From time to time, we will meet one of our partners in greater depth. Here, we doff our caps to the lead partner in the project, Suffolk County Council(UK), and Cllr Judy Terry, Portfolio Holder for Greenest County (www.suffolk.gov.uk).
Suffolk County Council committed to the ambition of being the Greenest County in October 2007. ANSWER is now a key part of that ambition, and Suffolk is keen to look abroad to see how they can further benefit their businesses, communities and schools.
Suffolk’s local activities include energy reduction in schools, a charter for businesses, a loan scheme and much more. However, they are aware there is still much more to do, and are always looking for new ways to deliver the Greenest County ambition.
What do you see as the key strength of the ANSWER Project for Suffolk?
Ultimately, it has to be the benefits for our residents, small businesses and schools. The test will be in how much difference is felt on the street. I know that’s a big ask for any one project, but our ambition for the greenest county means everybody playing their part, and that means we have to make sure we’re giving the right support. I’m particularly excited by what we can learn from our European partners – if you look at some of the of the things that are happening in Växjö, or the experience of working with businesses in Belgium, I think there’s a lot we can take of real value for Suffolk.
Tell us about one of your local activities in ANSWER
In March, I was pleased to introduce the launch of the Suffolk Carbon Charter. This Charter allows businesses to show their customers and staff that they are playing their part in Creating the Greenest County, whilst also helping them make savings.
Unlike many available environmental charters, this scheme is aimed primarily at small businesses, and its requirements reflect the business’ size and current circumstances. This means that Carbon Charter accreditation is a realistic goal for any Suffolk business.
What do you think is the area where Suffolk has most to teach our other partners?
I hope we can all learn from each other in lots of ways. I think one thing we have done very well is build up partnerships to support the core aim. ANSWER is actually a good example of this, with most of our initiatives being run jointly by two or more of the local organisations involved. This has helped us to make sure that Greenest County is an ambition we all share, and that we can share the delivery out according to our skills.
And tell us about something you hope to learn
We’re lucky to have some great partners. Vaxjo is known as the Greenest City, so I’m sure our Greenest County ambition can learn from their example! I know we’ve already benefited from looking at our partners’ successes. This has helped us to make sure we improve our services in Suffolk, influencing everything from the Charter to our awards, to Suffolk Chamber’s Energywise and our work with schools. I hope this process continues because it is vital that we all work together to make sure we create the right response.
What do you think is the biggest challenge in asking people to change their behaviour in response to climate change?
In the economic climate we have, it can be hard to ask people to commit money for something that gets seen as an additional responsibility. I think that ties in with the issue of how we can persuade people that their actions can have a real impact. If we’re going to ask for extra commitment, we need to be able to demonstrate the benefits. ANSWER's business advice service stresses the financial benefits (identifying an average £3,500 savings per business per year), but we still need to work on making the case stronger.
And finally, tell us something we won’t know about Suffolk
Ipswich - the county town of Suffolk - is the oldest continuously settled Anglo-Saxon town in England, going back nearly 1500 years!
Thank you, and keep up the good work!