Newport schools shine at COP30 with bold energy-saving initiatives, inspiring climate action and proving local efforts can drive global change.

As a charity dedicated to renewable energy and sustainability, we were thrilled to host a COP30 Schools Conference with Cardiff University’s School of Engineering. This event gave Newport pupils a platform to learn, share and act as true Energy Warriors.

Why It Matters

Professor Carrie Lear, Professor of Past Climates and Earth System Change, explained the science behind climate change, why urgent action is needed and why we need to support green politicians to ensure real changes happen.

Real-Life Climate Stories

Laura Waldron from Newport City Council highlighted local efforts to save energy and protect the environment. Their ambitious goal? To eliminate gas from all schools – a crucial step towards net zero.

Gareth Banks from Orangebox shared how a furniture design company is rethinking everything: energy, fuel and materials. Their approach – remanufacturing – focuses on making furniture last longer, using fewer resources and making repairs easy. We love their commitment to repurposing end-of-roll fabric!

Nikki Webb from Energy Sparks demonstrated how schools can track and reduce energy use, showcasing impressive results from Newport schools.

Student Power

Eco teams from Ysgol Gwent Is Coed and Caerleon Comprehensive showed how they used Energy Sparks to cut energy use.

• Gwent Is Coed involved the whole school with lessons, assemblies and meetings, turning energy saving into a community effort.

• Caerleon Comprehensive campaigned for holiday switch-offs, saving their school hundreds of pounds.

Your Voice Matters

Students joined interactive Padlet discussions on two big questions:

• What climate issue in your community should world leaders address?
• What ideas would you share to help fight climate change locally?

Responses ranged from reducing plastic and energy waste to planting trees and promoting renewable energy.

Takeaway

COP30 isn’t just for world leaders – it’s for everyone. Newport’s young Energy Warriors proved that local action can drive global change. Together, we can make a difference.