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This article is part of our 'Spotlight on Policy' series. Defra’s 'Plan for Water' can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/plan-for-water-our-integrated-plan-for-delivering-clean-and-plentiful-water In April of this year, Defra published its 'Plan for Water', which is to act as a blueprint for national efforts to meet its targets on water quality and water resources. The Plan for Water aims to improve infrastructure and drive investment to improve resilience and tackle pollution in English waters. Included in the Plan is the commitment to reduce storm overflow discharges[i] in an effort to tackle the issue of sewage and wastewater polluting the nation’s rivers and seas. Background In January 2018, Defra published its 25 Year Environment Plan (25YEP), in which the department committed to ensuring that 75% of water bodies reach near natural state as soon as is practicable (an ambitious target, seeing that the current number is around 16%). The first review of this plan, the Environmental Improvement Plan 2023 (EIP), reiterated the department’s priority to deliver clean and plentiful water, and set out the first steps of the reform programme for the water system. The Plan for Water is key to delivering the water goals of the 25YEP and EIP, and outlines the actions that are needed to meet the targets they set out. It is also key to the delivery of the 2021 Environment Act, which established 4 legally binding long-term targets for water centred on reducing water body pollution and reducing the use of public water supply in England. The Plan is also a response to a range of public and political pressures, as well as the pressures caused by both population growth and climate change. Specifically, the latter entails the prospect of lower water supply in hotter summers and more pollution washing into rivers due to wetter winters. The Plan’s Key Goals, and How They Will Be Achieved The Plan for Water outlines 3 key goals: transforming the management of the whole water system; delivering a clean water environment for nature and people; securing a plentiful supply of water. It states that it will achieve these through increased investment, stronger regulation and tougher enforcement: The Plan for Water outlines £1.6 billion of investment in new infrastructure – this number has now risen to £2.2 billion following a recent Ofwat announcement. This will go towards 33 infrastructure schemes, and primarily towards improving storm overflow infrastructure (which will see £1.7 billion worth of investment). Other investment includes the second round of the £10 million Water Management Grant, which will be made available to help farmers build reservoirs and irrigation equipment, and increasing slurry grant funding to £34 million (up from £13 million). Examples of stronger regulation include enabling Ofwat to link water company dividend payments to environmental performance, as well as banning the sale of wet wipes containing plastic (subject to consultation) and new restrictions of ‘forever’ (PFAS) chemicals (highly persistent chemicals found in lots of day-to-day products). It also involves funding Environment Agency (EA) inspections of wastewater treatment works. The Plan also sets out its intention to change the law to increase the maximum amount the EA can penalise water companies for damaging the environment.[ii] This is alongside other measures that ensure that the Plan is underpinned by tougher enforcement, such as a new Water Restoration Fund which will channel fines from water companies straight into projects that improve the water environment (rather than going back to HMT). Delivery The Plan sets out a number of policy actions and sub-actions to drive its delivery. Key to the delivery is the catchment plan approach. This involves working with local groups to tailor delivery to the local level – for example, through identifying where direct investment can have the best impact in each catchment area – and is designed to make the Plan more effective on the ground.[iii] The Plan also outlines its intention to integrate itself with other environmental and government delivery plans, with Civil Service policy teams currently looking at how these plans can all work together. The Next Steps The Plan for Water adopts a wide-ranging approach that looks to tackle the problems facing the water sector by addressing the system as a whole, rather than focusing on individual issues. As such, it will require buy-in from a number of key stakeholders, including other government departments, regulators, the public, businesses, and water companies. The Plan covers a 5-year period – the same as the EIP. Ofwat have stated that work on infrastructure schemes will begin in the next two financial years. Higher penalties on water companies will be in place by the end of this year. Nevertheless, there is still a lot to do in the water policy space. Perhaps this will include further consideration of customer bills: the Plan will have no effect on bills before 2025, however it is unclear how they will be affected in the longer term. Moreover, the progress of the Plan rests on water company buy-in, not least in obeying the law. For policymakers, these challenges lead inevitably to questions about the current structure of the water sector, and how to effectively define and regulate the public-private relationship moving forwards. [i] Storm overflow discharges prevent the flooding of sewage systems by releasing wastewater into rivers and seas – see this Ofwat explainer for more information: https://www.ofwat.gov.uk/about-us/ofwat-and-the-environment/pollution-and-water-quality/storm-overflows-explainer/. [ii] The EA has launched a consultation on this, see: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/consultation-launched-on-unlimited-fines-for-the-worst-polluters. [iii] In short, a catchment area is an “area of land through which water from rain, melting snow, or ice, drains into a body of water such as a river, lake, or reservoir” (The Plan for Water, p.21). Contribute to the CSCEN Blog If you're interested in contributing to the CSCEN Blog, get in touch with us at environment.network@faststream.civilservice.gov.uk. We'd love to hear your ideas!

Tulika Gupta reviews the Dear Earth exhibition, which is on at the Southbank Centre's Hayward Gallery until 3rd September Arts and Sciences have always been intrinsically linked. They are both means of investigation of the internal and external world. They both require a certain amount of imagination, reflection, creativity, visualisation, judgment and communication. I saw a brilliant example of this confluence at the Dear Earth exhibition at Hayward Gallery, London (ends on 3 September 2023). The exhibition follows topical themes of disparities between North-South economies, extraction of natural resources, indigenous rights, extinction, loss of biodiversity and hope in the time of climate crisis. The exhibition starts with Otobong Nkanga’s striking tapestry and ‘cause and effect’ scenarios resulting from the exploitation of natural resources. You also experience nature connectedness and loss of flora and fauna through use of vivid colours on paper by ecofeminist, Andrea Bowers. One is transported into a mythological experience through Himali Singh Soin’s film ‘we are opposite like that’ capturing an age of melting ice caps while connecting you to the Victorian colonial past with poetry and string quartet. Hito Steyerl throws light on carbon footprint of the technological world via an LED screen constructed from empty bottles and crates, which displays bright colours generated due to the bio electric signals from the plants growing behind the wall. Revolutionary Agnes Denes interdisciplinary approach to science and art is put to ecological use through works such as The Living Pyramid. Artists Aluaiy Kaumakan and Richard Mosse heartfelt works on indigenous communities of Paiwan and Yanomami, respectively are a must watch. One of my favourites was Daiara Tukano’s patterns that connect you to the visions of her people, Yépá Mahsã (widely known as Tukano) when on Kaphi, depicting experiences of nature connectedness beyond normal human capabilities. I truly enjoyed Imani Jacqueline Brown’s illuminating work on the oil extraction in the state of Louisiana and its repair through pan-African traditions. The other artists works were equally transformational, and I would recommend you go for it! The Dear Earth Exhibition is on at the Southbank Centre until 3 September 2023: https://www.southbankcentre.co.uk/whats-on/art-exhibitions/dear-earth

