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Introduction
This
is one of those months when I’m very aware of the contradictions and
maybe even the hypocrisy of how I, and probably most of us, lead our
lives. Next week, on January 18th, I’ve arranged for a meeting with
speakers from Transition Heathrow, an initiative that grew out of the
campaign against a third runway at Heathrow. Two weeks after that I’ll
be traveling to Bangladesh on a plane from Heathrow!
Bangladesh
is at the frontline of climate change. Around 40% of this low lying
country already spends part of the year under water, often with
catastrophic effects on human life and agriculture. As sea levels rise -
no doubt with a little help from airtravel emissions - this will
rapidly get worse.
So what are Oxfam and people in Bangladesh
doing about it? The answer will sound very familiar. They are building
community resilience. A glance through the TTT programme and a look at
Oxfam projects in Bangladesh shows many similarities - tree planting,
climate change awareness, sustainable livelihoods, renewable energy and
many other points of convergence. Oxfam and many others have been doing
Transition for decades.
My contribution to offsetting the carbon
emissions of a flight to Bangladesh will be promoting Oxfam projects in
Bangladesh and bring home the message that climate change is already
devastating communities in vulnerable (i.e. poor) countries. Will it be
worth it? I think so but come along and decide for yourself on March
21st when I’ll be reporting on Climate Change at the frontline in
Bangladesh.
Best wishes to all for 2012
Chris Bird
Building & Housing Group
Grow Heathrow come to Totnes! Could this be a new model for Transition?
Public Meeting on Wednesday 18th January 8.00pm in Totnes Methodist Church
The
Transition Movement began in Totnes and has spread to hundreds of
communities around the World. But these Transition Initiatives take many
different forms and spring from diverse sources. Transition Heathrow
grew from the successful campaign against a third runway at Heathrow
Airport when activists and local residents occupied an abandoned and
derelict market garden site in Sipson, one of the villages that would
have been bulldozed and tarmacced under plans for the new runway. 30
tonnes of rubbish was cleared and the site transformed into a beacon of
community strength and a great example of how to live sustainably.
The
project aims to return the Berkeley Nurseries site back to it’s
intended purpose – a thriving market garden providing the community with
locally produced, organic fruit and vegetables. The site is a hub for
local residents and environmental activists to share knowledge and
practical skills such as organic gardening, permaculture design, bicycle
maintenance and wood and metal work. Grow Heathrow uses solar and wind
power and is completely off-grid. Water is collected from greenhouse
roofs to feed plants and heated by a rocket stove for domestic use.
Transition
Heathrow has also become a vital hub for a wide range of environmental
campaigns and has hosted gatherings for Climate Camp, No Tar Sands
Network, Transition Network and many more. Read more...
Arts in Transition - a participatory event to look at the future direction of the arts within Transition Town Totnes?
TTTAG's next event will be on Saturday 4th February 12 to 4.30pm, Methodist Hall, Totnes.
With both Janey Hunt and Jan O'Highway standing down as facilitators of
the arts group we warmly invite you tojoin us in exploring and
re-defining the way forward for the Arts in Transition. This event is
open to people from across the theme groups of TTT and beyond and it
will be facilitated by Janey Hunt, Emma Capper and Ruth Ben-Tovim.
Please bring lunch to share.
Transition Homes Consultation Event in Dartington
Plans
for a sustainable development of affordable homes in Dartington finally
look set to move from the drawing board to the real world. Transition
Homes, a development of 20 low carbon, low cost homes with integral food
and energy
production, finally has agreement to purchase Pond Field
on the A385 and £60,000 to develop a robust case for planning approval.
This means we are now ready to hold a second consultation event in
Dartington.
This is a big step forward for the project which
has taken 3 years to get this far. A few months ago Dartington Hall
Trust finally agreed in principle to sell the 6 acre Pond Field site to
the Transition Homes Community Land Trust subject to planning approval.
