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Friday 27 May 2011

Transition Network Diversity Newsletter May 2011

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Transition Network Diversity Newsletter
Bi-Monthly Newsletter May 2011
View this newsletter online

WELCOME to the Transition Network’s Diversity and Inclusion newsletter. This newsletter is compiled by Catrina Pickering, Diversity Coordinator, Transition Network. I aim to get this newsletter out to you approximately every two months.

Transition Network Diversity and Inclusion News

LEYTONSTONE: Report from Winter Faiths Festival
Report on a faith inspired weekend celebration of sustainable living, with food, hospitality and entertainment held by Transition Leytonstone (East London) in partnership with Sacred Roots, a Muslim-led organisation promoting interfaith dialogue through arts and culture. Aiming to make the events programme socially inclusive, culturally varied and engaging, we strove together to deliver a mixture of environmental information and entertainment.
Read more on the Transition Network site

The Draught-Busting Phenomena: Saving money, saving carbon and staying warm

16% of UK households are in fuel poverty which means that they spend more than 10% of their income on energy in the home. Transition projects that help people to save money by boosting home energy efficiency meet a fundamental need of staying warm in winter while also lowering carbon emissions. Draught-busting teaches people the skills needed to fit cheap draught proofing products that insulate against cold draughts in their homes. Since 2009, Transition Belsize in London have held more than 20 workshops that have bought local people together to have fun, learn skills, reduce carbon and combat fuel poverty.
Read more on the Transition Network site
Transition Network Conference, Liverpool, 8-10th July
The Transition Network conference 2011 will take place from 8-11th July in Liverpool and is now open for bookings. This year's conference theme is living well in uncertain times. Through workshops, discussions and skill-sharing, there will be lots of opportunities to explore themes around diversity and social justice. For example, how can we all live well in changing times? What is the role of power in Transition? How can all people in a community contribute and have their needs met while transitioning to a low carbon, post oil world? How do we create inclusive social enterprises?
We’re also working hard to maximise accessibility through:
  • Ensuring that we have a venue that is physically accessible to all. Read the conference page for information on access needs
  • Concessions for those who would otherwise not be able to attend as well as a concessions fund for those who wish to donate to help someone else with the cost of their ticket.
  • A family friendly kids' conference that will run alongside and mesh together with the main conference.
Hope to see you there!
Transition Movie the second: In Transition 2.0
The Transition movie 1.0 was a roaring success. The Transition movie 2.0 is now in production and we’re looking for your stories and videos. We want to make a movie that yes, looks at how communities are building resilience against climate change and peak oil. We also want to make a movie that shows how communities are doing this through a lens of social justice that enables everyone in a community to live well in changing times. If you are doing activities around this then we’d love to hear from you and have your project included in the forthcoming film. Please get in touch by emailing Catrina.
Launch of Transition Network Diversity Sub-Site
The diversity sub-site brings together all the news, projects, people and blogs related to diversity and inclusion in one page on the Transition Network site. So whether you want to find inspiration for diversity projects or find people in Transition that are working on social justice, this is the place to find it.
See the Diversity sub-site on the Transition Network site
BRIXTON: Celebrating Heroes with the Brixton Pound
Transition Brixton in South London is based in a multi-ethnic and multi-cultural community, with history and achievements to be proud of. They’re working to engage members of their very diverse local community, to make their stories heard, and to involve them in the design of the second issue of the Brixton Pound notes. They’re competing for a £5,000 Co-op grant. If successful, they will collect people’s stories about local unsung heroes and their thoughts about Brixton. With the Brixton Heroes project, they seek to counteract negative stereotypes, and to give Brixton’s local people and communities a stronger voice to talk about their experiences and what matters to them.
Read more on the Transition Network site
Read more about the project on the Brixton Pound site, and vote for them to win the Coop Join the Revolution award.
DURHAM: Action Research on Diversity and Inclusion
Transition Durham is undertaking action research on the topic of diversity and inclusion within the initiative. Firstly, they will be reflecting back over our history and our current activities to identify any unintentional barriers they may have created. Secondly, they will begin investigating new avenues to becoming more involved in and building or extending links in the community. The research is being managed by Louise Senior from Durham University as part of her MSc Development Anthropology dissertation and should be completed by September 2011.
If you’re interested in the research and want to know more, or think you have something to offer to this research, please email her or comment on the Forum on the Transition Network site.

