POTEnT provided support for the first MK Sustainability Conference held in early March 2020.

The presentations are available in the document section and more information is on the Conference page.

The excellent visual interpreations created by Matt at Drawnalism can be found in the following section.

Audio files for the presentations will soon be available so if you were there, you can hear all the proceedings again. If you missed the Conference you can catch up with the news of what sustainability actions are taking place in Milton Keynes.

Check back in a few days to see if the audio files are ready.

Thanks to Matt at Drawnalism

Thanks to Matt at Drawnalism

MKC is part of an EU project consortium that will improve regional low carbon economy policies. The project will run for 48 months from 1^st August 2019. Total European Regional Development Funding is 1.69 million Euros between eight partners. MK can claim up to 162 thousand Euros.

POTEnT addresses a key challenge for European cities and regions: how to achieve more carbon reduction by harnessing the potential of direct and local action by citizens and communities. The UK is committed by international treaty to achieve ambitious carbon reduction targets and everyone needs to start action as soon as possible.

Regional and local authorities can provide a positive alternative to the market-based provision of energy services. The POTENTIAL lies in their local connections, opportunities and accountability.

However, local authorities face many challenges in becoming actors in the energy market. First, they need to develop legal mechanisms, attract investment, acquire skills and talk over the options with local communities.  Many regulations are made at central government level, so solutions need to be tailor-made to suit local conditions. In Milton Keynes the Sustainability Strategy provides an outline for local solutions.

The objective of POTEnT is to reduce carbon emissions faster than “Business As Usual” through more and better energy services provided by local and regional authorities. 

The Interreg website for the project is https://www.interregeurope.eu/potent/

The 8 project partners are:

·         City of Ostrava (CZ)

·         Milton Keynes Council (UK)

·         Pamplona City Council (ES)

·         Parma Municipality (IT)

·         Erasmus Centre for Urban, Port and Transport Economics BV (NL)

·         Ettlingen Municipal Services Agency (DE)

·         Tartu Regional Energy Agency (EE)

·         Energy Agency for Southeast Sweden (SE)                                             

The project partners will:

• Analyse partners’ plans 
• Identify good practices that will improve these plans Develop/improve public Energy Services Companies (ESCos) 
• Build the capacity of all relevant public authorities 
• Increase investments in low carbon projects
• Inspire/empower local decision-makers and communities

·         The project’s main outputs will be focused on new energy transition solutions through:

o   New projects to increase investment in low carbon projects, inspire/empower local decision-makers and communities to achieve higher levels of carbon reduction

o   Improved governance by delivering policies to develop/improve public Energy Services Companies and transform existing mechanisms into "future-fit" organisations that will have a bigger impact on carbon reduction.

This section is for you to upload your training suggestions and ideas around the subject of reducing carbon emissions.

Upload your ideas so we can work together to use less fossil fuels.

The training ideas can be for project partners learning needs or for city residents and communities or both.

The project partners will upload ideas onto this site.

Together we can build a library of training proposals for consideration of making them happen.

The site is not just for project partners, anyone can put forward suggestions or training plans. 

You will need to register on this site to upload your ideas. Your details will be kept safe in accordance with the GDPR requirements. You may like to use a nickname or online ID instead of your real name as this will be shown below any ideas you upload.

Upload your training ideas in the Comments box below.

Look forward to hearing your ideas for how to make our world greener.   

Read the first POTEnT newsletter  and the Press release that followed the second project meeting in the Documents section below.

Read the Sustainabiltiy Conference 2020 report and the visual interpretations by Matt at Drawnalism in the documents section below.

June and July 2020

Read the POTEnT press release #3 from June and the second POTEnT newsletter in the documents section below.

January 2021

Read the POTEnT press release #4 from January 2021 and the third POTEnT newsletter in the documents section below.