#LeedsActsTogether
Leeds Climate Commission is running a campaign to encourage organisations to share their climate commitments and to inspire everyone in Leeds to take action.
The #LeedsActsTogether campaign aims to inform, educate and inspire climate action across the city to make Leeds a better place to live.
By demonstrating their practical commitments to tackling climate change, organisations can lead the way and help to achieve a healthier, fairer, more sustainable future for everyone in Leeds that respects the wellbeing of others and protects ecosystems worldwide.
The challenge
We know that people in Leeds are concerned about climate change.
In 2019, Leeds declared a climate emergency and more than nine out of ten respondents to the Big Leeds Climate Conversation said they are worried about biodiversity loss and extreme weather events. They also said they cared about the impact of climate change on future generations, but when it came to taking action, many didn’t know where to start.
This need for more information, education and inspiration on how to reduce our collective carbon footprint as a city was recognised by the Leeds Climate Change Citizens’ Jury, which was made up of a representative sample of people in Leeds. One of their key recommendations was that organisations should come together for a large-scale communications drive to help with this – and that is what we will be doing starting in May 2021.
We need Leeds' organsations and businesses to come on board to help us achieve this. Almost all respondents to the Big Leeds Climate Conversation believed that public sector organisations (96.8%) and businesses (96.7%) have a responsibility not just to reduce their own carbon footprint, but to make it easier for individuals to make more environmentally friendly choices.
This is our chance to act together and help everyone in Leeds do their bit to reach the city's ambitious climate target of net-zero emissions by 2030.
Leeds Acts Together campaign
We are inviting your organisation to join us in showing how Leeds can act together. And with climate action in Leeds about to become the focus of national BBC radio coverage, it’s the perfect opportunity for us as a city to get our message out there.
From May, BBC Radio 5 Live will be in Leeds looking at the range of climate action going on in a strand called Leeds: City on a Mission. The Leeds Climate Commission would like to start a large communications campaign, “Leeds Acts Together”, to showcase the immediate benefits of tackling climate change - not just for the environment, but for all of us as we go about our daily lives.
This is an opportunity for Leeds’ organisations to unite in their commitments to tackling climate change, and to demonstrate some of the fantastic work that we’re all doing. We want to be a city that leads by example in taking action against climate change, but this can only be achieved with the support and collective action of institutions and organisations working together in partnership.
How to get involved
We would like organisations to share posts on their social media channels about what they are doing to tackle climate change. Feel free to use Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram - even TikTok if that's your thing.
Below is a template format to follow, using the shared hashtag #LeedsActsTogether
Sign up here for campaign updates to receive the latest information about Leeds Acts Together.
When to post
This will be a rolling monthly campaign, to coincide with BBC Radio 5 Live’s coverage of Leeds, but it is separate from their coverage. It will begin on Monday 24th May and will run until at least November, when the UN holds its climate conference, COP26.
For each month, the Leeds Climate Commission invites you to post on social media either on the day of the BBC Radio 5 Live coverage, or any day(s) of that week. There will be a theme for each month, and we will update this page to include information on these.
The focus for May is on Leeds’ identity: its past and, crucially, its future. What does being a carbon neutral city mean? What will it look and feel like? What will be different from now? And how will your organisation help Leeds to get there?
Template for social media posts
We suggest using the template below as a guide:
Leeds has/is (add statement of fact about Leeds' past or present)
Leeds can become (insert your vision - perhaps a co-benefit of tackling climate change)
We’re playing our part by doing (insert actions here)
#LeedsActsTogether
Feel free to insert a URL to your website for more info if you would like to.
I was pleased to create the visuals below to give this campaign an identity, and help spread the #LeedsActsTogether campaign message. You are free to download them and use them to promote the campaign!
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