ITI signs up to new Climate Action Charter

ITI has joined with other institutions, representing a total of 13 million members, to commit to accelerating climate action.

45 of the UK’s leading professional institutions last week launched the Charter for Climate Action, highlighting their commitment to supporting their members in prioritising both the UN Sustainable Development Goals and the Paris Agreement in their work.

The Charter requires three commitments from professional bodies. Firstly a pledge to chart a path to help their members deliver sustainability across their organisation or business, and a promise to report on and share resources. Secondly it commits institutions to speaking with a unified voice in discussions with other bodies, the government, and the public in support of wider climate action.

And finally, institutions signing up to the Charter have pledged to empower and inspire their members to drive sustainable growth, by providing continuous professional development tools, principles, and resources that help enable the adoption of environmental best practices.

The charter has gained the backing of numerous climate experts and policy makers.

"No one profession or sector can meet the climate challenge alone," said Nick Mabey, founding director and CEO of think tank E3G. "This Charter aims to prioritise working together at pace and with new levels of collaboration and professional knowledge sharing. This is essential if we are to head off the climate crisis this decade."

Speaking about ITI’s decision to sign up to the Charter, Chief Executive Paul Wilson said, “Climate action is everybody’s responsibility. We wanted to demonstrate that we as a professional body are committed to climate action and also committed to supporting our members in reducing carbon emissions in their professional lives”

The ITI office has been taking action to work towards net zero emissions for some time with initiatives including: working from offices that have installed solar panels and a woodchip boiler; printing the ITI Bulletin on recycled paper with biodegradable ink, posting it in a paper rather than plastic envelope and offering the option to switch to an online version only, and; the removal of plastic water bottles and cups from the offices and meeting rooms. In addition, the switch to working at home during the pandemic has cut carbon emissions from commuting and when a return to the office does come it is likely to involve a hybrid of office and home working to ensure this gain is not lost.