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We are incredibly excited to announce that the winners of the CLAD Catalyst Award are…

Georgina Patel, Transport for London and the Sustainable Wedding Alliance!

What is the CLAD Catalyst Award?

The CLAD Catalyst is our unique award that celebrates three initiatives that deliver particularly impactful and catalytic Carbon Literacy training as part of the annual International Carbon Literacy Action Day.

Three awardees are recognised for their dedication to catalytic climate action and bringing others on the journey with them. This year, we reserved one award slot for an independent training provider. We’re so grateful for our Carbon Literacy trainers, who go above and beyond all year, so we wanted to recognise and platform their efforts.

The Theme: Connect, Collaborate, Cascade

2025’s CLAD Catalyst Award theme was Connect, Collaborate, Cascade, championing the power of collective action to drive the shift towards a low-carbon future. Catalytic change happens when a tipping point is passed, so we encouraged CLAD participants to leverage their connections to collaborate and cascade Carbon Literacy for this year’s Action Day.

We are delighted to have selected three standout winners, each of whom embraced the theme and went beyond the ordinary to deliver catalytic training in their own unique way.

The Winners

Georgina Patel

Carbon Literacy Consultant, Georgina Patel, is the first independent trainer to win the CLAD Catalyst Award. Georgina worked tirelessly to deliver training on every day of CLAD, collaborating with both UK-based and international organisations to deliver catalytic Carbon Literacy training.

In the UK, her work included training social housing professionals and the Driver & Vehicle Standards Agency. She also worked with Climate Hub International to deliver training to senior leaders in Uganda. Georgina focused on the theme throughout all her courses and supported participants to identify opportunities to maximise their impact, offer peer support, as well as highlighting opportunities for collaboration on projects and initiatives currently being delivered in silos.

We were particularly impressed by the course delivered to senior leaders in Uganda, which included learners from the Ugandan Office of the Prime Minister and the Parliamentary Forum on Climate Change, providing leaders with the skills to cascade Carbon Literate decisions into policy-making and local collaboration. This course provided a direct channel for senior leaders to voice their ambitions to decarbonise, articulate the support they required, and engage government stakeholders in shaping the pathways to net zero.

Georgina said:

“My goal was to simply connect, collaborate, and cascade the CLAD theme as far and wide as possible. I worked with 5 UK and 9 international organisations who were all ready to shift away from endless debate (take note COP30) to taking immediate action in places where they are. I had my very own professional pinch me moment training members of the Ugandan Office of the Prime Minister and Parliamentary Forum on Climate Change for CLAD. It is clear that the world is ready for action!”

Well done, Georgina!

Transport for London

Transport for London (TfL) demonstrated exceptional ambition and reach throughout CLAD. They trained learners across a diverse set of business areas, including internal senior leaders and learners within the construction industry. TfL also delivered a virtual webinar to over 20 suppliers, highlighting the importance of climate action and setting the foundations for supplier alignment with TfL’s long-term low-carbon vision.

Collaboration played a central role in their approach. TfL co-hosted a Slide Slam with Transport for Greater Manchester and the West of England Authority, providing a space for trainers to share insights and compare methods for high-impact Carbon Literacy delivery. They also presented the outcomes of their ongoing Pledge Project to senior leaders, exploring the challenges staff experience when implementing climate actions and celebrating success stories across the organisation. Alongside this, TfL hosted its first Pledge Forum, reflecting on the impact of Carbon Literacy since its introduction in 2022, and used internal communications channels to amplify both CLAD events and their wider training programme.

Through all this work, TfL clearly demonstrated how the theme of connecting, collaborating and cascading can be embedded meaningfully across a large and complex organisation.

Lilli Matson, Chief Safety, Health & Environment Officer at TfL, said:

“We’re proud to have received the CLAD Catalyst award, which recognises the collective effort across TfL to connect, collaborate and share carbon and climate knowledge. As the first organisation to win this recognition twice, we’re delighted that this achievement reflects our continuing steadfast commitment to empowering colleagues, engaging suppliers, and embedding sustainability into everything we do. To date, 6,700 TfL colleagues have completed Carbon Literacy training. Together, we’re driving meaningful action to help reduce carbon and support London’s journey to net zero.”

Well done, Transport for London!

The Sustainable Wedding Alliance

The Sustainable Wedding Alliance delivered a carefully designed and highly influential CLAD programme that prioritised sector-wide impact. To maximise influence within the wedding sector, they invited key industry figures to take part, including the Founder of the UK Wedding Association and the CEO of Guides for Brides.

The Alliance also ensured that sustainability knowledge reached across the operations of their host venue, involving the head chef, general manager, housekeeping team and wedding planner. A local flower farm joined the training to offer a supply-chain perspective, enriching conversations on sustainability within the industry. The session was co-hosted with Syrencot, a venue owned by the larger Artemis Venue Services group, providing strategic reach and setting the stage for future training across additional venues within the group.

Their approach exemplified the CLAD theme by bringing together influential voices, operational staff, suppliers and venue partners to build a coordinated and collaborative shift toward lower-carbon practices within the wedding sector.

Michelle Miles, Founder & CEO at the Sustainable Wedding Alliance, said:

“We are absolutely thrilled and deeply honoured to be named one of the 2025 CLAD Catalysts! This special recognition truly validates the hard work and passion behind the Sustainable Wedding Alliance, particularly our commitment to embedding Carbon Literacy across the sector. The theme of Connect, Collaborate, Cascade perfectly encapsulates our mission. We believe that by connecting influential leaders and collaborating with key venues, we can cascade essential knowledge throughout the industry. This award inspires us to intensify our efforts in educating the wedding sector on climate change and empowers us to build a more positive, sustainable future together.”

Well done, Sustainable Wedding Alliance!

Looking ahead

We would like to extend our thanks to all of the organisations and trainers that took part in Carbon Literacy Action Day 2025. We look forward to witnessing these organisations continue to deliver, disseminate and catalyse Carbon Literacy to learners everywhere, as we act in tandem for a better future for all.

If you’re inspired by the stories of our three CLAD Catalysts and would like to take Carbon Literacy into your own organisation, or plan catalytic training for the next Action Day, get in touch with [email protected] or register your interest in CLAD 2026.