Yesterday, 9 August, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change released its long awaited report stating, unsurprisingly to many interested in tackling the climate emergency, that Climate Change is man-made, and we have until the end of the decade to reverse the worst effects of global heating.

It seems there is no better time therefore for the Brunel Museum to stand up and share publicly the work we’ve been doing behind the scenes to tackle and reverse the worst effects of the climate emergency. As a museum, we tell the story of the Brunels, an engineering family who changed the world.

While we must recognise the devastating consequences that the legacy of the Industrial Revolution left us with, we can use the story of the Thames Tunnel, of the perseverance, ingenuity and adaptability that made it possible, to help us navigate a path out of the current crisis.

We are a small museum, but we have big aspirations. We have already made changes to how we operate to become more sustainable. We are continuing to investigate ways to further minimise our impact and make the best choices that contribute to the global transition to a net-zero carbon society.

We aspire to bring sustainable development to all museum activities but to achieve this we are prioritising four areas which are aligned with our values, expertise and opportunities to influence change.

1. Decarbonising the museum: We will continue to decarbonise the museum in all aspects of operations and management in order to meet our aim of becoming a carbon neutral museum.

2. Working with others: We are committed to align our values with the companies and organisations with whom we partner and in so doing influence change and magnifying the museum’s impact.

3. Using our platform: We will use the story of the Thames Tunnel to illustrate how adaptability and perseverance can help overcome the challenge of climate change today.

4. Developing the site: We are committed to minimise any potential environmental impacts of the Museum Reinvented Project as well as maximising the potential of using short-term and long-term sustainable resources and activities.

Read our full Sustainability statement here.