By Andy Nolan, Director of Sustainability

The University of Nottingham is a world leader in sustainable development and has been recognised for its activities in this area by winning numerous awards. Like many other Higher Education Institutions it is expanding to accommodate world leading research and the increasing student demand for quality learning environments. This growth leads to higher energy consumption and emphasises the importance of effective carbon management.

A limited team capacity combined with a desire to refresh their Carbon Management Plan saw the University of Nottingham commission Carbon Credentials to develop a better understanding of the opportunities and risks in delivering a successful CMP for 2020 and beyond.

Phase 1- CMP Diagnostic

Carbon Credentials used a desk based analysis of data, consultations and a workshop with internal stakeholders to gain a deep level understanding of the current situation. The CMP Diagnostic highlighted a number of areas that are vital for successful CMP implementation, with the most immediate being the confirmation of the emissions scope of the CMP and the development of a CMP Financial Strategy and Investment Plan.

Phase 2- Building the CMP

Following the results of the CMP diagnostic, the University of Nottingham commissioned two work streams to assist the University in the fresh of their CMP:

• GHG Discovery – Identifying which Scope 3 emissions should be included in the CMP
• CMP Financial Planning – Identifying the carbon saving measures required to achieve the targets, establishing the potential capex and savings for these and exploring the market of installer and internal/ external funding options available for this work

Working with Carbon Credentials provided us with an invaluable detailed 3rd party review of our current approaches, enabling us to gain a clearer understanding of opportunities but also the risks we were exposed to by not taking further action. These included:

• Previous CMP solely focused on Scope 1 & 2 emissions
• Enabling us to make carbon management efforts more accessible for all stakeholders
• Effective stakeholder engagement and communications will has enabled the University of Nottingham to drive a change in management practice and culture

We were able to access their high quality, data-led technical, financial and industry experience in order to create the ideal roadmap for developing the pipeline of projects we need to deliver our long term carbon targets. The strategic work that Carbon Credentials has done will enable us to quickly and efficiently move forward into the delivery of carbon reduction projects.

“I would wholeheartedly recommended Carbon Credentials to any organisation looking to deliver ambitious carbon saving objectives.”