Defra’s Environment Science and Analysis division has recently published the 2022 edition of its outcome indicator framework, which details changes in the environment. Eddie Childs provides an update on what the framework includes and details on a new feature. After months of writing, hundreds of meetings with evidence professionals and policy colleagues, and a lengthy review process, the 2022 update to the 25 Year Environment Plan Outcome Indicator Framework has been published. This year’s edition is the most comprehensive yet, with 50 of the 66 indicators now reporting data, and additional information has been provided on progress towards publication of the remaining 16. Since the launch of our data dashboard, we are also reaching a wider audience than ever before, and our latest report has been refined to enhance accessibility, by facilitating screen-reading software usage and accessible colour palates. The latest data Our five new indicators reporting this year provide more detail on the health of our fish stocks (see C11: Productive seas: status of sensitive fish and shellfish stocks), greater insights into how close we are to nature (see G3 ‘Enhancement of green/blue infrastructure’, G6 ‘Environmental attitudes and wellbeing’ and G7 ‘Health and wellbeing benefits’) and the UK’s international environmental impact is in part reported in K1 ‘Overseas environmental impacts of UK consumption of key commodities’. The publication of new indicator data this year is of enhanced value to public policy-making in the context of the Environment Act 2021 and in the production of the new Environmental Improvement Plan, which further strengthens the need for strategic environmental monitoring evidence. The framework continues to be a critical data source for informing progress against the 25 Year Environment Plan and the recent establishment of the Office for Environmental Protection sees another key customer of the environmental trends we report. Our new indicator assessment We are constantly on the lookout for ways to innovate and make our data more accessible. You may have seen last year's CSEN blog post ‘Why is an environmental dashboard like a wheeled suitcase?’, where we shared our data dashboard. This year, a multidisciplinary evidence team has been hard at work developing a scientifically sound and statistically robust quantitative assessment approach to help identify high level and simple to understand categorisations of environmental change. In previous years, the framework has provided a short summary of the environmental trends observed in indicator data series. In this year’s report, we have built upon this earlier approach to simply state whether observed changes are understood to demonstrate an environmental improvement or a deterioration in the short, medium, or long term. While this may appear a simple addition on the surface, it is the product of robust novel statistical analysis and is intended to offer additional understanding from our available data, to better inform policymakers, parliamentarians and the public on progress towards achieving the goals of the 25-year plan. What’s next? We will continue to refine and improve the outcome indicator framework, assessment methodology and online dashboard with iterative updates. In future, a full review of the framework’s constituent indicators will be undertaken to ensure that it continues to be relevant and provides the best and most cost-effective ways of assessing progress. Please take a look at our report and if you have any comments, suggestions, or questions, feel free to get in touch! We would particularly welcome any feedback on the usefulness and value of the framework’s experimental statistics, which are highlighted in section A of the report. You can reach us at 25YEPIndicators@defra.gov.uk.

Sara Ronayne, an actuary at the Government Actuary’s Department (GAD), recently helped produce a guide for users of TCFD disclosures as part of a working party comprising actuaries and sustainability specialists. Here she explains why Covid-19 can act as a wake-up call for climate risk management. Climate change is considered by many to be one of the greatest future threats to our global society. Hearteningly, around the time the Covid-19 crisis began, it felt like there was a real momentum building in relation to climate risk management. Aided by policy and regulatory developments, climate risks were increasingly being seen on the agenda of government departments, pension schemes, insurers and other organisations. Then came coronavirus. The pandemic created a host of challenges for our society and economy, many of which we continue to grapple with. However, it is also a valuable learning opportunity which we can harness to improve our climate risk management practices going forward. Consequences of a crisis Despite being fundamentally a health crisis, Covid’s systemic and cross cutting impacts paralysed not just our health systems, but also much of our education and travel networks as well as the wider business economy. The widespread disruption that ensued resulted in significant immediate financial burdens, as well as increased long-term uncertainty. In response, central government implemented extensive financial packages to support individuals, small businesses and large corporations affected by the pandemic. Local authorities have also faced difficulties. Many have seen reduced income, including lost business rates and council tax holidays, coinciding with higher expenditure from dealing with the crisis. These have created further strains on often already stretched balance sheets. Climate parallels Climate change, famously coined by former Governor of the Bank of England Mark Carney as the ‘Tragedy of the Horizon’, is also a significant systemic risk. Its wide-ranging physical implications include rising temperatures and increased incidences of flooding and natural disasters. In addition, our expected transition to a net-zero carbon economy will necessitate huge structural shifts across our economy. Even if we knew the temperature outcome to expect, the highly interconnected nature of climate risks makes it impossible to predict with any certainty what future exposures central government and local authorities may face. And as Covid has highlighted, the financial implications of systemic risks can be immense. Scenario analysis When making sense of uncertainty of this scale it can be difficult to know where to start. This is where scenario analysis can help. Scenario analysis is a risk management tool often used by actuaries. It works by utilising horizon scanning to identify plausible examples of what our future might look like. Modelling and analysis techniques can then establish the financial risks and opportunities associated with each climate ‘scenario’. This information is used to inform the strategic planning and decisions organisations make. Wide relevance This technique is particularly powerful as it can be adopted by a range of stakeholders. Examples can range from specialised analysis of pension schemes and insurers, to macro level analysis of central government or local authority finances. This wide relevance has helped make scenario analysis a key aspect within the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) recommendations. TCFD recommendations are supported by more than 1,000 organisations globally including governments, central banks, regulators, asset managers and asset owners as well as a range of industries. The number of organisations who disclose under TCFD is growing rapidly. According to a recent survey by the Pension and Lifetime Savings Association, over a quarter of local government pension scheme funds are already working to align with TCFD recommendations. The government is also consulting on plans to make these requirements mandatory for larger pension schemes. Wake-up call For central government, local authorities, and our wider economy, the coronavirus crisis needs to be a wake-up call for climate risk management – both in the sense of action required to tackle the climate emergency and reinforcing the need to plan for the future risks it brings. Our experiences of Covid can teach us about the danger of systemic risks, and the important role early risk management can play in response. We must use this knowledge to build on past climate risk management momentum, and to ensure the risks of climate change remain firmly on the future agendas for all organisations. This blog was originally published by Inside Government on 9 October and can be found here. Want to find out more? Our CSEN November monthly talk will consider how countries can be better prepared for climate disasters. This is part of a two-day free virtual event hosted by the Government Actuary’s Department (GAD) and CSEN. This event considers the government’s climate challenge and how risk management can help. Speakers include HM Treasury, the Committee on Climate Change, GAD, and several external academics/specialists. In addition to our monthly talk, CSEN members are welcome to attend any or all sessions of the main event. Sign up for all sessions via this online flyer, or register directly for the CSEN talk.