The agreed price, £10,000 per plot, means that a majority, if not all of
the homes, will be affordable to local people in housing need rather
than wealthy incomers. The next step was to secure funding to develop a
planning application. Venturesome, who provide non-recourse* loans for
Community Land Trusts (CLT’s), agreed to lend £40,000 provided we
obtained £20,000 from elsewhere. A private lender agreed to loan a
further £15,000 on condition that we raised £5,000 from at least 20
local people. At the time of writing we have exceeded this target by
several thousand pounds.
Early
discussions with South Hams District Council suggest they are very
supportive of the project which will provide much needed affordable
homes to local people and, unlike other proposals for housing in the
Totnes and Dartington
area, be an exemplar of sustainable
development. Transition Homes CLT regularly updates Dartington Parish
Council and has already held well attended consultation events in
Dartington and Totnes. We have also sent an online survey to 120 people
who have expressed an interest in the project to get a clear picture of
local housing requirements, where people currently live and work, which
schools their children attend, their eligibility for affordable housing
etc.
The next opportunity to hear about the development and have your
say will be at Dartington Village Hall on Saturday 21st January between
11:00am and 3:00pm.
There will be a display showing a layout
of the site and provisional designs for the homes as well as CLT members
who will be happy to answer questions. It will also be possible for
people to express their opinions about the proposals in a variety of
ways e.g. post-it notes, feedback forms and questionnaires.
If
you would like any further details or have your name added to our
contact list please contact: Erica Lewis 01803 867209 email:
erica@inspiringaction.co.uk
* Non-recourse loans are only repaid if the project goes ahead.
Transition Homes Open Consultation Day is on Saturday 21st January 2012 from 11am - 3pm at Dartington Village Hall
All Welcome - Refreshments provide
Come and share seeds: our heritage and our future
This year's Seed Swap is on Saturday February 4th at Birdwood House, from 11 until 3.
We will have seeds donated by Garden Organic's Heritage Seed Library and several local seed firms. Local gardeners have already donated tomato, marigold and paeony-flowered poppy seeds, and more will arrive on the day. Seed potatoes, knowledgeable gardeners, compost makers, seed savers and all sorts of wise plant people will all be there. We will of course have juice, tea, cakes and other delights.
If you
have no seeds to swap, you can always make a small donation instead.
Profits are shared between TTT projects, the Heritage Seed Library and
another local permaculture or horticulture project.
Entry only £1
Growing your own food – life’s not always a beach...but the rewards are huge.
Growing
your own fruit and vegetables has come to seem almost like another
television fad over recent years, with a back-to-back diet of garden
make-over programmes often showing us the consumer fast-food version of
vegetable cultivation. Apparently it is so easy you can get bumper crops
with almost no effort whatsoever, and often there little mention of
making your own compost, green manuring, making liquid feeds, or even
the careful planning and fore-thought needed to manage successive
plantings, without depleting your soil (therefore giving you
nutrient-poor veggies). Growing vegetables year-round has become another
yummy-mummy activity involving a good old splurge in the garden centre
to get the starter kit, and away you go. No so, I find, for several
reasons. Buying sterilised compost in bags is no substitute for the
living breathing entity that real compost is - hence the lack of worms
and other little critters you find in it - and sadly there is no
escaping the fact that gardening is one of those things that takes a
long, sustained effort, and the quick version is likely to be both high
in carbon, and a pretty unethical and un-nourishing version of the real
deal.
The great news is that Totnes is packed with growers who
inspiringly are absolutely the real deal. The thriving Totnes
Allotments Association have created two allotment areas, on Castle
Meadow and the Kingsbridge Hill, and continue to campaign for new plots
so the people of Totnes have a chance to access land, cut their food
costs, and get their hands in the earth cultivating their plots
together. It is a serious endeavour for all sides. Plots are expected to
be at least 75% in cultivation - and preferably not of the 'sow one
harvest and let it hang out for the rest of the season' style of
growing. The wonderful pay-off is the sense of camaraderie, shared
inspiration, motivation, veg. swapping, and veggie-growing tips, that
flourish when working cheek by jowl next to so many other growers, and
makes up in bucket-loads for the toil of creating a productive plot. Not to mention the food! Read more...
