Below is a list of the Press Releases released by the East Midlands Regional Assembly relating to EXPO 2009 - Greening the Economy.

All media enquiries should be directed to:

communications@emra.gov.uk 

01664 502 599

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28th September 2009
Green local produce on show

Eco-friendly local produce, from dog biscuits to soaps, will be on display at an environmental showcase event next month (October).

EXPO, the Regional Assembly’s event at Leicester’s Walkers stadium on October 8, will feature a range of Leicestershire producers, including:

• The Cottage Bakery – producing cakes for all occasions, using eggs from their free-range hens
• The Doggie Cookie Company – providing the best doggie treats from carefully sourced local ingredients
• Just Soaps – based in Charnwood and producing hand-made natural soaps, with local water
• Riverford Organics – providing seasonal, local food from a network of local farmers and producers

There will also be a demonstration about English wines. With the climate warming, wine making could become a new market for farmers in the East Midlands.

Councillor David Parsons, chairman of EMRA, said: “Supporting local producers is a greener option, as it supports local jobs and reduces the need to transport goods long distances.

“We’re lucky to have a range of well-known local brands, such as Stilton and Red Leicester, but we want to develop even more.”

For more information see the East Midlands EXPO Pages.

For interviews about EXPO, please contact Helen Chadwick on 01664 502 576. 

Download Full Press Release (Ref 29-09)

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 18th September 2009
Training schemes showcased by EXPO

Training for businesses, students and staff to go green will be highlighted at a regional showcase next month (October).

EXPO, the Regional Assembly’s event at Leicester’s Walkers stadium on October 8, will showcase low carbon technology courses on offer at colleges across the region. Such training is essential to meet the Government’s commitment to provide zero carbon new homes.

Schemes on show include:

• Advice for businesses on environmentally-friendly construction techniques, provided from colleges through the East Midlands New Technology Initiative. Colleges taking part include West Nottinghamshire College, Chesterfield College, Stephenson College in Coalville, Derby College, Leicester College and Lincoln College
• Skills training for young people and qualified staff, provided through Summit Skills

EMRA’s chairman, Councillor David Parsons, said: “The jobs of the future will be in the low carbon sector.

“It is essential that we have the skills to deliver these new technologies and we are very pleased that a number of the colleges in the region are offering high quality courses in installing and maintaining everything from solar water heating to biomass boilers.”

EXPO is the region’s leading event for highlighting the goods and services essential to the new green economy.

The East Midlands has one of the fastest growing green sectors and this event will support people to become involved.

For further details, see www.emra.gov.uk

Download Full Press Release (Ref: 26-09)

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15th September 2009
Boost for the green economy

Green gurus from business, universities and public bodies from across the East Midlands are flocking to a showcase event in Leicester next month (October).

EXPO, the Regional Assembly’s event at Leicester’s Walkers stadium on October 8, will highlight opportunities in the East Midland’s green economy, which is one of the fastest growing in the country.

Councillor David Parsons, chairman of the regional assembly, EMRA, said: “In spite of the recession, many companies are seeing the opportunities in the ‘green economy’ – every slot in the exhibition has been filled.

“I’d encourage anyone, from members of the public to schools and businesses, to come along and see the opportunities that are available.”

This year, exhibitors include

• a new Nottingham-based firm LedinLight, who specialise in low energy lighting solutions
• Hertalan, based in Nottinghamshire - a green roof and wall supplier
• Responsible Solutions, based in Loughborough – supplying environmental consultancy to the construction sector
• PAGeotechnical, a Corby-based firm, who offer solutions for contaminated land and other services
• Buildbase - a Derby-based supplier of a range of environmental technologies for energy and water

There are 65 exhibitors in total and more details of all of the individual exhibitors are available on the website http://www.emra.gov.uk/news/events/east-midlands-expo/exhibitors.

In addition, there are a number of other exhibitors from the public sector, offering advice and support to businesses on resource efficiency, energy saving and new low carbon opportunities. The region’s universities will also be there, showcasing some of their new research projects.

For interviews about EXPO, please contact Helen Chadwick on 01664 502 576. 

Download Full Press Release (Ref: 25-09)

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7th August 2009
ECO driving - making journeys greener

The Government has committed to big savings of carbon and the way we travel about will be a big area for us to make cuts. We all need our cars but the Energy Savings Trust (EST) estimate we could all save 10% of our fuel costs if we drove in a more fuel efficient way. In these economically difficult times 10% is a big saving!

The East Midlands EXPO 2009 – Greening the Economy at Leicester City’s Walkers Stadium on October 8th is hosting one of the Energy Saving Trust’s driving simulators! Why not come along and test your driving skills and see how much you could save. “Just driving a bit more smoothly makes a massive difference and actually is a lot less stressful if you have to drive significant distances” said Simon Wright, the EST regional manager for the East Midlands

There are lots of other solutions to better ways to travel, new fuels, new technologies. And these will also be showcased at the East Midlands EXPO. There are exhibitions of lots of different transport solutions, including bikes, car sharing and travel planning.

The East Midlands could also soon be hosting production of a new hybrid vehicle at Toyota’s Derby plant. Grantham College and South Notts and Castle college are preparing for this by introducing new courses in maintenance of hybrids and electric vehicles.

Information on how you can take part in the east Midlands EXPO 2009 can be found on www.emra.gov.uk/east-midlands-expo 

Download Full Press Release (Ref: 23-09) 

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11th June 2009
Go green and boost your business

A major event is being staged to show how East Midlands businesses can go green and boost the economy.

EXPO is the annual green showcase run by the East Midlands Regional Assembly and this year’s event will take place on October 8, at Leicester City FC’s Walker’s Stadium.

The region has one of the fastest growing green economies in Britain and the event will highlight the range of environmentally-friendly products and services that are already on offer.

EMRA’s chairman, Councillor David Parsons, said: “In these challenging economic times, it makes sense for companies and organisations to consider how they can make the most of the growing ‘green business’ sector.

“The region has one of the fastest growing populations in England and the challenge is to support that, while tackling climate change and reducing carbon emissions.”

Last year’s event took place at Lincoln’s EPIC Centre, an environmentally-friendly visitor, exhibition and conference centre. The event attracted more than 80 exhibitors and more than 800 visitors.

Anyone interested in exhibiting at this year’s event can contact Maria Coles on maria.coles@emra.gov.uk or 01664 502 581.

For further details, see www.emra.gov.uk/east-midlands-expo

Download Full Press Release (Ref: 16-09)

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All media enquiries should be directed to:

communications@emra.gov.uk 

01664 502 599