Polly Lord, Policy Lead for Local Government Environment and Levelling Up Parks, shares her proposal for making the UK the most sustainable place in the world Why would we? Why should we? These were the questions I posed myself when ministers asked me to come up with a bold vision for our urban green spaces. Working in a cross-cutting policy area, predominantly focusing on climate change but with responsibility for local government and environment issues, I know we need both bold statements and bold answers. The latest warnings coming from scientists this week (w/c 9 May) are that we are hurtling towards the 1.5c global warming figure that we must stay away from. But our civic society has also shifted. Town and city centres, once the economic hearts and focal points for communities, are in decline, yet 82.9% of the English population live in urban areas. As retail moves online, and workers adopt hybrid patterns, these places need a new future. What if town centres were based on economic enterprise alongside environmental goals? How can we align our need to level up while getting down to net zero? Taken by the idea of green – everywhere – I did what any sensible Civil Servant would do. I had “a chat”. I chatted to colleagues in our housing teams, in regeneration and building. I liaised with architects, planners, and landscape designers. I spoke to DEFRA, to Natural England, even to HMT. Together, we came up with a proposal to become “the greenest country in the world”. The vision Becoming “the greenest country in the world” would need a significant increase in blue and green infrastructure in our urban areas, using innovative technology in harmony with our natural environment. Green roofs and walls to increase vegetation and help with water management would apply energy-efficient construction technologies and lead to greener and more beautiful buildings. New hydroponic plant spaces could be created in disused buildings, tree-covered pedestrian walkways could connect places, and town centres could be reconfigured around a destination green space. Green spaces would become safe spaces for all, in day and night. Such a vision goes further: into our national identity and pride in our natural and urban places. It is an update of Blake’s “green and pleasant land” for the urban landscape of the future; one rich with biodiversity that showcases UK innovation, heritage, skills and curiosity. It celebrates our iconic city and town places, reflecting our local landscapes rich in history and championing them alongside the natural world. Our great historical city centres were built on the industrial revolution; cities of the future are built on its green counterpart The reality In reality, my guess is that it would cost an ambitious £50 billion to deliver all of this. But I’m not the first or only voice urging for a radical reframing of our urban centres. Sir James Bevan, the Chief Executive of the Environment Agency, gave a speech on exactly this topic last year. He concluded: “I can sum up in only six words how our future cities should be: green and blue - and just too.” There are also places already working on developing such as vision. Stockton-on-Tees, for instance, plans to replace half its high street with a £37m riverside park.[1] Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council/Ryder – The Guardian [online] Meanwhile, Nottingham has announced a £500m redesign of its shopping centre, including plant greenery around its current structures. Artist impression of the new Broad Marsh shopping centre in central Nottingham - The Guardian [online] The potential The idea of actually making the UK the greenest country in the world is, of course, a step too far. But that wasn’t the point of the proposal. The point was to cast off the shackles of group thinking, to grab a concept and play with it, and explore the art of the possible. For many of us Civil Servants working in – or interested in – the environment, our work can often feel, well, hopeless. Not quick enough, not cheap enough, not impactful enough. We can feel stymied and siloed; lost in a fog of impending global doom. But every single colleague, from every single team and every single department that I approached embraced the vision. They questioned it, naturally, but they got behind the spirit of the ask and we prepared a proposal that was actually deliverable. My deputy director signed it off. My DIRECTOR signed it off. So, what does this tell us for the future? Well, it tells us that, while we may not be investing £50 billion in putting greenery on every building in our cities quite yet, becoming the greenest country in the world only takes a bunch of fantastic Civil Servants, a dose of creativity, a willingness to be open and collaborate, and an opportunity to think bold. Not that much at all. Contribute to the CSEN Blog If you're interested in contributing to the CSEN Blog, get in touch with us at environment.network@faststream.civilservice.gov.uk. We'd love to hear your ideas!

The Environment Agency's Hannah Amor tells us about the Plastic Free July movement and how you can become part of the pollution solution. Kicking plastic out of sport during Plastic Free July Everyone can play a part in Plastic Free July: the global movement that helps millions of people be part of the solution to plastic pollution. It has inspired over 326 million participants in 177 countries, and you can make a difference by joining the Environment Agency’s plastic and sustainability team and pledging to reduce the amount of avoidable plastic you, your club, team or events use. Plastic in sport I remember watching my mum run her first half marathon and, even aged eight, I was surprised to see everybody throwing their rubbish to the floor as they ran the course. At that age I had already been taught that littering was wrong. Why was it different when you ran a race? Attending rugby matches, aged 12, with my dad, I was yet again surprised to see the amount of litter left behind in the stadium. Are we also not taught to take our litter away with us? But, despite these issues, sport has the power to influence thousands of people that may otherwise not engage with environmental issues. Three billion people watched the Tokyo Olympic games in 2020, for example, which would be a huge platform to showcase sustainability and make it the new norm for people taking part in, and watching, sport. The plastic issue It is estimated that 12 million tonnes of plastic enter our environment each year (Jambeck et al., 2015), which is equivalent to a bin lorry load every minute. Of all the plastic produced, 50% is for single-use plastic items (Garside 2019); things that are used for only a few moments and then thrown away. To me, these are alarming statistics, but I also know I contribute to those statistics. We know that there is a pressing global need to tackle the climate emergency, and everybody has their part to play. Reducing avoidable plastic waste is a great stepping stone in the right direction. By minimising resource consumption, we are reducing our reliance on fossil fuels, directly reducing our carbon footprint. Kicking plastic out of sport While it may seem daunting at first to think about how you or your club can reduce plastic, we must start somewhere. The good news is that we can all do something to reduce our plastic footprint just by thinking small and tackling items one at a time. A great place to start is by making a pledge to reduce use of one item of avoidable plastic, which can help give you focus and a timescale to work towards. The Environment Agency’s plastics and sustainability team has teamed up with the Big Plastic Pledge, run by Olympian Hannah Mills to help everyone achieve their sustainability goals. Please join us by making your own pledge online. It is important to remember that everyone is on a sustainability journey. Nobody is doing it perfectly, but by trying and showing willing, you can make a difference. Through sport, you can encourage others to make a difference, too. As part of the Preventing Plastic Pollution project the plastic and sustainability team has also created some great practical guidance including case studies to help venues, events and grassroot clubs take steps to reduce their avoidable plastic waste. You can download the guidance on the Preventing Plastic Pollution website. Nelson Mandela said: "Sport has the power to change the world. It has the power to inspire, it has the power to unite people in a way that little else does.” So, when will you pledge to kick plastic out of sport?

