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2024 Wrapped: 3Ci’s Highlights of the Year
By the 3Ci Team
In just a few years, the 3Ci team (Cities Commission for Climate Investment) has driven significant advancements in supporting local government Net Zero projects, establishing ourselves as a key player in this space.
The impact of 3Ci’s work has been transformative, acting as a trusted bridge between local and central government and the private investment sector. Through our work, we have solidified ourselves as a beacon for progress in the Net Zero financing space, supporting UK places in achieving their carbon reduction targets and creating Net Zero investment opportunities. I am proud to be part of the 3Ci collective and of our achievements this year; from creating new regional investment pipelines in Scotland and South Yorkshire, to delivering investor events and roundtables for our valued members and seeing some of the projects come to life in site visits.
Thank you to our Advisory Board and Steering Group for all the work you do in furthering our mission. We also could not do this without our partners, who combined, include representation from 90% of local government. Thank you to Connected Places Catapult, Scottish Cities Alliance, London Councils, Core Cities, Key Cities, Innovate UK and everyone else who has supported our mission! Â
Zoe Jennings
Head of Programmes, 3Ci
2024 Wrapped: Our Highlights
In a transitional and transformative time for the Net Zero agenda, we reflect on 3Ci’s achievements over the past 12 months!
January: A deep-dive into 3Ci’s impact in Scotland
To coincide with Burns Night, we published a report that illustrates 3Ci’s collaborative efforts with Scottish Cities in advancing sustainable, Net Zero initiatives.
It provides a comprehensive overview of the partnership between 3Ci and the Scottish Cities Alliance, presenting flagship projects and broader investment prospects that underscore its influential role in shaping a sustainable future for Scotland and the UK.
Find out more in our report.
January: North East and Yorkshire Net Zero Regional Investment Forum in Leeds
On January 31st, we hosted our fourth Regional Investor event in the series. Over 100 delegates and 30 dynamic speakers converged to chart the course for green growth and sustainable transformation in Leeds.
Attendees watched panel on Public-Private Financing of Net Zero Programmess and an insightful presentation by Lorna Pimlott which delved into Net Zero investment opportunities, underlining the critical role of financing in achieving sustainable goals.
February: 3Ci’s roundtable with Bristol City Council
We had the privilege of hosting a roundtable with Marvin Rees OBE, the Mayor of Bristol, providing valuable insights for our private sector members into the Net Zero initiatives underway in the city.
Attendees included senior representatives from Arup, EY, Buro Happold and Jacobs. Our guests had the opportunity to discuss potential investment into Bristol’s climate agenda with both the Mayor and Chief Executive of the Council.
March: Launch of the 3Ci Net Zero Investment Taskforce findings at the Houses of Parliament
3Ci formed a Taskforce of investors to consider the investment case for an innovative financing model for retrofitting housing. The Taskforce included bankers, insurers, pension funds, venture capitalists, and impact investors.
Our findings were presented at the Houses of Parliament to esteemed figures, including Lord Martin Callanan, Rt Hon Ed Miliband MP, Alex Sobel MP, Rt Hon Sir Alok Sharma MP, Kerry McCarthy MP, Alan Brown MP, Prof Greg Clark CBE FAcSS, and Catherine McGuinness CBE.
April: 3Ci’s site visit to Somers Town
Organised as part of 3Ci’s corporate membership scheme, prospective members were invited to a guided tour and presentation of Camden’s Somers Town district, a future Net Zero Neighbourhood in the making.
The site visit was so successful that we are repeating it in 2025!
May: 3Ci sessions at UK REiiF, The UK’s real estate investment and infrastructure forum
As part of Connected Places Catapult’s Pavilion, we hosted a panel discussion exploring whether cities and investors truly understand each other.
This was followed by 3Ci’s “City Investment Pitches” where Leeds City Council, Sheffield City Council, Hounslow Council and Glasgow City Council pitched their city’s projects in a Dragon’s Den style affair.
June: Launching our educational courses with Apolitical
The team launched impactful training initiatives for local government officers, collaborating with Apolitical and the University of Oxford to provide courses for over 130 officers from 88 different local authorities.
