Green New Deal Conference

Sheffield is hosting an exciting gathering this month.The Greens are supporting a conference organised by Sheffield Campaign Against Climate Change on February 28th to promote the Green New Deal. Green Party Councillors gained backing of the conference from Sheffield City Council at its meeting last Wednesday. A motion, supported by the Lib Dems, called on the Council to build on the decision last year to opt in to the Sustainable Communities Act.

The Green New Deal, which has been drawn up by the UK’s leading green economists, calls for government action to create thousands of new jobs in the green sector through a scheme to insulate every home in the country and produce clean renewable energy in every local community.

Speakers at the conference include Colin Hines (Green New Deal Group/New Economics Foundation, Greenpeace International), Larry Elliott (Green New Deal Group, Economics Editor of the Guardian, (tbc), Dr.Fazlun Khalid, Director Islamic Foundation for Ecology and Ecological Sciences (IFEES),and Miriam Kennet Green Economics Institute.

Sheffield Green Party co-chair David Hayes said, SCACC are the first group in this country to follow President Obama’s lead in holding a conference on a Green New Deal. Sheffield needs a long term strategy that uses its manufacturing base to build systems and components for the growing renewable energy sector. We need training in “green sector” skills to install and maintain systems as well as creating jobs immediately in insulating homes”