When I started driving an EV some eight years ago, there was very little in the way of a reliable and accessible charging network in the UK. Through research, I discovered the Zero Carbon World (ZCW) charity that was helping small businesses install EV charging points. I relied a lot on these in the early days to help me get around the country and indeed in 2014, my wife and I even drove to the Isle of Arran solely using ZCW charging point – found via the ZeroNet Map. The company made such a difference to my personal experience of driving EVs that I decided to join the charity and offer my help a couple of years later.
Today, Zero Carbon World is a very small team of three – including myself – that is doing its best with limited time and resource to support small firms around the country in the installation of EV charging points. We raise funds, purchase charge points and donate them to small businesses, such as hotels, tourist attractions and leisure facilities. The important thing is that the business then owns and maintains them, so it has a vested interest in keeping them active for the benefit of its visitors and guests.
Most weeks I find myself going to the post office to send out a charging station or two to another UK installer. The installer will finish the process by getting it in the ground and live, so that EV drivers can benefit from the accessible – and often free – charging that the locations provide. I know first-hand how it helped me to transition to the understanding that EVs can be completely viable for an everyday car and in doing so, help to decarbonise the roads a bit more each day.
To date, the charity has helped create close to 500 EV charging destinations in the UK with the support of nearly 700 donations. We’re hugely thankful to have received some amazing support and discounts from charging point manufacturers wanting to help the charity achieve its goals. But as a small charity where 100% of the money donated is fed back into our projects, we can always do with a helping hand.
If you’re interested in finding out more about ZCW and offering your support, please visit www.zerocarbonworld.org or our donations page. All contributions will be put towards creating more EV charging points around the country to encourage the widespread adoption of sustainable solutions and reduce carbon emissions.