CSEN has been branching out with its themes this year and we're looking forward to exploring a month of space topics next Spring. Francesca Gosling provides an introduction to the work of the UK Space Agency and why protecting the environment beyond Earth is a top priority. The final frontier. The fifth element. The Aether. The most common synonyms we use to illustrate space convey a sense of mysterious vastness; of an “otherness” far beyond the barriers of our human experience. Even actor William Shatner’s description of bursting through the Earth’s atmosphere on board the Blue Origin space shuttle last year, and catching a glimpse of the other side, as a “cold, dark, black emptiness…deep, enveloping, all-encompassing,” creates the chilling sense of a powerful enormity that we couldn't possibly hope to harness for our own gain. And yet, humanity has accepted the challenge. Why do we need space? For most of us, our daily lives could not function without the satellite systems we use to communicate with each other, navigate, broadcast, work, shop and, on a national level, defend ourselves. Earth observation technologies are increasingly being used to monitor weather patterns and climate change, helping authorities around the world to forecast and plan ahead in the face of natural disasters. Scour the skies on a very clear night and you might see the International Space Station (ISS), home to international astronauts since 2000, zooming (apparently) among the stars. In the UK alone around 47,000 people are employed in the space sector, generating approximately £16.5 million for our economy and contributing to humanity’s commercialisation of the space that surrounds the tiny planet that we call home. But the word “commercialisation” can conjure the image of greedy business giants, consumerism, pollution and general irresponsibility. Often with good reason. What's the damage? Our activities in space over the last 60+ years, while ground-breaking and life-changing, can be messy. Orbital congestion - growing numbers of satellites and spacecraft fighting for room in lower Earth orbit (LEO) - and floating debris are among the biggest challenges facing the space industry. What we define as space debris counts everything from minuscule flecks of paint chipped off spacecraft, to tools dropped by astronauts conducting ISS maintenance work, to whole spent rocket bodies and satellites that have reached the end of their lives. And there are about 130 million pieces of debris up there, whizzing through LEO at a mind-bending 15,700 miles per hour. Crashes at that speed can be catastrophic, and the rapidly rising numbers of spacecraft launching into space makes them ever more likely. With 1,700 satellites launched last year alone, the need to safeguard the space environment for the benefit of everyone on Earth has never been more pressing. What can we do about it? This is why the UK Space Agency – the government’s executive agency sponsored by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy to deliver the National Space Strategy – is leading an international charge on space regulation and investing in technologies dedicated to ensuring the long-term safety and sustainability of space activity. The agency has committed £102 million over the next three years to deliver capabilities to track objects in space and reduce debris, and last month handed an initial £4 million to two companies designing missions that will remove hazardous space junk from outside the atmosphere, known as "active debris removal", or ADR. The UK government has also joined a swathe of countries in promising not to destructively test direct ascent anti-satellite (DA-ASAT) missiles – in other words, not to deliberately blow things up in space – and in June announced its first ever Plan for Space Sustainability that includes a raft of measures to ensure space-focused companies adopt best practise. The hope is to set a global example that not only encourages other space-faring nations to join the cause, but makes the UK a more attractive place to operate and invest, helping to unlock sustainable private investment, grow the space sector, and open up more high-skilled jobs and STEM education opportunities across the country. If our reliance on, and ambitions for, the space sector are to continue skyrocketing (pun only slightly intended) and the UK grows its influence as a global hub of satellite design, manufacturing and launch, we must also lead on efforts to make space a safe and more sustainable place for generations to come.

Dr Pete Falloon, Change Manager and Climate Service Lead for food, farming and natural environment at the Met Office shares insights on the impact that extreme climate changes can have on our food system, and what can be done. Agriculture and food form an important part of the UK’s economy, contributing nearly 10 per cent (£120 billion) of national gross value added in 2019, while the wider food system employed 4.1 million people. International dimensions of the UK food system are also important, as we import nearly half the food we consume (45 per cent in 2019). Alongside complex socio-economic factors, the price and stability of the UK’s food supply are strongly affected by weather and climate variability and change, both domestically and overseas. For example, extreme weather events can have significant direct impacts on crop productivity, agricultural operations and the broader food system activities from farm-to-fork and beyond (transport, processing, storage, retail, disposal and reuse). The Climate Change Committee found that future changes in extreme weather events are one of the highest-risk future shocks to the UK food system, emphasising the need for the whole food chain to be prepared and adaptable. As part of the Met Office’s academic partnership with the Universities of Exeter, Reading, Bristol, Leeds, Oxford and University College London, over the last two years we have been working with Defra, the Food Standards Agency, the UKRI Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council and the Global Food Security programme to understand the impacts of changing climate extremes on the UK food system. Our work, published in Environmental Research Letters, found that changing weather and climate extremes will have significant impacts right across UK food systems. These include: increased variability in supply quantity and quality, which can affect food processing, heat and cold health impacts on workforces across the food chain, disruption to transport and infrastructure, high temperature and humidity impacts on storage and transport practices to avoid spoilage and issues from toxins, changes in consumer demand (such as higher demand for barbecue food, salads and fresh fruit in the summer while supply is also impacted through crop and livestock heat stress). However, most research tends to focus on individual food system activities rather than taking a systematic approach. While there is strong evidence on the impacts of long-term climate trends and extremes on primary food production, there are major knowledge gaps on how these trends affect food system activities between the "farm gate" to the point of consumption, also known as the "missing middle". These knowledge gaps need to be urgently addressed to ensure future climate resilience of the UK food system. We made several recommendations for how research could better support decision-making towards increased resilience to weather and climate shocks in the food sector. These include: a step change in the collection, quality, synthesis and application of a broad range of weather and food chain data and information across time and space, developing tools to include the "missing middle" of food chain and policy discussions that incorporate weather and climate impacts, supporting decision-making to enhance climate resilience across policy domains, given the potential for interactions between policy objectives in different areas. While our paper focused on the direct impacts of weather and climate extremes on the UK food chain, further work is needed to assess adaptations needed in response to these impacts, and their knock-on trade-offs and consequences across sectors. To meet this need, we are planning to hold large, inclusive and interdisciplinary workshops in the autumn, looking at the impacts of weather and climate extremes on the UK food chain and working to scope the possible adaptation and policy responses, and their consequences. The workshops will help identify key issues and challenges, gaps in data and knowledge, and decide priorities for next steps, inform future funding priorities, support decision making in policy/industry, and consider the implications for developing cross food chain scenarios. If you are interested in joining these workshops, please email pete.falloon@metoffice.gov.uk.

The Civil Service Environment Network is celebrating its first anniversary. Read on to find out more and how to get involved. The Civil Service Environment Network (CSEN) was created in October 2019 as a space for all civil servants, regardless of background or role, to share and build knowledge and capability in environmental policy. In one short year, we now have a membership of over 500 individuals. Climate change and environmental issues are increasingly and rightfully becoming part of all our roles. Focus on these challenges needs to be embedded at the heart of Government and permeate through all its operations. To illustrate, achieving net zero emissions by 2050 will demand a systemic change in all departmental policy approaches. The scope of this monumental opportunity includes policy impacting on: energy, industry, transport, finance, agriculture, trade, diplomacy, housing, skills and education… Our aim is to educate, develop and inspire civil servants across four cross-cutting themes – Climate Change; Natural Resources; Biodiversity and Ecosystems; and Sustainable Development – to deepen understanding and spark thinking on core environmental issues. What do we offer? Talks: We host monthly speaker-led events and have welcomed Nick Bridge (FCO Special Representative for Climate Change); Professor Dieter Helm (Chair of the Natural Capital Committee); Professor Tahseen Jafry (Director of the Centre for Climate Justice); and Dr Emily Shuckburgh (Director of Cambridge Net Zero), to name a few. Discussion groups: We host monthly facilitated discussions based around topical podcasts, and accessible news and academic articles. Recent topics include: natural capital and sustainability metrics; environmental justice; and behaviour change. Coffee roulette: Every month, members have the opportunity to pair up to discuss and learn about anything environmental – a great way to grow your network. Career talks: We host career-based sessions with senior civil servants which provide tips on how to forge successful career paths in environmental policy. Volunteering opportunities: We offer opportunities to use your volunteering days, for example, through recent collaboration with City Harvest, a surplus food distributor. Website: CSEN Online hosts our previous talks and resources for members to access and provides a forum for active discussion through blogs and online communities. I'm a Civil Servant. How can I get involved and find out more? Sign up to our monthly mailing list, The Branch; Become a member on our website, CSEN Online; Follow us on Twitter @_csen; or Email us at environment.network@faststream.civilservice.gov.uk Thank you to everyone who has engaged with us so far, which has demonstrated the passion within the Civil Service to tackle these pivotal issues. If you are not currently a member, we sincerely hope you connect to join the conversation and enrich our network’s membership. We also welcome views on how we can shape our offer to meet your needs!

