I was incredibly proud to have accepted the Outstanding Organisation award on behalf of the Newport City Council at last week’s inaugural The National Environmental Awards.

The award recognised the commitment and passion of our staff to deliver real change for our organisation and for Newport.

My thanks go to those who work tirelessly and with passion to improve our environment and lower our carbon emissions, and to those who dedicate their spare time to supporting countless initiatives as volunteers in the city and beyond. This win is a reflection of their efforts and dedication.

We have reduced our carbon emissions significantly over the last five years with some innovative projects and approaches – we have installed around 7,000 solar panels on our buildings, launched Wales’ first electric refuse collection vehicle, increased considerably the number of electric vehicle charging points and worked with partners such as Newport Transport to widen the city’s green infrastructure.

We are committed to making our city more sustainable, not only through our work to become a carbon neutral organisation by 2030, but by undertaking green infrastructure initiatives such as these.

We have also demonstrated our commitment to biodiversity, becoming a Bee Friendly City and at our last council meeting, we resolved to support the Edinburgh declaration on biodiversity.

We stand ready to meet the challenge of delivering the post-2020 global biodiversity framework, and to put it into action through a renewed and significantly stepped-up plan.

However, we are very aware there is a long road ahead of us all and we need to further broaden our horizons in terms of looking to reduce carbon emissions and mitigate the effects of climate change across the whole city.

To that end, we will very shortly be going out to consultation on our draft climate change strategy which will set out exactly how we plan to become a carbon neutral organisation.

It will detail how we will transform our energy use and reduce our carbon emissions in key areas such as the buildings we run, the services we procure, the land we own and the vehicles we use.

It also sets out our plans to work with partners on transforming Newport into a healthier, greener place to work and live.

Please look out for updates in the press, on our website and social media – your views and input will be essential to the success of these plans – this is not something we can or should do in isolation – but together we can make a difference.