Having the right energy to make a better future

Here, in his latest monthly column reflecting on the news over the past month, our Press and PR Executive Robin Johnson looks at the headlines.

Sometimes, news stories are like buses – you wait and wait, and then three similar themed stories come along at once.

And in Derby and Derbyshire, that is exactly what happened during September.

The common thread linking all of them was hydrogen – and the key role it can play in helping us to reach the environmental holy grail of net zero.

The ‘buses’ analogy is rather fitting because during September, I took my very first ride on a hydrogen-powered bus.

What was it like? It felt like being on a bus – and if someone hadn’t told me it was powered by hydrogen I wouldn’t have known.

The place where I went on the bus was Toyota Manufacturing UK’s vast Burnaston plant.

The bus took me and a group of other journalists from the firm’s Burnaston Hall building to an area of the site where something very special was happening.

You see, that particular day, the hydrogen-fuelled bus was not the star of the show.

I was at Toyota UK’s Derbyshire site to witness the global launch of the prototype hydrogen Hilux.

The Burnaston plant is renowned for its prowess in manufacturing cars.

However, this was the first time the site had been entrusted with a development project – and its staff, or members as Toyota UK likes to call them, rose to the challenge.

Now, the prototype Hilux is being put through its paces, undergoing a rigorous testing programme.

Whether the hydrogen Hilux ends up going into full production at Burnaston remains to be seen.

But at the very least, the project has seen the site add a very important R&D string to its bow.

The launch of the hydrogen Hilux was particularly timely as in the same month, a new partnership called East Midlands Hydrogen was launched.

Made up of organisations including Toyota UK, the partnership aims to put hydrogen at the heart of the region’s industrial decarbonisation.

Another of our local ‘big hitters’ which believes hydrogen has a key role to play in our future is Rolls-Royce.

During September, the engineering giant announced its backing for the Hydrogen in Aviation Alliance, which has been established to accelerate the drive towards zero carbon aviation.

Consisting of a number of major players across the aviation industry, the HIA aims to assist government and policymakers by mapping out the milestones to ensure infrastructure, regulatory and policy changes keep pace with the ground-breaking technological developments in carbon-free flying.

To make this journey towards a low-carbon economy a success, we need a workforce that can deliver it.

That is exactly why the East Midlands Institute of Technology has been established – and in September, it opened its first site at the University of Derby.

Involving Derby College Group, as well as companies like Bloc Digital, Alstom, Toyota UK and Rolls-Royce, the EM IoT aims to support the creation of a future-fit workforce for digital and low-carbon economies across the region.

Hopefully, this will see Derby develop its own pipeline of talent, as well as attracting talent from further afield.

But a city needs to be an attractive place to live, work and play, in order to lure that talent away from the bright lights of the big cities like London, Birmingham and Manchester.

Some of the work that is taking place in Derby right now appears to be doing the trick.

For example, in September we ran a story in which Wavensmere Homes reported seeing an increase in buyers from the London area for homes at its stunning Nightingale Quarter development here in Derby.

The overheating of house prices in London and the south-east is playing a part, but it would seem that Derby’s connectivity, its employment opportunities and its great work/life balance is beginning to strike a chord.

Of course, the Nightingale Quarter is not the only show in town when it comes to Derby’s residential developments.

In September, work completed on the first phase of the £200 million Becketwell scheme, which includes Derby’s first build-to-rent apartments and a brand-new public square.

Having somewhere to live and the ability to feed our families are basic rights.

Yet even in this day and age, there are those who are struggling to do so.

There are inequalities – particularly in Derby. Yes, we have big name employers, but the wealth they generate is failing to filter down to all sections of society.

Derby cannot shy away from this fact – and it isn’t. The latest edition of Marketing Derby’s Innovate Magazine focuses on these inequalities and looks at the work being done to address them.

Some of you will have received the new edition through your door. However, a digital version of the magazine can be found here.

The features within pull no punches and lay bare the challenge the city faces.

However, there are individuals and businesses out there who are motivated to initiate change.

Just one example of this came in September, when the Derby Food for Thought Alliance, an organisation set up to alleviate food poverty, launched its 100 Club appeal at a Marketing Derby Bondholder event hosted by Wavensmere Homes.

On the day, Wavensmere donated three tonnes of fresh fruit and veg to the charity.

If more of us can follow this example – and have the drive and the energy (whether it’s from hydrogen or not) to make a difference – then I’m hopeful that Derby can be a place where everyone cannot just live – but thrive.

Have a safe and productive October and I look forward to catching up again soon.