The top ten stories from the drama of the Paris Climate Summit in December and its aftermath through to end February are according to campaigner Jeremy Leggett as follows: Key policymakers are now serious about climate risk. Civil society has awoken in critical mass. Regulators are beginning to regulate climate risk. Disruption is moving faster than most people think. Utilities are racing to escape a death spiral. The shale boom is going bust. The oil and gas industry faces the prospect of a death spiral too. Divestment from the energy incumbency threatens to snowball. Investor engagement with the incumbency, in concert with unfavourable economics, will soon threaten most capital expenditure on fossil-fuel expansion. The legal system is fast becoming a driver for the global energy transition.
You can read more here
Thanks to all who came to our AGM and to all those who organised it and made it such an enjoyable evening! After Rosemary’s excellent presentation ‘The Road Through Paris’, we broke into 7 groups, discussing priorities for action at national, local and personal levels. Everyone’s ideas are as follows [number of groups proposing the action is in brackets]. Many thanks to Hilary Hebron for collating this!
NATIONAL PRIORITIES
- Campaign to remove subsidies to and discourage exploitation of fossil fuels, especially to stop fracking [5].
- Campaign to subsidise and develop renewable energies [5], especially tidal power [3].
- Restore and improve feed in tariffs for small-scale electricity generation [2]
- Increase the stringency of building regulations to work towards carbon neutral housing 2].
Other suggestions – improve public transport, ban commercial use of non-recyclable packaging, stop Chinese investment in British nuclear energy, stop investment in nuclear energy in general, create a worldwide [electricity] supergrid, and concentrated solar energy production [in sunny Mediterranean and African countries]
LOCAL PRIORITIES
- Develop local renewable energy production [4]; hydro [3], wind [3] and solar in quarries [1].
- Promote energy conservation [3]; change street lighting/ turn off more lights at midnight, encourage householders to change to L.E.D. lighting, promote better home insulation, especially in older housing stock, encourage shopkeepers to keep their doors closed in winter.
- Raise awareness of the urgent need for action against climate change [2]; put on more films, engage with young people via schools.
- Promote recycling of more than just the items collected at the kerbside [2], eg plastic film and ink cartridges and try to get local businesses to accept these and advertise their recycling.
- Campaign for the installation of an electric vehicle recharging point in Wirksworth [2].
- Lobby our M.P. to try to make him actually listen to his constituents and take them seriously [2].
- Campaign against fracking under the Peak District National Park.
Other suggestions -Have a “Shop Local” campaign; campaign for better parking in Wirksworth; campaign against cuts in local transport.
PERSONAL PLEDGES
- Go green [9] by; changing to a green energy supplier, buying an electric car, finding out more about renewable energy, bringing local carbon neutral housing to fruition to prove its viability, promoting concentrated solar power in Mediterranean and North African countries, installing/researching solar panels on roof, investing in Dove Renewables hydroelectricity scheme at Norbury
- Reduce energy use [6] by; reducing car use by shopping locally, using the bus or cycling, improving home insulation, installing L.E.D. lighting, seeking advice on reducing energy use in the home
- Support the anti-fracking movement [5]
- Recycle more [3], specifically plastic film and batteries
- Campaign more [3]; in general and in the Labour Party for more alternatively energy projects
- Reduce, re-use and share more [3], registering to stop junk mail, mending things rather than replacing with new items, stopping using shopping plastic bags
Other pledges – grow lots of trees, research battery storage for solar electricity
Plenty for our Transition groups to get working on! Why not join a group and help it to happen!
NEWS FROM THE GROUPS
THE CORE GROUP AND COMMUNICATIONS
Contact: wirksworthti@gmail.com
The Core Group meets about every six to eight weeks. We see our purpose as: facilitating communication between the action groups and with our supporters; keeping in touch with the Transition Movement and other Transition groups in the area; generating publicity about Transition events and issues; lobbying our MP and local councillors and councils on sustainability issues e.g. Fracking; organising public events – speakers, films etc., and our participation in events put on by others e.g. Wirksworth Carnival, Derbyshire Eco Centre, Global Divestment Day. Any supporter of Grassroots Wirksworth can join the core group. Contact us to find out more.
NEW WEBSITE! Currently, Mary Ann, Rosemary and Glennie are working on creating a new Grassroots Wirksworth Website…. Any input for this, such as photos or writing or general help, gratefully received! More news later!
THE COMMUNITY GROWERS
Main Contact: Rosemary Blenkinsop: hernesrose@w3z.co.uk
Workdays at the Community Garden:1st Sunday of the month, from 11 a.m (and other Sundays and/or Thursdays as well.) Contact Rosemary on 07904 783818 to check what needs doing if you want to go up there on your own. All are welcome!
