NHS LPP has announced that it has been accredited as the first NHS Silver Carbon Literate Organisation by the UN recognised Carbon Literacy Project, highlighting the organisation's dedication towards tackling climate change, reducing its organisational carbon emissions, and its commitment to working towards a zero carbon future.
This prestigious accreditation recognises NHS LPP’s commitment to upskill people, to play a proactive role in reducing organisational carbon emissions and work towards a zero carbon future.
Carbon Literacy is defined as, “An awareness of the carbon dioxide costs and impacts of everyday activities, and the ability and motivation to reduce emissions, on an individual, community and organisational basis,” and revolves around a day’s worth of learning and action on climate change.
Their Carbon Literacy training programme is being delivered by Sarah Corbo, Social Value Training Manager, Simon Rowland, Sustainability Manager, and Conor Moore, Category Manager. To become accredited as a Silver Carbon Literate Organisation, 50 per cent of staff from across almost all departments were trained in Carbon Literacy.
Simon said: “Becoming a Carbon Literate Organisation is a brilliant example of NHS LPP’s commitment to sustainability, which is at the heart of everything we do. Thanks to the training, our teams are committing to each reduce their carbon impact at work and at home. This has given our staff the knowledge to provide better support through our procurement activities and to our members’ net zero ambitions. We’ve also seen it generate greater engagement with our internal sustainability efforts, with employees making sustainable swaps and running campaigns such as litter picks, Meat Free Mondays and a clothes swap.”
A Carbon Literate Organisation is an organisation that has been accredited by The Carbon Literacy Project as being “culturally Carbon Literate”; maintaining a substantial proportion of its workforce as Carbon Literate and demonstrating its Carbon Literacy through its organisational behaviour. CLO accreditation is a tiered system with Bronze, Silver, Gold, and Platinum levels, requiring increasing levels of commitment to action on climate change and creating a low-carbon culture.
The training has also inspired further interest in the staff sustainability group, Greener LPP, with sessions including sustainable use of AI gaining significant interest.
Being accredited as a Silver Carbon Literate Organisation is an important achievement, enabling NHS LPP to drive faster action on NHS climate change targets and sets a positive example of sustainability leadership in procurement.
Dave Coleman, Co-Founder and Managing Director of The Carbon Literacy Project, said: “Carbon Literacy is an essential skill, vital to every workplace, community, and place of study. It is the foundational knowledge, and a catalyst to empowering people to act on climate, however, Carbon Literacy is only the first step. The actions taken and pledged by learners as part of their Carbon Literacy have an immediate impact within their organisation, however it is the maintenance of these and further actions, supported by Carbon Literate organisational culture, that reaps the greatest rewards for both participants and their organisations. By becoming a Silver accredited Carbon Literate Organisation, NHS LPP has demonstrated its commitment to genuine low carbon action, environmental and economic impact, and the building of a low carbon future for us all.”
Date: 10 December