On Thursday all our staff went to Oxford for our Global Action Plan conference in the beautiful Quaker-owned Charney Manor. As part of the day we were given a talk by Dr Myles Allen from Oxford University on the latest climate change science.

The key message that came out was that due to the highly stable nature of carbon dioxide we need to consider the maximum amount of the gas that we can pump into the atmosphere without radically increasing the risk of runaway climate change. 

That number is approximately 1 trillion tonnes. We have about 5 times that much embedded in potentially accessible fossil fuels. On the same day Christian Aid released a report highlighting that India is likely to use its coal reserves to meet its energy needs. 

The conclusion of both Dr Myles Allen and Christian Aid is that carbon capture and storage is an essential part of the policy mix to fight climate change. I would be intrigued to hear how the pressure groups who have been campaigning heavily against the Kingsnorth power station justify their position when confronted with this type of evidence.

Dr Myles Allen also questioned the scientific validity of other populist campaigns such as the 350 initiative. He highlighted that climate sceptics are likely to use the intellectual weakness of this type of campaign to cast further doubt on the validity of claims made by pressure groups. 

My view is that we must base our work on the best possible science. Following the conference I have decided that Global Action Plan needs to establish a better relationship with the scientific community so that we are able to provide accurate and valid advice to the people we work with. First discussion topics might be around GM and population.

Energy prices

There has been a growing voice of concern over many years that Government dithering combined with an uncertain long-term price for carbon has been a major factor in the energy companies not investing sufficiently in our energy infrastructure. With the speed of a snail on smack Ofgen has finally woken up to this problem and released a long overdue report on the future of energy in the UK.

Their findings are alarming for anybody concerned about those facing fuel poverty and the general well-being of our economy. Their worst case scenario was that energy bills could increase by 60% by 2016. More likely price rises could be between 14% and 25% above inflation by 2020. The report also said that up to £200bn of investment was needed to secure energy supplies and meet carbon targets.

The lowest price increase model required high carbon prices and stimulus policies that would support investment in renewable, nuclear and carbon capture and storage. 

This report is further evidence that we need significant investment now if we are not to face dire economic consequences in the future, something that the Tories might like to consider following their conference call to cut public sector spending drastically. 

The report also demonstrates that we need a ‘mixed economy' of energy supplies if we are to keep the lights on and provide people with low carbon, affordable energy.

Hangover horror

The conference always ends up with too many hours in the pub and me facing a grim hangover. To compound the pain this year, I had to leave Oxford before 6.00am in order to get to Richmond to meet up with the Sky Leadership Teams who are volunteering their time to develop 5 different projects with us.

I am not sure what they must have made of the ghoulish presence sitting in front of them but, despite having a head full of cotton wool, I was amazed at the amount of creativity and energy they are putting into their projects. 

I am convinced that by the end of the year they will have helped us transform our work with schools, tested a project that implements SMART meters in housing associations, developed an art project for young people linked to Copenhagen, created a new event for EverGreen and developed a new initiative for us. Hopefully, along the way, the Leaders will have acquired new skills and experiences. 

For me the project is a great example of how our Sky charity partnership is benefiting both organisations.

DEFRA Third Sector Advisory Board

On Monday I attended a meeting of the DEFRA Third Sector Advisory Board which is meant to help build better links between the Department and the voluntary sector. I think it is fair to say that this relatively new group is still trying to determine its role and ambitions. 

What is interesting about the Board is that it is an impossible place for the voluntary sector representatives to discuss with civil servants the issue that is upmost on their mind at the moment, i.e. what impact might a change of Government have. Indeed there is a sense of growing inertia and insecurity on behalf of officials as the election moves nearer.

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