Bristol City Council is making energy-efficient improvements to three of its buildings thanks to the ‘Bristol Climate Action Investment’ (BCAI) initiative. BCAI is a borrowing mechanism enabling residents and businesses to invest in local climate action. It was launched last year in collaboration with ethical investment platform, Abundance.

Abundance has co-developed the innovative Local Climate Bonds (LCBs), also known as Community Municipal Investments (CMIs), alongside the Green Finance Institute. They’re a way of councils raising capital for green investments. Projects include the installation of heat pumps, solar panels and LED lighting. They also fund actions for climate resilience like biodiversity enhancement and nature-based flood defences.

Spread over two fundraisers, the council reached its initial target of £2 million – including funding from Unity.

Unity is the first institutional investor of LCBs, committing £15 million to the wider programme. The investment in Bristol will improve the energy-efficiency of three buildings providing children’s respite care and community facilities.

Councillor Martin Fodor, Chair of the Environment and Sustainability Committee, said: “People in Bristol expect us to tackle climate change. It’s one of their high priorities.  BCAI is a practical way of using your savings to generate a return whilst also contributing to investments that directly benefit your neighbourhood’s health and sustainability.”

The council anticipates saving 40 tonnes of carbon a year from these three projects alone.

Karl Harder, Co-founder and Director of Abundance Investment, said: “Unity publicly investing alongside citizen investors is a pivotal moment in the growth of municipal investments. It’s a vote of confidence in councils and our platform. This isn’t just a cost-effective borrowing source for councils. It is a way to build a community that is really engaged in their climate action plans.”

Unity’s support will help the public sector to deliver positive social and environmental impact. So far it’s delivered over £6 million investment in LCBs, including £573,700 to Bristol City Council.

Alex Minshull, Climate Change Manager at Bristol City Council, said: “The interest we pay goes to residents and businesses, such as Unity, who are doing good with that money. It’s a great mechanism for recycling money into our city.  Confidence-building is what Unity has brought to the party. We know that the bank’s funding will enable us to raise the money needed for a project. It is also reassuring that Unity does its own due diligence. The bank’s not going to invest money in something that’s not sound.”