With the recent 26th United Nations Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP26) events, the need to achieve net zero is increasingly at the forefront of industrial and government strategies.  To meet these ambitious targets, the transport sector will need to draw on skills and experience across a multitude of sectors. The panel will discuss the emerging challenges in securing our future energy supply, integrating advanced vehicle technologies into our public transport systems, how we can stimulate the necessary changes in public mobility behaviours, and how all of these issues need to be addressed as a single system-wide problem to really achieve our net-zero transport system ambitions.

Professor Juliana Early, Head of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering - Queen’s University Belfast 

Professor Ruth Hunter, Professor, School of Medicine, Dentistry and Biomedical Sciences -  Queen’s University Belfast 

Dr Robert Best, Director of Engineering - Wrightbus 

Professor John Barry, Professor of Green Political Economy, School of History, Anthropology, Philosophy and Politics - Queen’s University Belfast 

Generation Z will be the generation that will be most acutely impacted by Climate Change if no action is taken. “Zoomers” who have grown up on the internet and who are accustomed to the fast paced technological revolution have spoken up and they are now demanding action from leaders and not just words.  Global ‘30 Under 30 Environmental Educators’ and one of the UK’s Young Climate Ambassadors at the COP26 conference in Glasgow is joined by Lord Mayor of Belfast, Kate Nicholl to discuss the Gen Z perspective on the impact the outcomes from COP26 will make.

This session aims to explore the role of data and collaboration in accelerating effective climate action, and how they are key to unlocking the benefits of building a net-zero society for organisations and at a local and regional level.

Professor Neil J Hewitt is Ulster University’s Chair in Energy and  is Head of School, Belfast School of Architecture and Built Environment as well Director of the Centre for Sustainable Technologies. He was a visiting Professor of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and is a World Renewable Energy Network “Pioneer”. He has attracted over £22M in external funding including EPSRC, EU and international sources. With over 140 publications ranging from large scale power generation to heat pumps and demand side management, he has graduated 17 PhD students and is the UK representative in a number of International Energy Agency Heat Pumping Tasks.

Hear from the CEO and Founder of CryptoClear, Johnny McCamley on the harsh impact that Cash has on our planet and why the future is looking greener for Crypto and Central Bank Digital Currencies(CBDCs) replacing cash all together.

Mills Selig and guests will discuss the challenges and opportunities in the climate tech industry, offer advice on realising your climate tech ideas and we will profile one of our #GreenTech clients disrupting and revolutionising within their own market.

Lunch Break

Our town and city centres are undergoing a massive transformation, with all sectors of the business community adapting to a post-pandemic world and footfall still lower than pre-pandemic levels. Yet our towns and city centres remain a major contributor to climate change with estimates from the UN Environmental Programme suggesting cities are responsible for 75 percent of global CO2 emissions, with transport and buildings being among the largest contributors. 

If we are to meet new climate targets whilst balancing the need for a vibrant city centre economy, what does our future town and city centres look like and how will technology enable this change?

Knowing where we are is the only way to work out how we get to where we need to be by 2030, and data is key in that process. Increased demands for transparent reporting on sustainability and ESG mean companies need to have credible data to inform their decision-making and avoid greenwashing claims. In this session, the importance of data in measuring and monitoring sustainability and ESG will be explored with four panellists. Chair, Liam McEvoy from SustainIQ will look at how data can help uncover intelligence hidden within a company and enable it to be used to make both strategic and operational decisions about all aspects of ESG. Along with a panel from Business in the Community, Gilbert-Ash, SHS Group and Civica, he will discuss the benefits of tech in tackling the climate crisis, while not overlooking the social and environmental challenges it can bring.

Climate Tech has witnessed unprecedented amounts of investment over the past few years. But has the rush of investor dollars over-hyped the space or is climate tech the real deal! Our guests will discuss some of the biggest bets being made in Climate Tech and what we could be seeing in everyday life in 10 years.

With many cutting edge technologies in development, it is inevitable that many will not make it into the mainstream. So how much of the hype around Climate Tech is aspiration and how much of it will actually become ubiquitous and practical to wider society. Are we placing too much hope on technology to deliver the results needed to make a significant difference to reduce the impacts of climate change?