Cambridge City Leaders: Turning Climate Ambition into Action
10 March 2026 - Catherine Oakley, Cambridge City Council and Lucy Bruzzone, Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership, reflect on how Cambridge’s city leaders are working together to turn climate ambition into coordinated, system‑wide action.
Cambridge City leaders come together around the ambition for a net zero climate resilient city and to share thinking on how we can work together to align innovation and future growth, and the leadership needed to drive systemic change. This is not simply about reducing emissions project by project, though they play an integral part. It is about reshaping how a city grows, how decisions are made, how innovation is supported, and how people, skills, finance and infrastructure come together to deliver lasting impact. Cambridge’s response to climate change is rooted in collaboration across local government, business, education, research and innovation. It is centred on the position that cities can be powerful agents of change.
That shared ambition sits at the heart of the Cambridge City Leaders Climate Change Group, convened by Cambridge City Council, the University of Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership (CISL), Cambridge Zero and Cambridgeshire County Council. The Group brings together leaders from across the city with a common vision:
"A Net Zero Cambridge: By leveraging shared expertise and leadership, we collaborate and champion innovative impactful sustainability initiatives that drive systemic change, accelerating Cambridge’s path to net zero and climate resilience."
At its most recent meeting, around 50 leaders came together, including from both Universities, Addenbrookes Hospital, Cambridge Science Park, Bidwells and Cambridge Chambers of Commerce, and PEM, to name a few, to share updates and explore the links between growth, innovation and a sustainable future for Cambridge. With special thanks to our insightful speakers: Cambridge Zero, Cambridge Cleantech, Carbon13, CISL Canopy and the Greater Cambridge Shared Planning Service.
A city uniquely placed to lead
Cambridge has long been recognised globally as a centre for research, discovery and entrepreneurship. What makes the city distinctive today is how that capability is being mobilised to address climate change at a city scale.
Worldclass research sits alongside fast growing startups. Local government works hand in hand with educators, investors and businesses. Climate action here is not confined to individual initiatives. It is increasingly embedded across systems: from planning and infrastructure to skills, finance and innovation.
Across the city, progress is happening on multiple fronts at once. Clean energy and low carbon heat projects are being developed. Colleges and schools are upgrading buildings and fleets. Businesses are redesigning operations for efficiency and resilience. Innovators are creating solutions that address emissions, nature and resource use together.
Cambridge’s transition to net zero is being powered in part by an increasingly joined up climate innovation ecosystem - one that connects ideas to investment, pilots to policy, and local action to global impact.
From innovation to impact
Cambridge is home to a dense network of organisations supporting climate innovation at every stage. Cambridge Zero, through a partnership project, is helping to visualise the city’s climate innovation landscape, mapping hundreds of companies in the Cambridge Climate Innovation Ecosystem already working on climate solutions and the programmes that support them. Networks such as Cambridge Cleantech are strengthening routes from innovation to investment, connecting founders with corporates, researchers and funders through venture days and climate tech communities.
Venture builders like Carbon13 are ensuring that new companies are created with climate impact at their core requiring every start‑up to develop a robust “carbon case” alongside their commercial strategy. CISL’s Canopy Innovation Community supports entrepreneurs through accelerators, pilot programmes and corporate partnerships, helping promising ideas become scalable solutions for a resilient, net zero economy.
Together, these organisations form a powerful pipeline: from research to start‑up, from pilot to scale, from ambition to delivery.
Embedding sustainability into growth
Through planning policy, such as the emerging Greater Cambridge Local Plan, and place-based leadership, Cambridge is increasingly embedding climate mitigation and adaptation into the fabric of future development. Net zero buildings, climate resilient design, water efficiency, biodiversity and flood management are no longer treated as addons, but as foundations for sustainable prosperity.
This alignment of economic growth with climate responsibility sends a clear signal: Cambridge is choosing a future where competitiveness and sustainability go hand in hand.
From projects to systems change
Across the city, organisations are moving beyond isolated initiatives towards systemic change — rethinking procurement, creating space for pilots and testbeds, clearly articulating innovation challenges, and building partnerships that allow new solutions to be tested locally and scaled globally.
There is also growing recognition that people power this transition. Creating pathways for young people into climate careers, opening access to the innovation ecosystem, and investing in green skills will be essential to sustaining momentum over the long term.
A city moving together
The Cambridge City Leaders Climate Change Group exists to ensure this momentum continues and accelerates.
By bringing together local government, business, education and innovation, the Group helps align effort, share learning and champion bold action. It provides a space where challenges can be tackled collectively and opportunities turned into collaborations and tangible progress.
Cambridge’s journey to net zero will not be driven by any single organisation. It will be shaped by collaboration, leadership and a shared belief that cities can deliver meaningful climate action at scale.
Highlights from the latest City Leaders Climate Change Group meeting
The most recent meeting of the Group showcased the breadth of action already underway across Cambridge, including:
- A water source heat pump project at Darwin College, demonstrating low carbon heat solutions in a historic city centre
- A pioneering renewable energy solar park energy solar park to power electric bin lorries for Cambridge and South Cambridgeshire
- Development of a Local Skills Improvement Plan and the Included programme , strengthening pathways into green and climate related careers
- Integrated solar and heat solutions to reduce overall energy demand
- Sustainability upgrades at Hills Road Sixth Form College, including EV minibuses and air source heat pumps
- Reflections from COP30, alongside updates from local businesses, councils and innovation partners
Discussions also explored how Cambridge can further strengthen its climate innovation ecosystem — from supporting startups and scaling pilots, to further embedding sustainability in planning policy and creating clearer pathways for young people into green careers. Breakout discussions highlighted the importance of process innovation alongside technology, the value of organisations clearly communicating their challenges to innovators, and the need for continued investment in skills and collaboration.
Get involved
Cambridge is strengthening its position as a leading hub where climate solutions, policy and innovation intersect. The City Leaders Climate Change Group is open to organisations committed to supporting Cambridge’s transition to a net zero, climate resilient future.
If your organisation is working on addressing climate change in Cambridge we invite you to get involved. The group meets quarterly, and the next meeting, 29th April 2026, will focus on building the skills needed to support sustainable growth and climate action. To find out more about attending future meetings or to propose a topic for discussion at a meeting email catherine.oakley@cambridge.gov.uk