The Award-winning Carbon Literacy Project aims to ensure that every citizen receives at least one day’s worth of learning so that they understand the links between human activity and climate change while empowering individuals, communities and organisations to take action to reduce emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases.
Official partner of the Carbon Literacy Project in Wales since 2017
Cynnal Cymru are the official partner of the Carbon Literacy Project in Wales are we are immensely proud to have brought Carbon Literacy to Wales and to have made it into the huge success it is.
In 2017, led by our Rhodri Thomas (our former principal trainer) we began our partnership with The Carbon Literacy Project and delivered our first accredited Carbon Literacy course. Rhodri was also the first resident Welsh certified Carbon Literacy trainer in Wales and in April 2020, Cynnal Cymru was recognised as the first Carbon Literacy Training Organisation (CLTO) in Wales.
In 2020, in response, to the Pandemic we launched our first distance learning Carbon Literacy course – and we have since delivered online Carbon Literacy training to a wide range of organisations reaching as far as Australia.
In February 2024 we hit a new milestone with over 1000 learners certified Carbon Literate.
To date we have also:
- Trained the Sustainable Development forum of Museum Wales, supporting initial efforts by the whole museum sector to develop bespoke Carbon Literacy training.
- Co-founded and coordinated Carbon Literacy Cartrefi Cymru – a consortium of twenty seven housing associations and overseeing the training of around 140 staff including a ‘Train the Trainer’ programme as well as the development of a dedicated Carbon Literacy course for the social housing sector. Our partners in the consortium are launching a cascade of peer to peer training using their own course.
- Funded by National Resources Wales, we worked with Manchester Metropolitan University and Great Places Housing group to train over 200 leaders and influencers from the organisations that make up the five Gwent Public Service Boards.
- Trained the whole cabinet and executive management team of Newport City Council.
- Developed an introduction to climate change e-learning course for Denbighshire County Council staff that will accompany their Carbon Literacy training.
- Designed a Carbon Literacy for Engineers course in collaboration with the Flexis programme.
- Trained and supported Cardiff Council colleagues and cabinet members enabling them to apply for the Bronze Carbon Literacy Organisation accreditation.
- Regularly provide training for staff at The National Lottery
- Trained the environmental champions of Sinclair Group
- Took part in the 3rd annual Carbon Literacy Action Day in December 2023 – with 14 organisations joining us at Cardiff University’s Sbarc|Spark building here in Cardiff!
- Continue to run monthly open courses online for people from all over the world.
The Carbon Literacy Project
The Carbon Literacy Project is wholly owned by The Carbon Literacy Trust, a registered charity (No 1156722) established in 2013 to take responsibility for The Project in perpetuity, for the public good.
The Project delivers no training directly, but works with a host of people and organisations from all walks of life, that all deliver training that is accredited against the Carbon Literacy Standard. The Project then assesses participant’s and certifies successful candidates with their own uniquely numbered Carbon Literacy certificate.
Due to this ‘crowdsourced’ approach, working with everyone, from all walks of life, The Carbon Literacy Project is globally unique – there is nothing else quite like it anywhere. This was recognised by the United Nations at the UN climate negotiations, COP21, in Paris in 2015, where the Project was awarded TAP100 status, – one of 100 projects worldwide recognised as Transformative Action Programmes, that could materially change the way we deal with climate change.
