A new translational research centre to help decarbonise organisations across South Yorkshire has been announced.
The South Yorkshire Sustainability Centre, announced by South Yorkshire Mayor Dan Jarvis, will bring together researchers, businesses and organisations across the region to co-design solutions to regional and global sustainability challenges and work towards net zero emissions by 2050.
The South Yorkshire Sustainability Centre is led by the University of Sheffield through a partnership that includes the South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority, the four South Yorkshire local authorities, Sheffield Hallam University, and a range of private and voluntary sector organisations.
Projects that will be coordinated by the Centre include the optimisation and decarbonisation of transport routes, retrofitting housing stock, decarbonising the agri-food sector and heavy industry, and restoring the region’s natural environments and assets.
Announcing the South Yorkshire Sustainability Centre at the South Yorkshire Economic Summit, South Yorkshire Mayor Dan Jarvis said: “South Yorkshire is the heartland of innovation and we are harnessing these credentials to tackle the biggest challenge facing our generation: the climate emergency and the need to drastically reduce carbon emissions.
“I’ve made it my mission to create a stronger, greener, fairer South Yorkshire economy and our investment in the Sustainability Centre will catalyse our region’s plan to reach net zero emissions by 2040, unlock good green jobs and grow and attract new businesses and investment.”
The South Yorkshire Sustainability Centre has recently received £5 million of funding from Research England. It will be delivered by a network of academics working closely with the region’s established business and industrial capabilities.
President and Vice-Chancellor of the University of Sheffield, Professor Koen Lamberts, said: “The drive towards reaching net zero emissions is more important than ever. While there is a lot of available academic evidence around sustainability, it can sometimes be challenging for businesses to apply it to meet their own individual opportunities and challenges.
“This new centre will provide a wealth of information and support for companies in South Yorkshire who want to decarbonise. It is collaborative in its approach, but has been designed to move at pace and it will be flexible to the region’s ever changing environmental landscape.”
Centre director, Professor Rachael Rothman, said: “The South Yorkshire Sustainability Centre will bring together academic expertise from across Sheffield’s two universities to address specific regional challenges. It is important to look at sustainability challenges holistically; ensuring that in our urgent drive to reduce emissions we are also considering the economic and social impact, and opportunities, of the solutions we propose.
“We are looking forward to working with organisations of all sizes to assess the opportunities to work together to decarbonise for the future. While we have identified initial projects for the centre, we also have some funding for future projects and we are keen to hear from organisations that would like to work with us to co-design solutions to regional sustainability challenges.”
