The Carbon Offsetting Working Group is a fixed-term sub-committee of the Environmental Sustainability Strategy Committee tasked with developing an internal carbon offsetting scheme.
Organisation
The organisational arrangements are as follows:
- The working group is chaired by the Chair of the Environmental Sustainability Strategy Committee.
- The working group reports to the Environmental Sustainability Strategy Committee.
- The secretary of the working group is a member of the Sustainability Team.
- The working group is a limited life group, which will be disbanded once it has met its objectives. In the first instance, it is expected that this group will exist for up to one year.
- The working group will meet as often as is required to meeting its objectives. It is expected that this will be up to six times a year.
- The unconfirmed minutes of the meetings will be circulated to the Environmental Sustainability Strategy Committee and the Ecological Advisory Working group.
- Each nominated representative will serve for the duration of this working group.
- The working group may invite non-members to attend a meeting to report on or discuss specific matters.
Membership
The working group consists of the following members:
- The Chair of the Environmental Sustainability Strategy Committee (Chair)
- A representative of the Ecological Advisory Panel (EAP)
- The Director of Cambridge Zero
- Up to four University members with expertise in carbon offsetting or a discipline relevant to offsetting
- Up to two external members with expertise in carbon offsetting
- One undergraduate student representative nominated by CUSU
- One postgraduate student representative nominated by the Grad Union
Members are proposed by the Chair in discussion with existing members, to be confirmed by the ESSC.
Officers in attendance:
- Head of Environmental Sustainability
- Head of the Research Office
- Carbon and Energy Manager
The terms of reference are to:
- Oversee the development of a robust and transparent internal carbon offsetting scheme and recommend appropriate policies relating to carbon offsetting
- Consult with relevant stakeholders to agree the principles of the scheme
- Make recommendations on an appropriate price of carbon to be used within the scheme
- Advise on which sources of carbon should be included within the scheme
- Advise on which types of offset project should be supported through the scheme and arrangements for verification
- Make recommendations on appropriate governance arrangements
- Oversee initial implementation of the agreed scheme
- Provide advice to relevant University Committees and groups on carbon offsetting
- Act as ambassadors for carbon offsetting at the University
Members
|
Category of membership |
Name |
Job title |
|
|
Chair |
Professor Ian Leslie |
Director of UIS and Senior Adviser to the Vice-Chancellor with special responsibility for environmental sustainability. Chair of the Environmental Sustainability Strategy Committee |
|
|
Representative of the EAP |
Prof Andrew Balmford |
Professor of Conservation Science, Department of Zoology |
|
|
Director of Cambridge Zero |
Dr Emily Shuckburgh |
Director of Cambridge Zero |
|
|
University member |
Prof David Coomes |
Director, University of Cambridge Conservation Research Institute |
|
|
University member |
Thomas Vergunst |
Programme Manager, Cambridge Institute of Sustainability Leadership |
|
|
University member |
Dr Belinda Bell |
Director, Cambridge Social Ventures, JBS |
|
|
University member |
Prof Srinivasan Keshav |
Robert Sansom Professor of Computer Science, Department of Computer Science and Technology |
|
|
University member |
Dr Shaun Fitzgerald |
Director, Centre for Climate Repair at Cambridge |
|
|
University member |
Emily Bugden |
Visiting Researcher at the Centre for the Study of Existential Risk |
|
|
University member |
Adam Pellegrini |
University lecturer, Department of Plant Sciences |
|
|
External member |
Gwyn Williams |
Head of Conservation Investment, RSPB |
|
|
External member |
Dr Valerie Kapos |
Head of Programme Climate Change and Biodiversity, UN Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC) |
|
|
Student member |
Harvey Brown |
C-SU |
|
|
Student member |
Tungsten Tang |
C-SU |
|
|
Cambridge University Press & Assessment |
Jon Plumb |
Head of Property Compliance and Environment |
|
|
Cambridge University Press & Assessment |
Peter Lumb |
Property Environment Manager |
|
|
Representative of the Cambridge Carbon Impact Project |
Dr Tom Swinfield |
PDRA Zoology |
|
Officers in attendance
|
Sally Pidgeon |
Head of Environmental Sustainability |
||
|
Peter Hedges |
Head of the Research Office |
||
|
Dr Ellen Quigley |
Advisor to the Chief Financial Officer (Responsible Investment) |
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