Bright Ideas! Local action for global impact on energy and climate change

Time Topic Speaker

10.00 Welcome and introduction Nick Milton, Practical Action

Fiona Dear, Stop Climate Chaos

10.30 – 12.30 Skills sessions

2 x 50 min. blocks with 10 min. break

How to lobby your MP

How to get local media coverage

What is newsworthy? And how can you

interest editors in your news?

Building local action and partnerships

Martyn Williams, Friends of the

Earth

Andrew Heath, Practical Action

Chris Church, UK Low Carbon

Communities Network

12.30 – 1.15 Lunch

1.15 - 2.00 Q & A session with Justine Greening MP

for Putney and Secretary of State for

International Development (tbc)

Chair - Hilary Gander, Transition

Town Kingston

2.00 - 3.00 Issues briefings/skills practice

50 min. with 10 min. break

The Energy Bill Revolution campaign

Energy efficiency and fuel poverty

Sustainable Energy for All

Why is energy access so important for the

world’s poor? And what progress has the

UN made in its goal of providing universal

energy access for all?

Jenny Holland, UK Association

for the Conservation of Energy

Nick Milton, Practical Action

3.00 – 4.00 Issues briefings/skills practice

50 min. with 10 min. break

Climate change and adaptation

How are poor communities adapting to live

with climate change? And what action is

needed from future UN climate talks?

The green economy

How decisions made now will affect it

Amanda Ross, Practical Action

Alastair Harper, Green Alliance

4.00 Close & drinks reception

Speakers

Hilary Gander is one of the founder members of Transition Town Kingston encouraging and

supporting community-driven sustainability projects. Hilary is also a steering group member of

Campaign against Climate Change where over the last 10 years she has been part of coordinating

the annual National Climate March and other campaigns to lobby government. Hilary is passionate

about effective communications and in 2006 founded Level Vision, a consultancy which coaches and

trains individuals and companies about powerful communications in business and in life.

Nicholas Milton is the energy campaigner at Practical Action where he works on the UNs

Sustainable Energy for All global initiative and the issue of smoke from indoor fires used for cooking

which kills more people than malaria. He is also campaigning to make energy one of the UN’s

Sustainable Development Goals post-2015. He has previously worked for the RSPB and Greenpeace

where he worked on reform of the Common Agricultural Policy and climate change. Nick is a

freelance journalist who writes for the Guardian newspaper.

Chris Church chairs the UK Low Carbon Communities Network and is a Director of community-

interest company ‘Mapping for Change’ based at University College London and is a member of the

London Sustainable Development Commission. Chris also runs training courses for Talk Action and

others on communicating climate change and renewable energy issues.

Jenny Holland is Head of the Parliamentary Team at the Association for the Conservation of Energy.

In over a decade in the role, she has overseen a number of high profile campaigns that have led to

major changes in the law on energy efficiency. These have included a number of Private Members’

Bills and, in recent years, key amendments to the Energy Act 2011, including the introduction of a

minimum energy efficiency standard in the private rented sector. A Cambridge graduate and

qualified solicitor, she has worked in the political arena for sixteen years, including stints working in

both the European and Westminster Parliaments. She also has extensive experience of running

community and election campaigns.

Away from ACE, Jenny does occasional work as a freelance Parliamentary Consultant, specialising in

sustainable energy issues. An Essex County Councillor from 2001 till 2009, she retains strong links

with the East of England, where she serves on two regional advisory bodies – Sustainability East, a

sustainable development think-tank, and Sustainable Built Environment East, championing low

carbon solutions in the built environment.

Alastair Harper joined Green Alliance in January 2012 as the senior policy adviser leading Green

Alliance's Political Leadership theme, working with MP on challenges to our environment. He

manages the Climate Leadership Programme for MPs and joint advocacy work with the major green

NGOs. Alastair was previously senior campaigns advisor on energy and climate change at the CBI

where he co-ordinated the business case for tackling climate change, whilst engaging with politicians

and the media to show the need from UK companies for action on emissions. He has also worked in

parliament and as a journalist.