Defra's Environment Analysis Unit (EAU) recently launched the new Outcome Indicator Framework dashboard which shares headline results about environmental change in a user-friendly format. One of the EAU Team Members discusses the new dashboard, and why it is so important to measure progress. Anyone working in environmental science knows that understanding how the environment is faring, and how this has changed over time, is hugely complicated. Everything is interconnected; a change in one part of an ecosystem can have knock-on impacts elsewhere. Defining and measuring what a healthy environment looks like is fraught with difficulty and demands a wealth of data. Environmental indicators allow us to track how well government is driving progress towards the 25 Year Environment Plan goals. This ambitious strategy deals with unwanted impacts arising from daily life, including pollution, waste production, biodiversity loss, and difficulty in accessing green space. The indicator data are fundamental for guiding action in these areas. For example, the first indicator in the ‘Air’ theme shows changes in five key air pollutants. It is clear from this information that particulate matter levels have been dropping since the 90s, but this improvement has recently plateaued. This evidence helped to inform government action to phase out traditional house coal and wet wood . In Defra’s Environment Analysis Unit, we have recently launched our new Outcome Indicator Framework dashboard which shares headline results about environmental change in a user-friendly format. We built the dashboard in house by adapting an existing platform for Sustainable Development Goal indicators . This allowed us to save time on development and take advantage of existing features such as accessibility standards. While more detailed datasets are often available to policy makers via different routes, our dashboard provides easy access to headline messages, charts, data and original source information, and a quick way to cross reference indicators. I have found it a great tool for recalling major findings, summarising pertinent points for a briefing, reusing visualisations, and seeing the big picture across policy areas. Being able to interact with an engaging and responsive site saves time and makes your job that bit easier. Some of the most popular dashboard features are not hugely technical. The ability to hover over a chart and read off the exact value for a year. The ability to click a button to download the entire indicator dataset. My mum even flicked through our indicators so she could tell her friends what I do all day. I recently read an article about why it took until the 1970s to design something as simple, yet incredibly useful, as a wheeled suitcase. This is often cited as a parable for how we tend to ignore the simplest solutions. There was also an element of making assumptions about what people want; men were seen as the main travellers, and they were too macho to want assistance with carrying their heavy bags. In theory, our core intended audience of well qualified scientists and analysts should have no trouble interpreting environmental information. It is natural to wonder if it is worth the effort to present information to them in a user-friendly website rather than in its original report format. However, we are all people, and a document of well over one hundred pages would have anyone reaching for another cup of coffee and considering how necessary it is to wade through the whole thing. Sometimes the simple wins, like being able to find a result in seconds, can make the difference for getting an important message out to as many people as possible. We would love to hear your feedback on our dashboard, or hear about similar projects we could learn from via 25YEPindicators@defra.gov.uk Source: Why is an environmental data dashboard like a wheeled suitcase? - Government Science and Engineering (blog.gov.uk) Contribute to the CSEN Blog If you're interested in contributing to the CSEN Blog, get in touch with us at environment.network@faststream.civilservice.gov.uk . We'd love to hear your ideas!

On December 5th we celebrated World Soils Day. The Soil and Peat team in Defra share a little about their team, the aims of Soil and Peat Policy and their latest achievements with CSEN. Who are the soil and peat team? The Soil and Peat team currently consists of 28 policy professionals, scientists and analysts that feed into policy advise on soil health, peat restoration and peat protection. The Soil and Peat teams form part of the wider team that sits within Access, Landscapes, Peat and Soils division within in Natural Environment, Trees and Landscapes directorate. What do we cover? We provide evidenced based, policy advice and analysis on improving and protecting soil health for all soil types and land uses, including remediating contaminated land, restoring and protecting peatlands, encouraging sustainable and cost-effective practices on agricultural land for both mineral and organic (peat) soil. What are we aiming to achieve and why? Soil is a rich ecosystem and when healthy it delivers key ecosystem services and wider benefits and outcomes such as increased biodiversity, carbon storage, food production and flood mitigation. However, soil degradation, caused by poor soil management or inappropriate land use, can reduce the ability of soil to perform these vital functions with high costs to society. Soil degradation in England and Wales costs between £0.9bn and £1.4bn a year due to remedial action, loss of productivity and the negative impact on rivers, water management and water quality. Peatlands are also an iconic feature of our landscapes. They are the UK’s largest stores of carbon and provide vital ecosystem services, such as supplying over a quarter of the UK’s drinking water, decreasing flood risk, and providing food and shelter for rare wildlife. When peat is extracted or degraded, the carbon stored inside the bog is released as carbon dioxide, contributing to climate change. Peat extraction also degrades the state of the peat mass which threatens biodiversity and the efficacy of their ecosystem services across a larger area. To address this challenge, the 25 Year Environment Plan sets out the government’s commitment to achieving sustainably managed soil by 2030 in England; and restoring vulnerable peatlands and ending peat use in horticultural products by 2030. Improved soil health also supports the government’s ambitions for Net Zero, Levelling Up, Building Back Greener and improved productivity. To help achieve this, we are currently developing a Soil Health Action Plan for England that will take a natural capital approach to improving soil health by considering the numerous biological, chemical and physical attributes of soil. It will support sustainable management of soil by bringing together a range of actions to improve and protect the health of our soil. This will include delivering key ecosystem services and wider benefits and outcomes such as increased biodiversity, carbon storage, food production and flood mitigation. It will also provide certainty to farmers and land managers around the acceptable condition of all soil types. The Soil Health Action Plan for England will provide a single approach to achieving multiple outcomes and driving improved soil health across England, whilst complementing the England Peat and Trees Action Plans launched earlier this year. The England Peat Action Plan sets out the government’s long-term vision for the management, protection and restoration of our peatlands, so that they provide a wide range of benefits to wildlife, people and the planet. To implement this vision, the plan includes: - the announcement of the Nature for Climate Peatland Grant Scheme through the Nature for Climate Fund; - a commitment to end the use of peat in the amateur horticulture sector - a new spatial map of England’s peatlands The action plan is part of a series of announcements on nature and climate and sits alongside the England Trees Action Plan. How is soil policy linked up across different Policies and departments? Soil is interlinked with numerous policy areas within Defra, including Air Quality, Water Quality, Forestry, Flood Management, and Biodiversity among others. Soil policy is also linked to cross-department ambitions such as Net Zero, Planning, and Levelling Up. Net Zero is a key focus for soils – particularly regarding restoration of peatlands and keeping the carbon locked in, and land use planning. The potential for sequestering carbon on agricultural soil is recognised through sustainable land management practices sequestering and storing carbon on mineral soil. Improved soil health is also key for resilience and adaptation. Soil health has an important role to play in resilience and adaptation to climate change. Healthy soils have good soil structures, allowing for the infiltration and storage of water, helping mitigate the impacts of extreme weather events such as flooding and drought. Appropriate and cost effective soil management that helps to maintain soil structure is recognised through our policy decision making and planning. What are the key challenges we face? Protecting and improving soil health is very context specific depending on soil type, land use, and parameters such as bedrock geology and local climates. It also interlinks within a myriad of policy areas where a careful balance of outcomes is required – eg balancing food