Business and Livelihoods Update
Over
the past year the Business and Livelihoods group in Totnes has gone
from strength to strength. We have met bi monthly, alternating the
format of the meeting between open networking and a more action focused
meeting to identify potential collaboration opportunities. The format of
the next B&L meeting will be an open networking. This is usually
just people pitching up and having a chat with drinks. However this
time, as it is the start of a new year I will be asking people with
specific projects and/or enterprises to bring a board with information
about their work and to share with others attending. Project examples
include plans for a business incubator, entrepreneurs conference, local
food brand and enterprise examples include new food, transport and
well-being businesses. This will be an open meeting and all are warmly
invited to attend.
The purpose of this is to give an idea of the
scope of the work we are undertaking within the group, how it links
together and the potential opportunities for attendees to get involved.
We also have a group of people who have expressed an active interest in
Timebanking and they will be attending to gauge opinion on whether it
could be a viable thing to formalise in Totnes.
The meeting will
be at the New Walk Brasserie in Totnes, at 7pm-9pm on Wednesday 1st
February. There is no need to RSVP but if you would like to know more in
the meantime please feel free to give me a call on 01803 867358 or
email me: frances(at)transitiontowntotnes.org
Transition Streets - How has it been for you?
If
you’re in a Transition Street group we’d love to hear about how you’ve
been getting on. While some groups have set up events and groups in
their streets, others may welcome ideas to encourage them and we’d like
to share your good ideas in our next bulletin.
The Follaton
group Heffers on Hedges, for example, set up a recycling rota to take
their waste to the council’s recycling depot. As one participant said:
‘It saved each of us taking cars out to take our own; it felt for us
nice to be doing something as a team, not to be isolated. Also
time-wise, as we’re all quite busy people it worked well to have
it all dumped off and take it in turns to do it – just to share the
load.’ Meanwhile Huxhams Cross group in Dartington have shared meals,
clothes swaps and are applying to set up a community orchard. One
participant said
:
‘We could look at maybe planting about 100 trees that would support the
whole community, so that we could become self-sufficient in certain
fruit, apples and pears, cherries, apricots and some nuts.’
Let
us know whether you have continued to meet and organise together or, for
example, you’re trying to get a project off the ground and might
appreciate some input from others. We can publicise your good ideas
here. We look forward to hearing from you. Please contact Clare Jeffery
at jefferycoms(at)gmail.com.
Don’t forget that all 500
Transition Streets households in Totnes district are still eligible for a
many ‘extras’, including a home energy audit – to bring their bills and
carbon emissions down still further – at a discounted price.
An
energy audit is a detailed report of energy-saving actions you can make
in your home. These audits, offered by local energy advisors Anahat
Energy at 60 per cent of the usual price, also include calculations of
the likely costs, savings and payback period of changes you make.
If
you’d like to know more about this or how to form a Transition Streets
group to benefit from these offers, please contact Mary Popham on
marypopham(at)btinternet.com or 07815 799996.
Finally, Transition
Streets is planning to deliver a series of practical draught-busting
workshops to teach participants how to draught-proof their windows and
doors. If you have at least one draughty wooden window and external
door, which you would like draught-proofed for free, and would be
willing to consider hosting a workshop in your home (you don’t need to
be part of a Transition Streets group) please contact Mary to find out
more.
The Skillshare Project needs you!
Please
consider offering a skillshare as a gift to the community! Choose any
topic that supports our resilience – serious or fun, practical or
poetical. There’s no need to be an expert and you could take this
opportunity to explore with others an area you’re interested in. A
session can be as short or long as you wish, and you can choose the
date, time and location; this ideally would be your home, but we’ll help
find a venue if required.
…Or just come and enjoy any free skillshare!
For all info and to join the mailing list, please contact Annie on tttskillshare@gmail.com or 01803 762992.
More skillshares coming up soon on pottery, peg loom weaving, sewing, veggie growing, sacred clowning and more.
Stay tuned!
