There’s a lot going on across the network, and we will endeavour to bring you news and events when we can, but do follow the links and bookmark your local group, many of whom also provide mailing lists, or Facebook groups to sign-up to. Let’s begin:
One Planet Abingdon recently won the 2024 Ridgeway Education Trust award for their contributions to the development of young people, both in offering work experience, and in speaking at school events over the year. A busy centre with lots going on, the centre recently ran a Make A Difference week– aimed at bringing together young volunteers and organisations for a week of work experience, volunteering, learning, and fun – as well as created a survey on the impact of new house-building working with the Town Council, and published their annual report, along with many other activities. You can sign up to receive their newsletter at their website.
Meanwhile, Exeter Community Alliance are still in the process of setting up their new centre, with the wheels of conveyancing solicitors grinding really slowly in their own words. And at the same time, Climate Action Leeds are looking for a new location for Imagine Leeds, the climate action hub which had previously provided a physical space for discussion, events, and building momentum for CAL’s work and related efforts. If you can help them achieve their goal, get in touch with them via the contact details on their site.
ElmbridgeEcoHub on their web site are putting a call out to raise the funds required to keep themselves running, saying it costs them £1500 a month to do so. Let’s hope they manage this and keep their great work going over there.
Meanwhile, the guys over at Zero Carbon Guildford (ZCG) are looking for a Marketing & Communications Manager to work with them on their two current projects, Home Energy Advice Taskforce (HEAT) and Surrey Community Energy (SCE) as well as helping them deliver their marketing and communications strategies to boost participation and diversity within community energy projects as well as ZCG programmes and activities, amongst a host of other exciting opportunities.
Torbay Climate Action held a Repair Café in October, as did our friends down in Truro. As we’re writing news about centres beginning with the letter T, Totnes Climate Hub recently produced a Climate Hub Show on Soundart Radio. You can listen back to the first two episodes on Mixcloud. And if you’re local to Totnes, or just passing through, do tune into Soundart Radio on 102.5 FM. There’s a whole range of great shows every week, from music to politics to philosophy!
The Umbrella Climate Action folks in Northampton are running a campaign to try to get one of their own freed from prison! Daniel Shaw was sentenced to four years in prison for being involved in a Just Stop Oil protest on the M25 motorway, the same one that saw Extinction Rebellion founder Roger Hallam sentences to five years. You can read more about the blockade and the judicial result of it at Wikipedia.
The team from Turning Tides Climate Emergency Centre in Portsmouth don’t have a physical centre just yet, but did run a stall at Portsmouth Vegan Festival in September. Meeting the public enabled them to find out what people would like to see from a local Climate Emergency Centre, and they had interesting and refreshing conversations with people of different ages and varying levels of awareness around climate change. They’ll be holding a placard making working at Milton Village Hall on Saturday 9th November.
Sadly, Preston Climate Emergency Centre closed. It was a great space and they ran lots of events there. We know it is sorely missed. They ran a recent survey to see who needs the space. We wish them all the best getting things up and going again.
Talking Tree in Staines-Upon-Thames recently hosted its second Green Forum Event, which saw participation from various initiatives across Runnymede and Spelthorne. This event provided a fantastic platform for attendees to learn about the remarkable efforts to increase biodiversity and green our environments. They are now looking for new premises, as their lease is not being renewed. Find out more about these and other stories on their website.
Climate Action Taunton (opens in Facebook) recently had a painting activity in the Orchard Gallery, and finally Stratford Climate Action sdasas
Events across the Network
Up-coming activities this quarter:
- Blackdown Hills Eco Hub is holding a No Plastic Christmas Natural Wreath Making event on the 7th of December. More information about it and a link to Facebook to signal your attendance here.
- Waverley’s What Next? Pop-up Climate Hub will be out and about this November as well as many other events, including a Swap-it and Share-it at their next meeting on October 25th. You can keep up with their other events using their online events calendar.
- EarthLincs Climate Emergency Centre of Lincoln are holding their last Climate Circle at Mint Lane Café on the 16th November. To find out more, check out their Facebook group for details of this and other events.
- Zero Carbon Guildford have various events coming up including an Open Mic Night for Halloween on the 26th October, and Exhibition called “The Ministry of Environmental Disasters” between the 9th and 16th November, How to Make Green Living Easy on the 15th November, and on the 28th a talk and workshop on Sustainable & Ethical Bee-Keeping.
- Islington Climate Centre are also pretty active with events and they are also celebrating Halloween on Saturday 26th, but with a repair café rather than an open mic. Following this, there are lots of workshops coming up in November, including ICC Social and Poster Workshop on the 1st, Climate Fresk Workshop on the 5th, more repair parties, collage workshops and climate circles. More information at https://www.islingtonclimatecentre.co.uk/events-1
- Kingston Hive are hosting a Halloween Fun Day on Sunday 27th October, various Waxing Lyrical meetings dealing with storytelling and adult coaching, as well as regular weekly meetings, including craft meet-ups, food sharing, and plant care workshops.
- Mid-Cornwall Climate and Eco Hub are holding regular Listening Circles inviting people to come and share their feelings and emotional responses to the climate crisis and loss of nature with their trained councillors in various towns across Cornwall. There is also the Truro Repair Café, held on the first Saturday of the month from 10 till 12, as well as the twice-monthly Energy Advice Drop-in sessions. Checkout their Facebook group for more details of their news and events (link takes you to Facebook).
- If you’re in Plymouth and looking for something to do, Plymouth Climate Hub are holding a Climate March & Summit on Saturday 23rd November, starting at the Guildhall at 11am for an open mic, then a march, then the summit over a vegan lunch at Sherwell Church. More information on this and other events at their web site.
- The busy brigade down at the Totnes Climate Hub are holding lots of events, including Sustainable Knitting, Energy Advice Sessions, Skillshares, a drop-in for the Rewilding Collective, and a Green Projects meeting, offering Ethical Investment advice, amongst many other things.
- From Saturday 23rd November, Lewes Climate Hub are holding a host of Green Christmas events down at their centre on Lewes High Street. They are also hosting a relaunch of the Lewes Greenpeace group on Thursday 7th November.
- In Northampton-based, Umbrella Climate Emergency Action Hub hold regular Climate Cafés, Knit and Natters, and their 1000 Voices Community Meetings, the latter to discuss plans and ideas for how to improve their community. Check out their events page for more details.
- For younger eco warriors, the Eco Action WAM in Maindenhead are holding Eco Warriors Clubs every Friday into December, and, we hope, into the New Year.
- Seaford Environmental Alliance are having a rehearsal for their Hope and Anger singers on Saturday 7th November. In their words Hope and Anger Singers is a free community choir open to anyone of any age who cares about the planet. There are no auditions and no experience is needed. We sing at events, on marches or just for the joy.
- Finally, Stratford Climate Action have lots going on in their part of the world with Carbon Literacy Training on the 7th and 14th November, a fascinating Climate Hub talk on Tuesday 19th November on how the village of Harbury is cutting its climate emissions, another talk on the National Grid on the 26th, and the monthly Repair Café on December 7th. That’s just a sample: there’s lots more on, so check out their events page for more details.