production with environment protection. New emerging technologies, production models and land management practices are presenting exciting opportunities for improving the health of our soils while delivering broader government objectives. However, we need to ensure the evidence base supporting policy development is robust and long-term impacts, within these complex systems, are understood. Developing baseline data is essential for monitoring improvements to soil health. We are developing metrics that complement different monitoring schemes under Natural Capital Ecosystem Assessment programme, and within Forest Research and Natural England to ensure they are linked up and there’s consistency in how we obtain and map the data across all ecosystems and habitats. Assessing the ‘true’ value of soil in addition to its GDP contribution is also another challenge we are undertaking Achievements this year…. - Publication of the England Peat Action Plan (18 May 2021) for the management, protection and restoration of our upland and lowland peatlands, so that they deliver benefits for nature and the climate. - Written Ministerial Statement regarding the development of the Soil Health Action Plan for England, bringing together a range of actions to improve and protect the health of our soil. - Nature for Climate Peatland Grant Scheme that provides funding to restore peatlands in the uplands and lowlands of England. - New Rules for burning on Blanket Bog to prevent the burning of heather and other vegetation on protected blanket bog habitats. - Horticultural peat consultation that is planned for end of the year, which will consider measures to end the retail sale of peat and peat containing products. - Lowland Agricultural Peat Taskforce , set up in early 2021 to co-ordinate work already underway that encourages sustainable farming of lowland peatlands and to recommend new solutions. - An imminent review of Defra’s code of practice for the sustainable use of soils on construction sites that provides relevant advice on the use of soil in construction projects. Enquiries: Soilhealth@defra.gov.uk Contribute to the CSEN Blog If you're interested in contributing to the CSEN Blog, get in touch with us at environment.network@faststream.civilservice.gov.uk . We'd love to hear your ideas!

CSEN Conference 2023 Call for Papers The Civil Service Environment Network (CSEN) is delighted to announce that our first conference will be taking place in early 2023. What is CSEN? Established in 2019, and now with over 4,100 members across 120 departments and agencies, CSEN is the largest group of UK civil servants interested in environment and climate policy. We offer monthly talks, discussion groups, and learning content designed to educate and inspire our members. We are run by a committee of 42 dedicated volunteers, and our senior sponsors are David Hill, Director General for Environment, Rural and Marine in DEFRA, and Lee McDonough, Director General for Net Zero Strategy and International in BEIS. About the Conference The conference will be unique, bringing together civil servants from across the UK for a day of talks, panels, networking and awards in central London. It will be an opportunity for staff networks, professions, departmental teams, and supporting organisations to showcase their work. What we are looking for CSEN is keen to demonstrate the breadth and diversity of work taking place in this space. There will be opportunities for individual and group presentations, panel membership, and smaller spotlight opportunities designed for early career colleagues. We welcome contributions on all topics relevant to environment and climate policy, at all levels of government. We’re especially keen to showcase insight from across the whole Civil Service, as well as the core environment and climate departments of Defra and BEIS. If you’d like some ideas, here’s a few: ● HMG’s 25 Year Environment Plan, Net Zero Strategy, Green Finance Strategy ● Climate Change and Climate Solutions ● Natural Resources Management and Resource Innovation ● Forestry, Biodiversity and Ecosystems Management ● Energy Security and Decarbonisation ● Sustainable Development and Future Green Growth ● Environmental Alliance, Community, and Network Building ● Climate Diplomacy ● Digital Sustainability ● Civil Service Careers in Environment and Sustainability Submission of abstracts If you would like to represent your work at the CSEN conference, please submit an abstract of no more than 200 words alongside a brief biography of no more than 100 words to environment.network@faststream.civilservice.gov.uk. This is an opportunity to share your passion for all things environment with like minded civil servants, so we encourage you to think creatively! The deadline is 6pm on September 30th 2022. Submissions will be reviewed by our conference team and successful speakers will be contacted in the following weeks. Contribute to the CSEN Blog If you're interested in contributing to the CSEN Blog, get in touch with us at environment.network@faststream.civilservice.gov.uk. We'd love to hear your ideas!

Wondering how you can effectively build environmental sustainability into development policies? Jamieson Temple, of the official development assistance team for International Biodiversity and Climate at Defra, highlights the priorities to focus on. Sustainable development was defined in the World Conservation Strategy report 1991 as: "The integration of conservation and development to ensure that modifications to the planet do indeed secure the survival and wellbeing of all people”. Sustainable development deals with the attainment of human development goals while preserving ecological systems, and limiting negative impact on the environment and resources in achieving these goals. This is based on the principle that many of today’s environmental problems and risks are largely a consequence of the unsustainable consumption of natural resources, and the mismanagement of waste products. While we can summarise that sustainable development focuses on "improving the quality of life for all", this concept offers different things to different people, as it is not only about environmental protection, but also related to sustained economic growth and social equity. To achieve environmental sustainability, policies must prioritise the following elements. Reduce gender gaps politically, economically, and socially so that access to resources is protected. The Human Development Report (2003) states: "Gender equality is at the core of whether the goals will be achieved-from improving health and fighting disease to reducing poverty and mitigating hunger, to expanding education and lowering child mortality, to increasing access to safe water, to ensuring environmental sustainability." Ensure equity and inter-generational equality is at the foundation of sustainability. This means giving all people similar rights, opportunities, and access to all forms of community capital. This is included in Article 3 of the Climate Change Convention, which states: "Parties should protect the climate system for the benefit of present and future generations of humankind, on the basis of equity and in accordance with their common but differentiated responsibilities." Preserve indigenous territorial rights that protect biodiversity and local culture, including knowledge and resource. The World Summit on Sustainable Development at Copenhagen in 1995 recognised that "social development is central to the needs and aspirations of people throughout the world and to the responsibilities of governments and all sectors of civil society." Developed by the United Nations Development Programme, the Human Development Index measures quality of life and has brought into focus the widening gap between the countries of the North and the South. A wealthy minority of the world’s population is consuming at an unsustainably high level, causing disproportionate damage to global ecosystems, while protecting only their local environment. A poor, larger, and rapidly growing proportion of the world’s population is being forced, through poverty, to degrade the natural resource base on which it is directly dependent. Developing countries have sought to rectify perceived asymmetries in international law regarding resource access, distribution, and consumption, calling for the creation of a new international economic order. In the South, the key environmental problems are poverty and underdevelopment, and other issues directly related to these two phenomena. More recently, developing countries have emphasised the link between third world poverty, environmental degradation, and northern consumption. For developing countries, resource control and unequal distribution through financial and other structural levers by the North, to maintain industrialised countries' lifestyles, are perceived as the major sources of the widespread poverty and underdevelopment in the South, as well as major contributors to environmental degradation. While developed countries are at loggerheads on what should be solved first - ozone layer depletion, climate change, biodiversity conservation, or the asymmetries of the international financial system - these all have deep linkages with the social and environmental problems of the South. The inextricable links to the consumption and globalisation patterns of developed countries in impacting the environment highlights the shared nature of global sustainable development goals.