TTT Food group Food Feast pot luck
Bring
a home-made, vegetarian, seasonal dish made with locally sourced
ingredients to Willow restaurant on the [2nd] 9th February to share with
other food lovers. The event is free with drinks available to purchase
(it is not BYO). RSVP by the 1st February to simacutting@gmail.com to
secure your place. The evening will start at 6.30 and end at 9.30. This
is a fantastic opportunity to talk about food provenance, your favourite
recipe's, gaps in the market, what the future holds for Totnes' food
industry and is a chance to be inspired and to inspire like-minded
people passionate about food and sustainability.
Upcoming TTT events
Saturday 14th January. Furze Gardens, Bridgetown. 10am. Free!
Nut Tree Planting
A new planting in Bridgetown, in 'chicken run', Pathfields playing field and residential areas of upper Bridgetown.
Please let me know if you are coming. Wendy on 868305.
Wednesday 18th January. Totnes Methodist Church. 8-10pm.£4/ £3 conc.
Grow Heathrow - A new model for Transition?
The
campaign against a 3rd runway at Heathrow Airport was not only
successful but also gave birth to a very positive initiative. Grow
Heathrow unites local residents in their 80's and even younger with
activists from campaigns like Plane Stupid to create a new facet of
Transition. Short films and speaker Ian Westmoreland from Grow Heathrow
will precede a discussion about this exciting development. Further
details from Chris Bird 01803 866835
Friday 20 January, 5.30 to 7.30 pm. Simone’s, 1 Varian Court, off Bridgetown Hill, Totnes TQ9 5BS. Cost: only a donation towards the ingredients
Skillshare: Preparing and Cooking Seitan - (a vegan meat substitute)
Simone
Wilkie will show us how to prepare seitan, a tasty, convenient and
versatile meat substitute made from wheat gluten – very popular in many
Eastern countries. Please bring a small jam jar or container to take
some home to try if we run out of time to cook it at Simone’s.
More
info from simonewilkie24(at)gmail.com or 01803 867775. If coming by
car, please park at Morrisons' car park or Coldharbour Terrace and walk
up (or take a chance and park in a neighbouring road).
Saturday 21st January. 10am – 2pm. Sharpham House. Free.
Tree planting with the Sharpham Trust
Join us to plant more trees on the Sharpham estate that will provide a harvest in the years to come. We’ll cook up a campfire soup to keep you warm. All ages welcome. Be part of creating a tasty future! For further info. ring Wendy Stayte on 01803-868305 or wendystt997(at)gmail.com
Saturday 21st January. Dartington Village Hall. 11am - 3pm. Free. Drop-in event.
Transition Homes Consultation Open Day
A
chance to see all the latest progress on this exciting project to build
20 low-carbon, low cost homes for local people with integral food and
energy production, plus an opportunity to have your say about the
development and find out how you can get involved.
Further details from Erica Lewis 01803 867209 email: erica(at)inspiringaction.co.uk
Monday 6th, 13th, 20th, & 27th Feb. Bridgetown, Totnes. £10 for the whole course
Bike maintenance course with DoctorBike
Suitable for complete beginners to adept wrenchmonkeys. Based in lower Bridgetown, you'll learn all the necessary spannering to keep your bike running smoothly and safely. Four 2-hour evening sessions on consecutive Mondays in February 2012. DoctorBike is qualified, insured and his workshop is well-equipped. Email: ben(at)doctorbike.org - or call/text: 07769 112102.
Thursday 19 January, 6.30 to 9.30 pm. At Anna Ash’s home in Littlehempston
I-LOVE-SEWING Skillshare
Bring
along your project (whatever you want to try – such as hemming,
darning, making a fancy-dress outfit or cushion covers), together with
your materials and sewing kit. Sewing machines provided – for up to
three or four people. Tea and biscuits provided. Contributions towards
the costs requested (approx. £2).
Please call Anna on 01803 847899 to book and get directions.
Another
skillshare with Anna is planned in central Totnes to make funky (or
discreet) patches and try other easy sewing tasks. Stay tuned!
Thursday 2nd February. Willow Restaurant, Totnes. 6.30-9.30pm. Free. Drinks available for purchase.
The Food Group presents: Pot Luck Food Feast
Bring
a homemade, vegetarian, seasonal dish, made using as much local produce
as possible to share with the group. This is a wonderful opportunity to
talk about food, meet people in TTT food group, learn about projects
happening in Totnes and to come up with new ideas.
