ABOUT US
There is a real buzz about Waltham Forest. Bursting with culture, energy and opportunity, Waltham Forest is a place people want to live, raise a family and start a business. We are fundamentally changing the way we work, building relationships, connecting people, harnessing our unique opportunities and the power of new technology to create strong, sustainable and self-reliant communities.
Waltham Forest is one of the greenest and fastest growing areas in the Capital, Council of the Year 2019 and London’s first Borough of Culture. With fantastic connectivity, huge investment potential and limitless ambition Waltham Forest is a great place to live and work.
The borough has excellent transport connections and represents the best of both worlds in London; the City 10 minutes to the South and the Epping Forest 10 minutes to the North. Good schools, great parks, vibrant culture, regeneration and local entrepreneurs make Waltham Forest a community that people want to call home.
ADAPTING TO CLIMATE CHANGE - MANAGING THE IMPACT
Climate Change will affect the borough in two main ways: increasing flood risk due to increased rainfall as a result of warmer and wetter winders; and overheating from rising temperatures. It is essential that we manage these risks and make our borough more resilient to the impacts of climate change. Providing and improving our existing green open spaces are integral to this as green infrastructure helps to reduce surface water run-off and reduce the urban heat island effect, as well as provide many other environmental and health and wellbeing benefits.
WHAT IS THE COUNCIL DOING
Climate Emergency
In October 2018, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) published a powerful report that shows the shocking truth about the effects of climate change. The world’s leading climate scientists have warned there are only 12 years for global warming to be kept to a maximum of 1.5°C. After that, a rise of even half a degree will significantly worsen the risks of drought, floods, and poverty for hundreds of millions of people across the globe.
On Thursday 25 April 2019 at a Full Council meeting, the council agreed to declare a “Climate Emergency”. This commits Waltham Forest to launching a new Climate Change Strategy, establishing a Climate Change Commission to help shape the local response to this global challenge, and calling on the UK Government to provide the necessary powers and resources to make local action on climate change easier.
Waltham Forest's Climate Change Strategy
The strategy sets out how we would take action on climate change in Waltham Forest, and reflects the views that were gathered from residents and other stakeholders. We all need to adapt to the changes to the climate that we are already seeing, and make big reductions in our energy use to limit future changes. The strategy aimed to reduce the borough’s carbon emissions by 80 per cent by 2050.
