On 1st July, Her Majesty The Queen and Her Royal Highness The Princess Royal visited the Edinburgh Climate Change Institute (ECCI) to find out more about how the University of Edinburgh is progressing the climate agenda through policy, research and capacity building. SSN was a key part of the wide array of ECCI-based initiatives presented on the day.
The event welcomed colleagues from across the University to celebrate ECCI’s achievements as a climate hub over the past 10 years. A small group of researchers, policy makers, businesses, students and academics were all in attendance at the royal event to share their projects and initiatives.
Kathryn Dapré, SSN Chair and George Tarvit, SSN Director, attended the event on behalf of the Sustainable Scotland Network to showcase the crucial work taking place across the public sector and its fundamental role in tackling climate change.
The royal visit coincided with the announcement of the Edinburgh Earth Initiative, which brings together a range of expertise and skills from across the University of Edinburgh, to boost leadership, research and action on climate change and other global sustainability themes.
Kathryn Dapré said, “This was a fantastic opportunity to highlight the new ECCI strategy, within which SSN plays such an important role. Talking with Her Majesty and the Princess Royal about how SSN helps coordinate and accelerate public sector climate action we acknowledged the importance of this work and the value placed on public sector endeavours to chart a course towards net zero emissions and climate resilience”.