The Yorkshire Post Climate Change Summit is returning to Leeds in November - this is what to expect

The conference will take place on November 21 at the Royal Armouries following the sellout of the 2022 event.

Key topics up for discussion on the day will include business resilience, green economy and investment potential, transport and Yorkshire companies’ varying journeys towards Net Zero.

The day will be hosted by environmental scientist Angela Terry, who founded social enterprise One Home to raise awareness of positive climate solutions and help UK households to adapt to a low cost, low carbon lifestyle.

The headline sponsor for this year’s event is Leeds-based vehicle solutions company Zenith.

Alan Bastey, decarbonisation and sustainability consultant at Zenith, said the firm was delighted to be involved with the important gathering. “When it comes to climate change, we don’t have the luxury of starting from scratch or waiting for the perfect solution to come to the fore. We need to optimise current systems and solutions, innovate and invest in sustainable technologies now.

“We all know that more can be done, and I’m excited to promote zero emission mobility and offer further support to those at the summit who are committed to make the move to a greener future.”

Other event sponsors this year include the York and North Yorkshire Local Enterprise Partnership and First Bus.

A website for this year’s event has now been launched and can be visited at https://www.nationalworldevents.com/ypcs-2023/

Speakers for the event will be announced in the coming weeks in the build-up to the summit.

The Climate Change Summit has been running since 2021, when it was launched to coincide with the global COP26 conference in Glasgow.

At the inaugural event, a 50-point action plan for getting Yorkshire to net zero in the coming decades was published after months of work by members of the Yorkshire and Humber Climate Change Commission - a non-party political body involving 40 commissioners from the public, private and third sectors and which is supported by local councils.

Chris Burn, head of business and features for The Yorkshire Post, said this year’s summit should build on the success of previous events as the net zero transition takes on an increasing importance for politicians and businesses at both a regional and national level.

"In my job I have been very fortunate to witness some of the incredibly work going on in Yorkshire and Humber to help the nation and world reduce its carbon emissions – from the likes of Magtec in Rotherham which is helping convert commercial vehicle fleets to electric engines to the Phillips 66 Humber refinery where hugely ambitious projects are in motion to cut the site’s emissions by 90 per cent over the next decade.

"The common theme I see across different sectors of industry is an urgent desire to help make a positive difference and events like the Climate Change Summit which bring together decision-makers from the worlds of business and politics are important in helping to facilitate that.

"The net zero transition brings with it both huge potential challenges and opportunities – and discussing the best way to negotiate both of the risks and rewards is vital.”