Welcome to The Branch Editors Blog. We’re so happy to see CSCEN growing at pace, and our newsletter is rapidly filling with events, updates and opportunities. We’ve moved our monthly wrap into this rolling blog , so that you can catch up on our top news and conversations from members of the CSCEN committee every month. March edition March has been another busy month for CSCEN. We have been celebrating (and recovering from) the first ever Civil Service Climate and Environment Conference, which was held by the network in London on 21 February. As well as being a fantastic event in itself (with 700 attendees, more than 70 speakers and over 40 stalls), the conference has had a huge impact on the wider network: our membership increased by record levels across January and February with 1,500 new joiners, bringing our total membership to 7,500. We received constructive feedback on the conference, which we’ll be factoring in to our planning of future events, so thanks to everyone who made time to send us their thoughts and experiences of the day. If you weren’t able to attend the conference or would like to re-visit some of events, many of the sessions were recorded and we are in the process of making the recordings available on our website. You can watch our ministerial panel discussion and circular economy sessions now, and look out for further additions, coming soon. This month, we’ve held two fascinating events (a talk and discussion group) themed around Green Finance. This is a rapidly growing sector that recognises the need to integrate climate and environmental factors into financial products and decision making in order to tackle the impacts of climate change. "Greening finance" is one of the government's top priorities and is key to transitioning to net zero, but it can present challenges for traditional approaches to financial investing. The talk was hosted at the Old Admiralty Building in London (which also included 250 people attending online) where three fantastic speakers from Defra, Finance Earth and the Green Finance Institute came together to discuss their work. The talk covered the governments green finance strategy, cross sector work to accelerate the transition to a green economy as well as some example projects. You can watch the recording online. Linking back to our previous theme of Green Utopias, a new episode of the Environment Deep Dive Podcast launched this month featuring a fascinating discussion of protopias - culturally, socially and environmentally engaged designs for our future world. December Edition Happy New Year, CSEN members! As we round off another year – and what a year it has been – everybody on the CSEN committee would like to thank you all for your support and involvement with the network this year. Over the last months we have more than doubled our membership, created and published more content on climate and environment policy across government than ever before, secured our first sponsorships to help grow our events, and planning is well underway for the inaugural CSEN Climate and Environment Conference in February. None of this would be possible without your continued interest, your thoughtful feedback, and the contributions you make to our shared values of bringing like-minded colleagues together from across the Civil Service to empower each other and make climate policy a priority. Thank you. We hope you’ve managed to take some restful time off over the festive period, whatever that means for you. If you’re looking for a gentle, yet thought-provoking, way to ease back in, have a read of our latest blog from the Plastic Champions Network on why intersectionality is and must be central to the environmental sector. For more reading, we kicked off our new “pick of the policies” blog series – inspired by the brilliant speaker applications received for the CSEN Conference – with an exploration of what the Welsh Government is doing to address emission levels linked to social care as part of its Net Zero 2030 Public Sector ambition. Under our December theme of “Education and Skills” – neatly summarised in this month’s Environment 101 – we published our Deep Dive podcast featuring Phil Korbel and Will Gibb from the Carbon Literacy Project discussing how education can aid the fight against climate change and grow the green economy. At our December talk, we heard from experts at the Department for Education and University College London’s recently launched Centre for Climate Change and Sustainability Education about work underway to provide sustainability-focused learning materials to teachers and help the UK become the world’s leading education sector in climate change by 2030. Our volunteering opportunity of the month showcased Good Gym : the programme helping you find active local volunteering gigs that will get you moving. Perfect to help burn off those holiday calories. Checking in with our Offshoots series, we hosted a short talk with the British Ecological Society discussing what governments around the world can do to help develop an international guide to halt and reverse nature loss through protected areas. See the society’s report on protected areas , showing how 30% of land and sea in the UK can be protected for nature and biodiversity by 2030. In January, we are making a fresh and inspirational start by exploring the concept of Green Utopia. Watch this space for more in 2023! November Edition This month was Trees and Forests month, and for the self-proclaimed tree-huggers amongst us, brought a good opportunity to geek out. If you don't yet consider yourself a tree-hugger, our Environment 101 videos might be a good place to start. We also had two fascinating and complimentary speakers for the November Trees and Forests talk - the Director of the England Tree Planting programme at Defra and Jenny Schofield from the Woodland Trust. Both emphasised the necessary use of partnerships to promote the UK's trees and forest agenda and reach Net Zero targets. Both speakers received many informed (and challenging!) questions from our virtual and in-person attendees. The CSEN Surge and Innovation team launched their new Offshoots series , with the first event launching on December 5th - Nature Recovery, Global Biodiversity Conference and 30x30. November's ' All of Government' podcast , featuring the three CSEN co-chairs, unpacked how the UK Government can collaborate on environmental policy, how we can coordinate different departments on joint goals, and what can be done to overcome the challenges of cross-government working. The Civil Service Climate and Environment Conference is getting closer and closer. We had an incredible 130 submissions, and if you're still waiting to hear from us on this you should do so over the next few days. We've also had a huge number of people volunteer to help at the conference - as always we're so happy to have the chance to bring CSEN members together. Stick with us next month as we start to explore Education and Skills with our usual offering of learning materials, events and blogs! October Edition With the changes that have been taking place at record-breaking speed across government over the last weeks, this month’s climate diplomacy theme could not be more timely. During her premiership, Liz Truss’s plans for solving the energy crisis put fracking back on the news agenda, Just Stop Oil protestors made headlines with a series of paint-throwing statements targeting internationally recognised businesses and monuments, and King Charles’ ascent to the throne raised questions about how he will continue his work championing and campaigning for the environment. To tackle this broad topic, we’ve brought you two Environment 101 videos, covering the basics of climate diplomacy, the Kyoto Protocol and the Paris Agreement. As many of you prepare for next month’s COP27 in Egypt, we also delve into the legacy of the international meeting and how it works. COP27 inevitably became a key theme for this month’s panel talk ; another successful hybrid with more than 230 people joining in-person and online. We heard from the UK Lead Climate Negotiator Archie Young, environmental economist Professor Elizabeth Robinson, and the FCDO’s Head of Climate Diplomacy Andrew Francis about the challenges that different parties will bring to the table in Egypt, and the importance of including a diversity of roles in a national