West Yorkshire Mayor Tracy Brabin showcases green economy vision and announces Reset Connect North delivery 2026

Putting ambition into action, the Mayor highlighted how West Yorkshire Combined Authority is directly transforming how people travel, introducing electric and hydrogen buses, significantly improving public transport, and developing a revolutionary new regional tram network, improving connectivity for Leeds and Bradford.  The region is also leading the way in making homes more energy-efficient through large-scale retrofit programmes and building new eco-friendly, affordable homes. In addition to investment in nature restoration and driving green investment and innovation, including through a proposed multi-million-pound West Yorkshire Climate Fund.

West Yorkshire Mayor Tracy Brabin said: 

"I am delighted and incredibly proud to announce our backing of the first Reset Connect North, demonstrating our deep commitment to making West Yorkshire net-zero by 2038."

"Our region is already a powerhouse in green technologies and services, valued at an estimated £8 billion and home to over 3,000 thriving businesses."

"Bringing this conference here will be crucial in solidifying our national leadership and attracting even greater investment and innovation for our green economy."

Supported by West Yorkshire’s Local Growth Plan, which aims to add £26 billion to the economy through the Green Economy, and the recently updated Climate and Environment Plan, West Yorkshire’s approach combines environmental sustainability with economic prosperity and social fairness. This ensures climate action benefits residents by creating sustainable green jobs, providing affordable energy-efficient homes, and delivering a thriving regional economy, promoting responsible business growth that puts the health of people and the planet first. The government’s Industrial strategy - published this week - underlines Green Economy and clean energy industries are vital to future prosperity.

Richard Mackintosh, Co-Founder and Director of Reset Connect, commented:

"We are thrilled to welcome Mayor Tracy Brabin to Reset Connect London. West Yorkshire's ambitious and integrated strategy for a green economy truly sets a benchmark for devolved regions.

Their commitment to tangible action, from transforming transport to fostering green innovation and investment, aligns perfectly with Reset Connect's mission to drive impactful change and turn sustainability commitments into measurable results.

We are particularly excited by the prospect of a Reset Connect North event in 2026, which will further amplify the vital work being done across the North of England."

Key initiatives highlighted by the Mayor in her keynote speech today included:

Transforming Transport: A significant focus on decarbonising transport, which accounts for 89% of CO2 emissions from private vehicles in the region. This involves a transformative shift towards electric and hydrogen-powered buses, alongside the active promotion of walking, cycling, and enhanced public transport networks. This includes bringing trams back to West Yorkshire, with spades in the ground by 2028, supported by £2.1 billion from the Government for transport infrastructure projects, which integrates sustainability into every aspect from planning to operation. This will also directly impact health, with Bradford's Clean Air Zone already saving the NHS an estimated £30,000 a month.

Warm, Energy-Efficient Homes: Utilising our pioneering ‘Home Energy West Yorkshire’ programme to improve energy efficiency in homes through large-scale housing retrofit programmes informed by detailed housing stock data. West Yorkshire’s ambition is to retrofit every social home and half of private homes by 2038 and to deliver over 40,000 new environmentally friendly, affordable homes by 2040 through a landmark Place Partnership with Homes England.

Restoring Nature and Building Resilience: Commitment to nature restoration and resilience through initiatives including the Local Nature Recovery Strategy (LNRS), which seeks to restore biodiversity and improve carbon storage and flood resilience, alongside mandatory Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) for new developments.

Driving Green Investment and Innovation: A proactive approach to green investment, showcasing the mobilisation of substantial public and private capital into green projects. This includes a proposed multi-million-pound West Yorkshire Climate Fund to blend public, private, and commercial funding for new green projects. West Yorkshire will also co-design and develop key initiatives to accelerate economic growth, foster innovation in clean technologies, and cultivate a skilled green workforce, mapping out a staggering 70,000 green jobs in the region by 2050.

The Mayor went onto underline the necessity for "collective action" across all parts of West Yorkshire – individuals, communities, businesses, and local authorities – to achieve the ambitious net-zero target. This collaborative model ensures broad stakeholder engagement and shared responsibility, embodying a "Just Transition" that ensures the benefits of green initiatives are equitably distributed and vulnerable populations are protected nationwide. This also includes fostering collaboration with Northern Mayors through "Great Energy North" to collectively influence energy reform and deliver major clean energy projects across the North, mirroring its historic role in the Industrial Revolution.

The speech concluded with West Yorkshire Combined Authority's strong support of a first-ever 'Reset Connect North' conference, taking place in Leeds in Spring 2026, demonstrating the region’s ambitious plans to turbocharge green innovation, investment, and sustainable development across the North of England.   Championing a first-ever northern iteration of this net-zero investment conference, Mayor Tracy Brabin is determined to further attract investment, foster collaborative partnerships, and showcase the region's comprehensive green economy initiatives, solidifying its position as a national leader in the transition to net-zero.

This support of Reset Connect North adds another significant element to the region’s strong conferencing schedule, which includes UKREIF, Climb and Regeneration Earth and complements the support of what is the UK’s largest sustainability event (and flagship of London Climate Action Week), ‘Reset Connect London’ at the Excel London.

West Yorkshire's comprehensive, integrated, and well-funded green strategy positions the region as a compelling model for effective climate governance, demonstrating how devolved power can drive significant local impact with global ambition.