NEXT WORKDAYS:
March 6th, Sunday – sowing seeds and digging long border
March 10th, Thursday – more of the same
March 20th, Sunday – Planting herbacious border, weeding gravel
To become a Grower, or a Friend of the Growers
Contact Rosie Rosie.shaw@btinternet.com
THE RUBBISH GROUP (WASTE AND RECYCLING)
Main Contacts: Judith Green 01629 825675 and Richard Finnigan richard.finnigan2@btinternet.com
5th March – Give or Take at the Wellspring Church,
TIME: 10am to 1pm. Bring anything you cannot use and want to pass on. Everything in good clean working condition please. NO OLD TV’s will be accepted. There will be lovely refreshments.
RECYCLING PLASTIC FILM/ PLASTIC BAGS: There are bag recycling bins (like pillar boxes) just outside supermarkets – our closest is Sainsburys at Ashbourne or Matlock, or Morrisons at Belper. We are campaigning for our local Co-op to provide this.
NEXT MEETING: 7th April at 7.30pm
Venue: Judith’s house – 38 Cromford Road
THE ENERGY AND HOUSING GROUP
Main contact – BrianHebron brian@bhebron.orangehome.co.uk
TEL: 01629 258914
We meet monthly and have several projects on the go aimed at reducing carbon emissions, including the possibility of setting up a Community Land Trust for getting affordable houses built using zero carbon for heating and lighting.
NEXT MEETING: Tues 15th March. at 7.30,
at Brian Hebron’s, 21 Pittywood Rd, Wirksworth.
ACTIVISTS SUPPORT GROUP
Main Contact: Glennie Kindred: 01629 825675
Email: glenniekindred@w3z.co.uk
We are an informal group who support each other, share email campaigns and meet when we feel we need to….
CURRENTLY SUPPORTING LOCALLY
Fracking : Find out more from the following local groups
Frack-Free Amber Valley
Frack-Free Derbyshire https://www.facebook.com/FrackFreeDerbyshire/
Frack-Free Nottingham
Divest Derbyshire – sign the petition to urge Derbyshire County Council’s Pension Fund to dis-invest from fossil fuels.<https://campaigns.gofossilfree.org/petitions/divest-derbyshire
Contact us to find out when the next meeting is
STONEY WOOD
Contact: Chris Bristow: chris@number37wirksworth.co.uk
If you want to hear about what’s happening in Stoney Wood – “like “ our Facebook page.
27th March: Wish Upon a Star, Easter Sunday 7pm.
We’re currently working on a project to improve the interpretation of the Heritage of Stoney Wood, Stoneycroft Quarry and the surrounding area. This will involve recording some “living history” by people who worked in the quarry and people who were part of creating the wood.
The Labyrinth – a living willow ‘fedge’ has been built around the labyrinth to help soak up the water in this very wet part of the wood. It should make it easier for walking!
LOCAL DATES FOR YOUR DIARY
5th March – Give or Take at the Wellspring Church,
TIME: 10am to 1pm. Bring anything you cannot use and want to pass on. Everything in good clean working condition please. NO OLD TV’s will be accepted. There will be lovely refreshments.
March 5th Saturday –Spring Clean Litter Pick. 10 am – 12 pm. Everyone to meet by the Wirksworth Town Hall, where bags, gloves and litter pickers will be provided. The areas to be targeted will include, the Market Place, Fanny Shaws Recreation Ground, Gorsey Bank Playground, the Meadows footpaths & Hammonds Court, Stoney Wood, Church Walk & St Mary’s Churchyard. Please join us if you possibly can.
March 5th. Saturday – International Women’s Day Event
Town Hall. Wirksworth – A series of workshops and talks, led by women but open to women and men followed by a gig in the evening.
Contact: pamtaylor54@gmail.com
March 16th. Amber Valley Anti-Fracking meeting
Alfreton Community Hall – 8pm.
27th March – Wish Upon a Star, Easter Sunday 7pm. Stoney wood Star disk
April 9 – 11th – The Wirksworth Book Festival
For more information, check out www.wirksworthfestival.org.uk
and the Wirksworth Arts Festival Facebook page.
Saturday 18 June – Derbyshire Eco Centre Summer Fair 11am – 4pm. A celebration of Green Living and Green Learning including a wide range of demonstrations, have-a-go activities, stalls and entertainment. There will be catering and a bar selling local beer and the evening will be a fancy dress ball- tickets for this will be available to buy soon.
The Transition Network ~ is a grass roots world-wide movement, aiming to help increase local resilience and community initiatives. Subscribe to the inspiring and informative Transition Network Newsletter http://www.transitionnetwork.org
The Transition Wirksworth E-Newsletter team meet in the Scrumdiddly café on the first Tuesday of the month 11am -12.30pm. Do pop by for a chat and to bring any items for inclusion (or email them to glennie (glenniekindred@w3z.co.uk.)
Next Newsletter Meeting: Tuesday April 5th Scrumdiddly Café. Hope to see you there!
END OF MARCH 2016 NEWSLETTER
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