News, events and resources from elsewhere

Workshop on Rank, Power and Conflict Facilitation, 15-17th July, Totnes
Process Oriented Psychology, founded by Dr. Arnold Mindell, offers powerful tools for making group life flow more smoothly in connection with an earth based approach to life. It recognises that anyone can help facilitate a group, whether you are a participant facilitator or an official leader. This seminar is for anyone interested in improving their understanding of groups and in gaining methods to use as facilitators, participants, therapists or in organisational development.
Cost £180 (£160 if £50 deposit received by 1st June 2011). Some concessions/ scholarships available for those active in Transition. Registration & info email Sue Milner or call 01364 643108 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting              01364 643108      end_of_the_skype_highlighting.
See the workshop on the Transition Network site
Quaker and Transition conference: 24 - 26th June, Birmingham
A weekend for Quakers involved in Transition Initiatives. If you are a Quaker already engaged, or just starting to get involved, in Transition activity (or other similar low-carbon communities), this weekend is for you. Come as an individual, or come representing your meeting’s involvement. We aim to share and learn from each other’s experiences, and look at what Quakers can both contribute to, and learn from, collaborative work in our local communities. Is there something unique that Quakers can bring, from our processes and testimonies?
See the workshop on the Transition Network site

Over to you...

If you’ve got news items, events or something you’re proud of that you’d like to include in the next Diversity Newsletter edition, please let us know by emailing Catrina Pickering.

Veolia Lose Rainworth and Sherwood Forest Win - NO to Incinerator

We keep our Landscape and move on to a Regional Park fit to live in.

Pickles rejects Sherwood Forest Incinerator

Following a public inquiry, the Secretary of State Eric Pickles has refused planning permission for Veolia’s proposed 180,000 tonne waste incinerator in Rainworth, Nottinghamshire. The public inquiry, which was presided over by Inspector Rupert Grantham, opened in October 2009 and was adjourned twice at the request of Veolia to allow them time to submit further evidence.

The greenfield site, owned by UK Coal and subject to a planning condition requiring restoration to heathland and woodland, is in the heart of Sherwood Forest, and is used by rare and protected bird species such as woodlark and nightjar.

Local campaign group People Against Incineration (PAIN) were joined by Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust and Newark & Sherwood District Council in opposing the application at the public inquiry. There was also a community evening where local residents voiced their opposition to the incinerator.

In the Planning Inspector’s view: “...Veolia have failed to show use of the Rufford facility would not prejudice further movement up the waste hierarchy...Recognition that the site is not previously developed land would have ruled it out at an early stage in the site selection process. I have also identified significant shortcomings in the subsequent assessment of this and other shortlisted sites. To my mind, the appraisal of alternative sites has not been robust”.

PAIN’s Chairman, Bernard Thompson, said: “This is a happy day for the people of Rainworth, and for all who care about Sherwood Forest. I would like to thank everyone involved. Local support remained solid over many years of campaigning. We have utmost respect for the Planning Inspector, Mr Rupert Grantham, who treated all parties fairly and arrived at the right conclusion.”

Shlomo Dowen, who gave evidence on behalf of PAIN at the inquiry, said: “It is unfortunate that Veolia and Nottinghamshire County Council have squandered so much time and public money on this misadventure. Now that this distraction is over PAIN looks forward to working with our County Council to ensure that Nottinghamshire’s ever-decreasing quantity of waste is managed sustainably.”