The course topics were deep-dives into Climate Finance and Energy Transition.
June: Our workshop events with NatWest for London Climate Action Week
This closed-door event hosted by NatWest Group brought together key stakeholders from national and local governments, private sector investors, and other pivotal bodies.
Together, we explored practical strategies to accelerate the implementation of net zero projects at the local level.
July: The South Yorkshire Net Zero Project Pipeline – and our thoughts on engaging local communities in Net Zero
In our collective pursuit of Net Zero, in 2022 3Ci embarked on a visionary initiative – the National Net Zero Project Pipeline – to attract private sector investment into local authority projects.
The National Net Zero Project Pipeline aggregates more than 1,100 project opportunities from nearly 60 local and regional government bodies across the UK. Based on financial information provided for over 600 projects, the total value of this pipeline exceeds £40 billion.
In July 2024 3Ci published a paper which provided an overarching view of the status and strategic direction of Net Zero initiatives specifically within the South Yorkshire Net Zero Project Pipeline.
Central to the project was embedding community engagement at the heart of public and private approaches to Net Zero. As part of this work, 3Ci, alongside Connected Places Catapult, developed a guide on how to implement effective community engagement for net zero projects.
July: 3Ci site visit to Arsenal Net Zero Neighbourhood
We organised the incredible opportunity for our corporate members to visit the Net Zero Neighbourhood in Islington, specifically around Buns Hill and Arsenal.
In the Arsenal neighbourhood, the investment opportunity is focused on building a district heating network supplied by low carbon heat sources, improving the energy efficiency of homes and connecting them to the network, and installing solar panels and electric vehicle charging.
September: Our Labour Party Conference event
We hosted The BIG Net Zero Breakfast alongside the Net Zero APPG at the Labour Party Conference. This interactive session focused on Labour’s clean energy mission and how it can drive transformation in cities, towns, and regions across the UK.
September: New York Climate Action Week
We were proud to participate in another impactful roundtable at New York Climate Week, joined by the always-inspiring Marvin Rees OBE, former Mayor of Bristol.
Our Director, Steve Turner, highlighted our innovative Net Zero Neighbourhoods model at Cities Climate Finance Leadership Alliance (CCFLA)’s annual assembly in New York, alongside partners from BWB, a multi-award winning engineering and environmental design consultancy. Always a pleasure to be in the same room with such forward-thinking leaders!
November: Sheffield City Council roundtable
Sheffield City’s leadership, Cllr Tom Hunt, Kate Josephs CB and William Stewart joined 3Ci’s roundtable to make the strong case for investment into Sheffield’s decarbonisation plans.
Our roundtable, hosted by our partners Mott MacDonald and chaired by Prof Greg Clark CBE FAcSS, convened senior stakeholders and our corporate members across the ecosystem including consultants, investors and local government.
November: 3Ci site visit to Hounslow’s Net Zero Neighbourhood
3Ci had an incredibly warm reception from the London Borough of Hounslow who welcomed our members and wider network for the morning.
Invited guests visited development sites in Feltham and learned about the Council’s proposed plans to transform some of their housing estates into net-zero neighbourhoods.
Within these neighbourhoods, there will be a focus on improving energy efficiency for homes and public buildings through retrofit, and using retrofit as a catalyst for undertaking improvements in the public spaces, diversifying the functions and uses of existing green spaces, and promoting access to sustainable travel options.
December: 3Ci win bid to test Net Zero Neighbourhood approach with London Councils
We are thrilled to have been appointed alongside Living Places to design a London-wide programme to test and develop the Net Zero Neighbourhood approach to local decarbonisation in London! The project will develop a business case to underpin the eveolution of the London Net Zero Neighbourhoods cohort, which will ultimately support each place to secure investment.
Thank you to everyone who took part in 3Ci ecosystem this year!
To stay up to date with our plans in 2025 and to find out how you can get involved, be sure to follow us on LinkedIn and sign up to our newsletter.
Have a lovely break,
The 3Ci Team