Emily Morrison, JUST Centre Impact Lead, has given evidence to the House of Lords National Resilience Committee, highlighting the critical role that inclusive, accessible data and commmunity practice-building must play in strengthening the UK’s ability to respond to climate risks and other national threats.
Joining up datasets
Speaking to the Committee, Emily emphasised that while vast amounts of relevant data already exist, much of it is not currently usable for real-world emergency and resilience planning.
Emily outlined the JUST Centre’s work to address this gap through our forthcoming Net Zero Readiness Mapping Tool, which will bring together hyperlocal datasets on how people live, travel, consume and work in UK regions in a single, integrated framework.
Emily said: “Too often the data we need to coordinate an emergency response to climate impacts or other threats is already available - but it’s not layered and accessible in a way that will enable easy use by first responders, leaders and community representatives as part of a whole society response.
“The JUST centre’s forthcoming Readiness Mapping Tool integrates key data sources about the vulnerabilities and assets of local communities in the round and will be openly accessible to all working on decarbonisation, disaster response and local community support. The accessibility and usability is as crucial as the data itself’.
User testing with local authorities and community organisations will begin later this year. If your organisation is interested in taking part, please get in touch with Anne Owen or Samanthi Theminimulle to register your interest.
Supporting community practice on the ground
Emily also highlighted the importance of investing in people and practice alongside evidence. Central to this is the JUST Centre Practice-Builders’ Network, led by the Young Foundation’s Leonie Taylor.
Emily said: *“Ensuring a just transition is a key part of strengthening our national resilience. The JUST centre is not only an evidence centre - we are supporting practitioners across the UK to work with their local communities to transition to a fairer, greener future and to be resilient to climate risks and adaptation.
“Our Practice-Builders’ Network is central to our work in the JUST Centre and brings together practitioners from all regions of the UK to join up their skills and capacity and learn from each other, so that by joining up we can raise ambitions and ensure all communities are supported through shocks and change.”*
Watch the full House of Lords Committee session on ParliamentLive.