Please RSVP to simacutting(at)gmail.com by January 25th. Booking essential. Not BYO venue.
Thursday 2nd February. The Barn Cinema. 8pm.
Film Preview of Transition 2.0 Film
2009’s film In Transition 1.0 captured the emergent Transition movement, a vibrant grassroots response to peak oil, climate change and economic crisis, much of it filmed by the initiatives themselves. In Transition 2.0 updates the story, showing how much this movement has grown since the first film, and the scale of the change it is catalysing. You’ll see stories of the Brixton Pound’s pioneering ‘pay-by-text’ scheme, the Japanese community energy company set up in response to Fukashima, London’s only underground station with a food garden on it, tale after tale of ordinary people doing extraordinary things. It’s the perfect antidote to gloom-and-doom.
Followed by a Q&A with Rob Hopkins from Transition Town Totnes and the film’s director Emma Goude.
To book tickets at The Barn click here.
To read more about the film and keep up to date with screenings etc. click here.
Saturday 4th February. Birdwood House, Totnes. 11-3. £1.
The Seedy Sisters present : Seedy Saturday 2012
Bring along any seeds you may have saved and swap them for other varieties. No seeds? No worries! Come along anyway and for a small donation aquire all of your gardening needs for the forthcoming year plus plenty of soup, tea and cake! There will be a Gardeners Question Time and The Sisters will be on hand to answer all your queries. Call 01803 867358 for more info.
Sunday 5th February , Studio 4, Dartington. £15 on door.
The Inner Transition Group Presents: ‘Work that Reconnects’ workshop: Awakening from the dark
Spring approaches.In these uncertain times what seeds will we nurture in our lives?
For £10 conc, or early-bird discount book at rosie.3talloaks(at)phone coop.coop on 01626324890
Sunday 5th February. School Farm, Dartington Estate.10am-1pm.
Fruit Tree Grafting Workshop / Skillshare with Janta Wheelhouse of Karuna Permaculture Project
Learn to produce your own fruit trees cheaply and help re-orchard Devon! A short presentation, then demonstration of the key grafting techniques and hands on training. Bare root apple trees available at the w/shop for £10, please pre-order. Cost: all welcome regardless of ability to contribute - suggested donation £15-£50 – incl. grafted apple trees & refreshments! To book email larch.maxey(at)plymouth.ac.uk or call 01803 867512
Tuesday 7 February, 12.30 to 2 pm at Birdwood House, 44 High Street, Totnes
A free Skillshare Information Session on Welfare Rights
Dean,
of the newly formed Totnes Claimants’ Union, will give an overview of
the benefits system: despite the great work of Citizens’ Advice and
other agencies, there is much underclaiming of benefits and tax credits
in Totnes, entailing a big loss to people and the local economy. This
session will be followed by others focused on particular benefits and
their link to more entitlements or grants (such as those for insulation
and fuel efficiency).
Please bring a sandwich or snack to share – and any question you might have!
For more info contact totnesclaimantsunion(at)yahoo.co.uk.
Saturdays 11th/19th/25th February. 10am-4pm
Planting a new community orchard in Follaton arboretum
Feb. 11th will be another training day for tree guardians and those interested in tree planting and tree care, led by Liz Turner of Trees for Health. Over the 3 planting Saturdays in Follaton Arboretum we intend to plant about 65 fruit trees. Bring a picnic lunch. For more info. call Wendy Stayte on 01803-868305 or wendystt997(at)gmail.com
Tuesday 28 February, 7 pm.
Un repas en français! Oui, oui, Oui! C’est bon!
Annie’s, 24 Huxhams Cross, Dartington TQ9 6NT
Bring
a contribution to this shared French meal and be prepared to speak only
in “grenouille”. On ne parlera qu’en français! Et on regardera
peut-être un bon film ensemble.
More info from Annie on a.l(at)zen.co.uk or 01803 762992.
Sunday 4 March, 12.30 to 3 pm, 5 Western Villas, Collins Road, Totnes
TQ9 5PW. A free skillshare session with Holly Tiffen, at her home.
