Morning session
Carbon management and reduction 10.00-12.45

The morning agenda featured practitioners from a number of leading organisations who shared insight into how they are meeting carbon management and reduction challenges and implementing best practice in line with the PAS2080 standard. Delegates heard inspiring practical examples and experience related to the use of digital tools, transformation route maps, the role of high-quality offsetting, managing carbon in the supply chain, and how to work collaboratively within organisations and with external stakeholders to bring about systemic change.

10.00-10.10 Welcome and introduction

Cathy Travers

Group managing director, Mott MacDonald

We commenced the morning with a reflection on the 10 years of the Carbon Crunch event and the power of collaboration, including the journey from the Infrastructure Carbon Review to PAS2080 and the Net Zero Infrastructure Industry Coalition.

10.10-11.00 PAS 2080: Reduce carbon with confidence 

Simon Dawes

Head of sustainable business strategy, Environment Agency

Maria Manidaki

Technical director, Mott MacDonald

Heleni Pantelidou

Associate director - infrastructure, Arup

Christine Glew

Sustainability manager, National Grid Gas Transmission & Metering

In this session delegates heard about the revision to the PAS2080 specification, including hearing from asset owners on their carbon journey and an overview of the major changes from representatives of the author team, and some leading client organisations on why the industry needs the revision and the impact that it can have.

11.00-11.20 Break

11.20-11.35 Deep decarbonisation for the construction sector

Adam Crossley

Director of environment, Skanska

PAS2080 approaches are an essential component for delivering net zero construction, and indeed Skanska were the first major contractor to become PAS2080 verified. However, Adam explored the challenges to deliver true net zero construction that will require more than just construction industry collaboration, with deep decarbonisation requiring more government intervention, industry coordination and investment.

“As an industry we have a decarbonisation blindspot. We are good at carbon value engineering – making changes that cost little – but avoid thinking about the much more costly ‘deep decarbonisation’ that will be required to fully decarbonise projects and systems.” – Adam Crossley, director of environment, Skanska

11.35-11.50 Financing the net zero transition

Tim Young

Manager, net zero finance, Science Based Targets Initiative

SBTi have become the leading standard for companies to use to set and validate emissions reductions targets. In this session delegates heard how the work SBTi is doing to develop net zero standards for financial institutions will impact financed emissions how this is relevant for infrastructure delivery.

11.50-12.40 Panel discussion – what do the next 10 years look like?

Chair
Mimi Zimmer

Senior carbon management consultant, Mott MacDonald

We closed the morning decarbonisation session with a panel discussion on what the key issues will be over the next decisive decade of action, with industry leaders being challenged by an early career professional on these issues and how the industry will respond.

Panellists
Giorgia Albieri

Head of infrastructure carbon, infrastructure, efficiency and engineering,
Department for Transport

Hariom Newport

Head of environment and sustainability, Infrastructure and Projects Authority

David Riley

Head of carbon neutrality, Anglian Water

Mark Enzer OBE FREng

Strategic advisor, Mott MacDonald, and lead author of the Infrastructure Carbon Review

12.40-12.45 Decarbonisation session close 

12.45-13.30 Networking lunch

Afternoon session
Climate resilience and integrated action 13.30-16.00

In the afternoon we took a detailed look at how action to improve infrastructure resilience can be integrated with carbon reduction in a fully joined-up response to climate change. Delegates heard the latest thinking on how to quantify the benefits of resilience and include these in the business case for investment; learnt about cutting-edge approaches that can help secure their assets and systems for the future; heard public and private sector perspectives on financing resilient infrastructure; and a discussion on how systems thinking can help to embed resilience.

13.30-13.40 Welcome and introduction

Denise Bower OBE

External engagement director, Mott MacDonald

Denise introduced the inaugural climate resilience session at Carbon Crunch, setting out the rationale for considering climate resilience alongside decarbonisation in the infrastructure sector.

13.40-13.55 Keynote address

Emma Howard Boyd CBE

Co-chair, Coalition for Climate Resilient Investment (CCRI), Chair of the Green Finance Institute and former Chair of the Environment Agency

Drawing on her former role as Chair of the Environment Agency and current roles as Chair of the GFI and co-Chair of CCRI, Emma set out the case for increasing investment in resilience now, highlighting what is required to ensure all infrastructure investments incorporate physical climate risks and advance climate resilience.

“In some respects, focusing on climate resilience now is 10 years too late. But there’s still time; there has to be.” – Emma Howard Boyd CBE

13.55-14.30 Panel discussion – From assessment to investment

Chair
Zoe Duvall

Senior consultant and PCRAM development lead, Mott MacDonald

Panellists
Alexandre Chavarot

Strategic adviser, Coalition for Climate Resilient Investment

Richard Thorp

Engineering director, HS1

Iliana Lazarova

Head of ESRG, UK Infrastructure Bank

14.30-14.45 Break

14.45-15.30 Using systems thinking to deliver climate resilience – case studies

Sarah Hayes, Strategic engagement lead of CReDo, Connected Places Catapult

CReDo – collaboration and resilience through connected digital twins

Catherine Pearce, Innovation manager, Sniffer and programme manager for Climate Ready Clyde

Climate Ready Clyde

Brendan Bromwich, Principal civil engineer, Mott MacDonald

Systems thinking to deliver resilient water supply: Water Resources South East (WRSE)

Natee Thongchan, Future cities advisor, Prosperity Fund Programme at the British Embassy, Bangkok

Global Future Cities Bangkok

15.30-15.45 The next 10 years for resilience

Lisa Constable

Climate change resilience lead – long term strategy for rail, Great British Railways Transition Team

Lisa presented on plans for climate resilience across the rail industry as part of the long-term strategy for rail.

15.45-15.55 Spoken word poetry

Awa Ndiaye

Carbon management consultant, Mott MacDonald

15.55-16.00 Close