Local data for local policy
We bring people together to take action on the environmental crisis. Our Toolkit is a model for inspiring local action. In addition to this, informing and influencing local, regional and national policy making.
We collect information about carbon reduction actions in your local community.
It is used to build a powerful picture that helps your local council make local policy. Many local pictures can be combined to give a regional and then a national view on carbon reduction actions.
It’s a “bottom up” approach. An approach based on the actions, aspirations and issues of individuals and organisations in your local area.
The more people involved, the more accurate the picture.
Reducing carbon, together
In 2019, The Great Collaboration started working with local communities to help everyone to act on climate and nature.
Furthermore, our online platform is home to the Greener Footprints Toolkit, a collection of actions that you can use as tools to reduce your carbon emissions.
Our objectives
- To provide timely, relevant, accurate data to inform local environmental policy. This data can in turn be fed upwards to influence policy at regional and national levels.
- To provide reliable and robust ideas, inspiration and insights about practical actions. For instance, actions that individuals and organisations can take.
- To provide opportunities to develop relationships and a sense of community between people at organisational, parish and metropolitan district ward levels. Furthermore, emphasising the positive environmental impact that can be achieved together.
Who are we?
The Great Collaboration began as a partnership project between Herefordshire Green Network, Caplor Horizons and Fownhope Parish Council. It has been funded by the MCS Foundation. It is now being managed by The Place-Based Initiative Ltd with a remit to expand its coverage nationally.
Collaborations
The initial development involved collaborations with HALC (Herefordshire Association of Local Councils), NALC (National Association of Local Councils), the Centre for Alternative Technology and Herefordshire based national sustainability experts. Wider connections are now being made to other networks around the country as well as the Society of Local Council Clerks (SLCC).
What makes us unique?
Other platforms designed to inform local policy making on carbon reduction measures have been generated from a national level perspective. Using data from a range of sources creates averages based on statistics, rather than being informed from the community directly by individuals.
Above all, our platform not only allows individual users and organisations to select actions appropriate to themselves, but also means we are able to respond uniquely to the needs of local councils. The collection of local data enables an understanding of what is already happening in a parish or district, with anonymised reporting highlighting local barriers and the drivers for change required for carbon reduction actions.