Bradford pupils showcase net zero vision at the University of Bradford
Bradford school pupils have put their creative and scientific talents to the test in a Dragon’s Den-style competition at the University of Bradford, pitching their ideas for how a fictional “Net Zero Island” could operate with no carbon emissions.
SkillsHouse Careers and Technical Education team supported the inter-school competition along with local businesses Northern Gas Networks (NGN), Yorkshire Water, N-Gen Energy, Bechtle as well as Bradford Council’s Sustainability Service. The challenge saw teams of Year 9 students (aged 13–14) develop concepts for sustainable living on an island with a population of 30,000.
Teams from Bradford Academy, Beckfoot School, Titus Salt School, Bingley Grammar School and Carlton Bolling explored how the island could generate energy for heating and cooking, power transport and manage waste and water – all without creating carbon emissions.
Students are given six weeks to develop a business proposal and come up with ways to help their designated islands reach a Net Zero target.
Each team then pitched their vision to a judging panel made up of NGN’s Rebecca Croft, Steph Renshaw from Yorkshire Water, Jane Herbert of N-Gen Energy, David Siggins of Bechtle and Barry Cusack of Bradford Council.
Beckfoot School was crowned the winner after impressing judges with a confident, well-structured presentation. Each team member took a turn to outline different aspects of island life, including ideas for incentivising sustainable behaviours and maximising the use of natural resources before facing questions from the judges.
Jane Herbert of N-Gen Energy, which is planning to build a hydrogen production facility off Bowling Back Lane in Bradford, said:
“Taking part in the competition not only increased pupils’ understanding of how we can live more sustainably, it also helped them build organisational skills and confidence in presenting. It’s important for industry representatives to support initiatives like Net Zero Island which encourage the development of these vital skills for pupils’ future careers.”
Alex Lawson, Net Zero Educator at Northern Gas Networks, said:
“We’re delighted to have been a key organisation in the planning and running of the third Net Zero Island Project in Bradford.
“The students approached their challenge with professionalism and determination, with each team presenting their own findings and promoting some interesting innovations to get their islands to Net Zero.
“The final decision was extremely tough, and every team should be incredibly proud of the hard work they had committed to the project. We are already planning the event for next academic year, and hope to see many more enthusiastic students ready to tackle the challenge of reaching Net Zero.”
Barry Cusack, Sustainability Programmes Delivery Manager at Bradford Council added:
“We saw some amazing engineering ideas and nature-based solutions, all of which could help us move towards a greener and healthier future. The pitches were all of a very high standard and it was clear from feedback just how much the young people had learned about sustainability and how much they’d enjoyed the experience.”
Steph Renshaw, Lead Ecologist at Yorkshire Water said
“All the teams did fantastic this year with such great research into the different topics and it was a very close competition. It was brilliant to see their various innovative ideas as well as using things like Sustainable Urban Drainage Systems (SUDS) to achieve net zero, which also have added benefits for nature.”
The UK Government has set a target of achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2050 in order to slow the pace of climate change and minimise its impacts on people, places, businesses and nature. Bradford District has set a more ambitious local target of reaching net zero carbon by 2038.
About N-Gen:
N-Gen develops, builds and operates green hydrogen production facilities and associated infrastructure. Working with clients who are large gas users, including transport operators, manufacturing and the food industry, N-Gen helps customers meet decarbonisation goals and legal obligations by switching to cleaner fuels.