Taking sustainable consumption and production forward in the regions
Promoting Sustainable Consumption and Production (SCP) is now one of five strategic priorities for DEFRA in and is a major theme in Securing the Future, the UK Government’s strategy for promoting Sustainable Development published in April 2005. DEFRA also published a set of indicators for assessing progress towards SCP in April 2005. The Regions are being increasingly called on by central government to provide strategic added value to the delivery of programmes to promote (SCP), and particularly to the delivery of the Business Resource Efficiency and Waste (BREW) programme.
Regions have also taken the initiative in a range of areas, including developing energy and waste strategies including setting targets for reducing environmental pressures, methods for sustainability appraisal such as the ecological footprint, and developing intelligence through the Regional Observatories. Regions have the potential through their location and links to provide strategic added value and take the initiative on this agenda, but they also need increased analytical capacity if they are to fulfil this potential and develop evidence-based policy and scrutiny. The recently formed SCPNet (Sustainable Production and Consumption Network) will develop and support the use of tools, data and analysis to influence regional decision making in a positive, practical and effective way.
© WWF-Canon / Adam OSWELLEcological Budget UK provides an ideal evidence base and opportunity to take work in this area forward in the regions building on existing work and networks. Many of the key issues are explored in each of the separate regional and devolved administrations sections that follow, using material flow analysis, the Ecological Footprint and CO2 emissions indicators and showing potential application of the REAP tool.
Regional Footprint Briefing
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If you are involved with policy setting at the regional or local level, the Regional Footprint Briefing document outlines how the Ecological Budget Project contributes to regional and local strategies through WWF's Ecological Footprint Programme. Please download our “Regional Footprint Briefing” for further information.
As stated in the Audit Commission Quality of Life Report, this site will launch freely available Ecological Footprint results for every Local Authority in the UK including Footprint data, information and support materials. It will include all local authority footprint results for the UK and advice on how local authorities can use this information in their work. This information will be available in Summer 2006.
If you would like to receive this information when it is launched, please register your interest by contacting the Footprint team via our online form;
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