Advice and support on preparing for climate change

On this page, you’ll find a range of support for voluntary and community organisations (VCOs) on preparing for climate change. There are links to further sources of:

information
advice
training
networking

If you provide support in this area for VCOs or can recommend other services, please get in touch so that we can expand this directory. Contact Kate Damiral, email: kate.damiral@ncvo-vol.org.uk, tel: 020 7520 2540.

Information

The Big Response project case studies feature the experiences of four charities exploring how to prepare for climate change.

The UK Climate Projections website provides information on future climate change related trends in the UK. On the site, you can create maps of likely impacts at a very local level - down to a 25km scale - so individual areas, towns and villages can see what different climate change scenarios will mean for their locality. Training on the tool is available.

The UK Climate Impacts Programme has identified a range of other sources of information on climate change.

Green Alliance has produced a range of reports on ways to develop a sustainable low carbon economy.

The new economics foundation has a range of resources exploring the links between climate change and social justice in the UK and ways to prepare for a low carbon future.

The Economic and Social Research Council's Climate change and social justice in the UK seminar report summarises a range of considerations for policy makers and service deliverers about how to ensure an equitable response to climate-related change in this country.

For an easy introduction to climate change, try the Oxfam climate challenge quiz or the UK government site Act on CO2.

Advice

The Charity Commission's Going Green: charities and environmental responsibility gives an overview of how charities can address green issues within the context of their mission and as a way of ensuring their overall efficiency and effectiveness.

Global Action Plan runs a range of programmes to help VCO senior managers understand how climate change will affect their organisation's ability to provide services to its beneficiaries, and to engage other employees or service users with the issue.

The Shared Energy Toolkit from bassac includes some humerous fictional newspapers of an imagined climate-changed world in 2027 and guidance for community organisations to explore the implications of climate change for their current and future work.

Becoming Climate Smart - a guide for the children's sector is a toolkit to help VCOs supporting children embed climate change in their work, developed by the National Children's Bureau and the Institute of Development Studies.

The UK Climate Impacts Programme has various online tools available including:

an Adaptation Wizard to help you explore the impact climate change will have for you, identify ways to address some of these risks and develop an adaptation strategy.
a Risk Framework to help you judge the significance of the climate change risks you face.

NCVO's Third Sector Foresight website has several tools to help VCOs assess the importance of external trends for their organisation and make decisions about how to respond.

Reducing your carbon footprint

The Carbon Trust offers a range of advice and support (including interest free loans) to help organisations reduce their carbon emissions. Download the Carbon Trust's guide for charities (PDF 765KB).

Business Link provides guidance relevant for VCOs on developing environmental policies, assessing and communicating your organisation’s environmental performance, and low carbon business opportunities such as sustainable procurement and service provision.

The Every Action Counts website has a range of tools and advice to help community organisations reduce their own carbon emissions and encourage other neighbourhood groups and individuals to do the same (though please note that the programme has now closed and no longer provides direct support).

Training

The UK Climate Impacts Programme offers a range of courses and workshops on how to use its tools.

Global Action Plan provides training for VCOs on sustainable living, making the subject fun and enabling groups to measure their success in this area. Some training is free and bespoke support is also available.