers know what you’re doing to make the borough - and the world - a cleaner, safer and better place to live.

It’s in all our best interests to play our part and together we can be #NetZeroHeroes.