President update 1st February - latest news from ADEPT
Well, the start to 2023 has certainly been busy for ADEPT!
A particular highlight for me has been the official launch of Live Labs 2. Kicking off with an internal event on 19th January, the teams – seven Live Labs collaborating across four interconnected themes – were able to meet for the first time. This is an exciting phase and I am really looking forward to seeing how the project progresses. You can read the press release for more information.
I am also proud to announce that we published our ‘Value of Trees’ toolkit on 18th January. This important piece of work, sponsored by Rees Jeffreys Road Fund, provides local authorities with specific guidance on tree planting, including information on species selection and maintenance. For further information you can read the press release and download the toolkit.
As I have mentioned before, ADEPT is an integral member of the Blueprint Coalition, an influential group of local government organisations, environmental groups and research institutions. The coalition responded to the publication of the Skidmore Review, highlighting that councils are keen to be part of the 'Big Bang moment for net zero' that Skidmore demands, but with a decade of funding cuts to council budgets, there must be both investment from government and the freedom to raise money locally. You can read our full response here. In addition to our work with the Blueprint Coalition, we are currently setting up a Climate Change Board, which will ensure the climate change agenda is embedded throughout all our other boards and topics. Watch this space for further information!
I also wanted to let you know that we have commissioned a specialist research organisation, Shared Intelligence, to conduct research into ADEPT member engagement. We want to understand more about what works as well as what the barriers might be, so that we can continue to develop the organisation. Shared Intelligence will be conducting interviews over the next few weeks and presenting their findings at the ADEPT AGM on 25th May.
Events and other news
January’s Lunch and Learn was another well attended session, focusing on the role of highway condition data in carbon management. The session slides are available here. The next Lunch & Learn session (24th Feb) will be hosted by Burges Salmon. Places for are free to ADEPT members – you can find further information and register here. We are also hosting a County Deals workshop on 3rd February – please find further information and details about how to register here.
Our training offer continues to grow. We have introduced a training event for senior leaders who are considering stepping down from their role to embark on a new stage in their careers. Navigating Transition will be held in Birmingham on 10th March. For more information, please see the workshop programme or email: [email protected]
Following positive feedback we received for the ADEPT / CIPFA green finance training day we ran last November, we are planning a future session on 25th April. The details and booking information are on the ADEPT website.
Finally, the ADEPT Spring Conference and Awards Dinner will take place on Thursday 25th May. This year’s conference theme will be ‘Resilience’ viewed through the lens of People, Place & Planet (my Presidential priorities), and a new ‘Special Recognition Award’ will be presented at the dinner. The awards acknowledge the work of ADEPT members and partners across the country, and I would like to encourage you to enter. Further details about the conference are on the website.
Blogs
We begin our 2023 Climate Change blogs with an overview of ADEPT’s work in 2022 and a look forward to some of our priorities for 2023. ADEPT Policy Officer, David Dale, looks at how ADEPT has been setting policies, engaging with government and supporting members with tools and resources: find out more here.
We have also published our first Live Labs 2 blog. Neil Gibson, Chair of the Live Labs 2 Commissioning Board, introduces Live Labs 2 and the seven winning projects working across four exciting new collaborations. You can read the Live Labs 2 blog here.
As ever, you can find out more about ADEPT’s latest news, publications and the work of our boards and groups on the ADEPT website.