An innovative green investment programme has been launched by Bristol City Council through ethical investment platform Abundance Investment, giving residents and businesses the chance to invest in a greener future for the city.
The launch of Bristol Climate Action Investment (BCAI) gives the people, communities and businesses of Bristol the chance to directly invest in projects which help the council reduce greenhouse gas emissions, speeding up the city’s transition to becoming carbon neutral.
Through the BCAI, Bristol City Council is looking to raise up to £1 million in the initial launch phase.
The money raised will be used to install energy-efficiency improvements to council owned buildings across the city, reducing emissions and energy bills. Works are expected to include installation of heat pumps, solar panels and LED lighting.
The buildings that will benefit from the first round of investment provide a range of services for local people including children’s respite care and community facilities at the Belbrook Children’s Respite Unit and Ridingleaze Social Services Office in Lawrence Weston, together with the Symes Avenue Social Services building in Hartcliffe.
Over the next 18 months, further raises will take place with the aim of raising up to £2 million, which will go towards funding future projects to reduce carbon emissions across the city.
The work to create the BCAI was made possible by funding from the EU’s Horizon Europe Climate Neutral and Smart Cities Mission as part of the Net Zero Investment Co-innovation Lab – a project led by Bristol City Council and funded by the European Union which aims to create a series of financial mechanisms to speed up and increase investment in climate action and support zero carbon business growth.
“Bristol was the first UK city to declare a climate emergency and to set a city-wide ambition to be carbon neutral by 2030. This is a complex task and an ambitious vision that needs large amounts of investment in our homes, buildings and energy infrastructure.
“Through the Co-Innovation Lab we are developing a series of innovative financial mechanisms to overcome financial barriers and attract investment to support the decarbonisation of the city to help reach our goal of becoming climate neutral.
“Engaging the people and communities of Bristol to invest at a local level is an innovative way to achieve this goal. Bristol Climate Action Investment is an opportunity for the people and communities of Bristol to invest in the future of the city, to build a cleaner, greener and healthier environment, and to feel proud of where they live and belong.”
Councillor Martin Fodor, Chair of the Environment and Sustainability Committee
