Wednesday 8 July 2020

Building Back Better ‘must involve green incentives, a local focus and more diversity’

Building Back Better must involve green incentives, a local focus and more diversity.

That's the suggestion from global sustainability organisation IEMA, which has voiced its support to the Chancellor in securing a sustainable future as the UK recovers from the coronavirus crisis - many of the group's Fellows, who are sustainability decision-makers from across academia, business and the public sector, have advised the government on a number of steps through which this could be achieved.

They stress government support for industry must be made contingent on ambitious targets to achieve net zero carbon and say policies must bolster green finance initiatives to care for "pounds, people and planet".

The Fellows also call for retraining workers in 'sunset industries' such as oil and gas exploration to be retrained in jobs of the future to ensure a just transition and urge the government to encourage flexible and mixed-use buildings when regenerating town centres in order to increase resilience to future shocks and transitions

IEMA Chief Executive, Sarah Mukherjee, said: "COVID-19 has taken a terrible toll, in terms of human life and business. But it has also shown us how the public and private sectors can collaborate – for example on vaccines or ventilators – at a speed we would previously have thought unimaginable.

"We have an opportunity to create jobs and wealth, support retraining and reduce inequality. As a person of colour, I am all too well aware that the environment sector needs to work hard to better reflect modern Britain. We at IEMA will be playing our part."