Camden holds first Citizens’ Assembly on the climate crisis

Last night Camden held its first Citizens’ Assembly on the climate crisis. The event was attended by 55 Camden residents representing the diverse demographic profile of the borough. Held at Swiss Cottage Library, the Assembly included a range of expert speakers leading discussions on tackling CO2 emissions at a local and national level.

Professor Mark Maslin, a leading climate scientist from University College London, provided the first evidence to the Assembly. The presentation explained the science behind climate change and shared information with the audience on the extent to global warming. 

This was followed by Chris Dunham from Carbon Descent who explained how carbon dioxide emissions could be reduced further in Camden through significant changes to the way we heat and power buildings in our borough. CO2 emissions have fallen 37 per cent in Camden since 2010 but the council aims to reduce this further.

Throughout the session, assembly members were supported by Involve - a leading public participation organisation - to discuss the evidence in more detail, putting forward questions to the main speakers. These ranged from the extent to which a vegetarian lifestyle could help limit climate change, to how our planning policies could be changed to better support energy conservation.

The next Citizens’ Assembly will take place on 11 July and will consider possible actions to support a low carbon future in Camden. Assembly members will hear evidence from climate activists, community energy groups and leading environmental engineers on how Camden could change.

You can follow updates on the event and links to the presentations here: camden.gov.uk/climate-crisis