Sourdough Bread-making Skillshare
Learn this easy technique of delicious bread making over a simple lunch (bring something to share with bread).
More info from Holly on tiffenholly(at)gmail.com or 07857 811994
Friday 9th March. Totnes Methodist Church. 7.30pm. £3 / £2 conc.
Low cost, low-impact housing...a viable alternative?
Exploring
different ways of creating low-cost, sustainable housing and the
obstacles to be overcome. Main Speaker: Dr Jenny Pickerill, Leicester
University plus others tbc.
Thursday 15 March, 12 to 2.30 pm, 24 Huxhams Cross, Dartington, TQ9 6NT
Gardening for Beginners (1) - A free Skillshare session with James Blackman
Over a simple shared lunch - please bring a contribution
Guidance to create and maintain a small organic ornamental/productive garden, with a Q’s and A’s session.
More info from Annie on tttskillshare(at)gmail.com or 01803 762992.
Sunday 18th March. Rockery, Borough Park, Totnes. 12-3:30pm.
Rockery Rejuvenation
Incredible Edible invites you to get your hands dirty with a springtime clean up of the rockery on the corner of Borough Park. This site which was taken on by a small team of dedicated volunteers back in October 2011 will be in need of some TLC after the winter. All are welcome. For info call Amber on 05601 531 882 or e-mail pa.robhopkins(at)gmail.com.
Wednesday 21st March, Methodist Church. 8-10pm.£4/£3 conc.
Climate Change at the frontline in Bangladesh
This
is a joint meeting with Oxfam who recently sent local Transition
activist and Oxfam volunteer, Chris Bird, on a tour of Oxfam projects in
Bangladesh. Bangladesh is already facing increased flooding as a result
of climate change so what's happening and what can we do about it?
Further details from Chris Bird 01803 866835
Wednesday 21st March. Totnes Civic Hall. 9am-6pm. £20 (various concessions available).
Wednesday 21st March 2012 9am-6pm Totnes Civic Hall. £20 (various concessions available).
Green Entrepreneur Conference : the official launch of a 'business incubator' for Totnes
The
last 5 yrs has seen a steady growth of relocated and new low carbon
businesses in Totnes. Come and hear our plans for supporti ng these local
businesses and new or emerging 'transition enterprises'. Hear inspiring
stories from others who have done it, and pitch business ideas to our
friendly experts, ready to nurture new entrepreneurs with an array of
support, including investment. To book email
frances(at)transitiontowntotnes.org
Thursday 12 April, 12 to 2.30 pm, 24 Huxhams Cross, Dartington, TQ9 6NT
Gardening for Beginners (2) - A free Skillshare session with James Blackman
Over a simple shared lunch - please bring a contribution
Guidance to create and maintain a small organic ornamental/productive garden, with a Q’s and A’s session.
More info from Annie on tttskillshare(at)gmail.com or 01803 762992.
Saturday 14th April, 1.30- 5.30pm, Bowden House, Totnes. £15/£8 concs. A Council of All Beings workshop
An Inner Transition experiential workshop uses ritual and creativity (eg. mask-making) to tune into our “deep ecology”, or interconnectedness with all beings, by giving a voice to other life forms and sharing their wisdom. This can connect us with deep sources of joy, inspiration and clarity. For more info contact Annie a.l@zen.co.uk or 01803 762992. Children are welcome and will be able to take part in a parallel workshop.
Tuesday 17th April. Totnes Methodist Church. 8pm. £4/£3 conc.
Bee Friendly Zones – with speakers: Phil Chandler AKA the Barefoot Beekeeper and others…
Also watch out for:
TTT Film nights on the 2nd Tuesday of each month:
Tues 14th Feb - Capitalism - a Love Story
Tues 13th March - The Earth Whisperers
Tues 10th April - Tree Stories and other short films
Opening hours for the TTT Office are Monday & Tuesday 9am-5pm. Thanks.
Transition Town Totnes, 43 Fore Street, Totnes, Devon, TQ9 5HN.
Tel: 01 803 867358 transitiontowntotnes(at)gmail.com