delegation. Our speakers discussed the disparity between the effects of pollution and climate change on human health in more and less affluent countries, whether richer countries should be leading a shift in how growth (particularly in energy and agricultural sectors) is perceived and, ultimately, how climate change issues cannot be separated from the energy and cost of living crises. In other news, our latest blog on “why we need to clean our act up in space” touches on how our relationship with other nations can be leveraged to improve sustainability in our exploitation of space. More on this next year during our Beyond Earth month. We hope to meet many of you in person at our inaugural CSEN Conference in February 2023. Submissions to present at the conference have now closed, with a massive 129 submissions from across government. Details on how to book your place will follow soon, so keep an eye on our newsletters and conference page. Fran September Edition This month has been another big one for CSEN: in the last four weeks alone we have jumped from 4,500 to 5,000 members! For those of us who have been with CSEN for several years, this number seems pretty astonishing and is testament to the brilliant work of the CSEN committee, who volunteer up to 10% of their working time to deliver everything we offer our members, from our website to our events to our newsletters. So thank you to the team – and welcome to all our new members! As co-chair, I’m humbled by the speed of our membership growth, and even more so when I reflect on everything we’ve delivered this month, as well as what’s next on the agenda. In early September, the events unit travelled to Defra and Natural England’s Bristol office to deliver our second ever hybrid event. We were joined by three brilliant speakers: professors Daniela Schmidt and Steve Simpson from the University of Bristol, as well as James Smith from Defra Marine. As well as a fascinating talk that offered a diversity of perspectives on the topic of oceans, we were thrilled to host a networking lunch afterwards, for all 55 CSEN members who joined in person. Delicious sandwiches, fruit, and snacks were kindly provided by PolicyBristol – so a big thank you to them. Mid-month, our connections unit ran the climate anchor career workshops in collaboration with HMG’s policy profession. It was wonderful to see so many of you there, and we can’t wait to share our findings with you. Most recently, we travelled back to London for our ‘All of Government’ panel event, kindly supported by our partners Kin + Carta. We often hear the criticism in government that we work in silos and don’t talk to our counterparts in other departments enough. Our panellists shared brilliant insights into the power of collaboration, especially at times of crises, from their perspectives in local government, Defra, and DLUHC. A recording of the talk will be available on the CSEN website soon. You can find out more about cross-government collaboration in our content team’s brilliant Environment 101 series . I look forward to seeing you at our October events soon! Charlotte August Edition Hi CSEN and welcome to the first edition of The Branch Editors Blog. It’s felt like an incredibly long month. Despite being summer, and summer recess, the work hasn’t stopped. The exiting news this month is that CSEN has reached a huge 4500 members , meaning we now represent 1% of the Civil Service! Oceans and rivers has been our theme of the month, but our August talk hasn’t happened yet so there’s still time to join us online or in Defra’s Horizon House on 5 September, where we’ll hear from experts from the University of Bristol and the DD for International Marine Environment at Defra. Our discussion group went ahead last week with huge numbers attending – thanks to everyone that shared in the session. Our discussion groups are designed to be a safe forum where you can share some successes and air your frustrations with Government’s work towards our themes. “None of us can survive without a healthy ocean, whether we’re in landlocked cities or living on the coastline itself”. With the worrying backdrop of water companies in the UK pumping extremely damaging raw sewage into the sea around the south coast, it was an important month for our Environment Deep Dive podcast . Justine Solomons-Moat from CSENs Content Team sat down with Hugo Tagholm, Chief Executive of Surfers Against Sewage. Right at the end of July we also hosted a pilot focus group for the developing Climate and Environment Career Anchor. We’re working with the policy profession to develop the career anchor, which has been commissioned by Head of Policy Profession Tamara Finkelstein. CSEN members have vast and valuable knowledge of working in climate and environment roles in the Civil Service, and I’d encourage you to sign up to the next workshops on 13 and 20 September. Our Environment 101 videos this month set the context for oceans and rivers, but also veered off-theme to continue our exploration of digital sustainability . NFTs, cryptocurrencies and blockchain might be headline grabbing terms, but their impact on our climate and environment is often overlooked. As always you can catch up with the Environment 101 videos on our YouTube channel, the Environment Deep Dive Podcast wherever you get your podcasts, and keep an eye on our blog for recordings of August’s events. See you all in September! Rebecca Contribute to the CSEN Blog If you're interested in contributing to the CSEN Blog, get in touch with us at environment.network@faststream.civilservice.gov.uk . We'd love to hear your ideas!

We are recruiting an extra member to join the CSEN committee as part of our Conference Team. The inaugural Civil Service Environment Conference will bring together civil servants from across the UK, in a one-day session of events, networking and awards in early 2023. The Conference Team is responsible for planning and executing the conference, including sourcing speakers, stallholders, and sponsors - as well as coordinating with other CSEN teams to deliver a high-quality event. We are recruiting for an additional member of the existing Conference Team, as work picks up and we move closer to conference delivery. What roles are available? Conference Team The existing team sits within the CSEN Committee’s Events Unit. Desirable (but not essential) experience: ● Events planning and management and/or, ● Sponsorship/partnerships/sales ● Logistics Please note: The Conference will be held in London; therefore, we are ideally looking for a team member based in London, or with easy access to central Westminster. You will be required to attend the conference in person, and to support as needed in person ahead of the event. However, please do not be discouraged from applying if you are based elsewhere in the UK Eligibility and time commitment? CSEN is open to all civil servants – and so is our committee. You need to be able to spend approximately 5% of your working week on CSEN and show flexibility at peak times. It is likely that in early 2023, especially in the weeks leading up to the conference, this time commitment will increase. Previous committee members have agreed with their line 1 managers that CSEN counts as their corporate objective, so you may be able to do the same. The CSEN Committee meets once a month to coordinate activities across workstreams and take collective decisions. Each team also meets on a regular basis away from the central committee. The role will start from the beginning of August 2022 and will run until April 2023 when the committee will hand over to the 2023-24 committee. When you accept a role on the committee, you are expected to commit to this role until April 2023 (unless there are extenuating circumstances, such as leaving the civil service). How do I apply? To apply for a committee role, please complete the EOI form here by 23:59 on Wednesday 27th July. The form includes the following questions (150 word limit per question): ● Why are you interested in joining the CSEN committee? ● What relevant knowledge, skills and/or experience would you bring to the roles? ● How would you shape and deliver the roles? Short, informal chats may be held to help select committee members. Any questions? If you have any questions, please get in touch via the CSEN mailbox: environment.network@faststream.civilservice.gov.uk.