Newark & Sherwood District Councillor Linda Tift said: “I am overjoyed to hear that this beloved site will be protected from development. The site is clearly important to nature conservation and is surrounded by Sites of Special Scientific Interest. I hope that UK Coal will now honour their promise to return the site to heathland so that the community’s vision for the area to be restored and included in a Sherwood Forest Regional Park can be realised.”

Friday 6 May 2011

Sherwood Forest May 2011 Transition Network Newsletter

Transition Network
May 2011 Transition Network Newsletter
CONTENTS
 
THE 2011 NETWORK UK CONFERENCE
LOCAL STUFF
~ April Round Up of What's Happening in Transition
~ People of Tottenham Street
~ Free Trees for Communities
VIDEOS
~ Movie 2.0
~ How Can We Grow More Food Locally?
THINKING ALOUD
~ Inconvenient Truths About the Coming Transition
~ Activism and Transition
PEAK OIL
~ Oil Crunch Video
~ ASPO 9 Conference Presentations
~ On Peak Oil, You Are Not Alone
~ How Many Days Work in A Litre of Oil?
ELECTRICITY
~ Community-owned Solar Powers Brewery 
~ Linlithgow’s Solar Bulk Buying Scheme
EVENTS
~ Green Gathering is back 
~ Sunrise Festival 
~ London and Thames Valley Transition Gathering, 11-June
~ Plus lots more 
TRAINING
~ Grow your Group
TECH BYTES
~ Syndication and Social Media
~ What is the best way for Transition Initiatives to use Facebook and Twitter? 
~ Facebook page. 
QUOTE OF The MONTH
~ And Finally....
 

 
THE 2011 NETWORK UK CONFERENCE
Liverpool Hope University  8th - 11th July.
The programme schedule is underway. The programme design team consists of Rob Hopkins, Jo Hardy, Steph Bradley and Pete Lipman. We will publish the programme as it emerges with an update in June's newsletter. You can be sure it will be a veritable smorgasbord of knowledge, activities, experience and discussion on topics close to our practical experiences on the ground. If you want to suggest a workshop, please email workshops@transitionnetwork.org with the following:
 
~ Title
~ Description: maximum one short paragraph
~ Benefits for Transitioners
~ Time needed for workshop
 
Please note that we welcome all workshop proposals. However, we can't guarantee you a slot as time is tight! So if you don't get a slot, please don't feel bad, and remember that there's always next year. 
 
Read more about it and book your ticket here

 
LOCAL STUFF
 
April Round Up of What's Happening in Transition
Our tour this month starts in Australia, across to South Africa, then around the UK from Worthing, to Maidenhead, Amersham, Lewes and London plus more but we must also mention Germany, Ireland before we hop across to North America. 
 
 
People of Tottenham Street
How well do you know your neighbours? Having lived in Fitzrovia for over 48 years Fiona Green decided it was time to pay a tribute to all her lovely neighbours.
 
Free Trees for Communities
The Woodland Trust is offering free trees for communities to plant in their neighbourhoods in order to double the number of native trees in the UK.

 
VIDEOS
 
Movie 2.0
Shown thousands of times around the world, ‘In Transition1.0' has done a huge amount to support initiatives and give them a good “so this is what Transition is” resource. Things have moved on a lot since then, so we are going to make a second one, provisionally titled (imaginatively) “In Transition 2.0.“
 
 
How Can We Grow More Food Locally?
Transition Bath made a film from an excellent talk they hosted 

 
THINKING ALOUD
 
Inconvenient Truths About the Coming Transition
Skill-swapping, gardening, knowing your neighbours – these are brilliant and vital parts of a hopeful future. But all the warm and fuzzy feelings we get from sharing bran muffins in the local town hall can sometimes obscure rather than highlight the reality of the situation we’re in.
 
Activism and Transition
There are some very interesting stories of Transition Initiatives finding themselves coming closer than expected to activist groups and activism in general. Do you have any thoughts or experiences about it? We're looking into this as it's clearly quite controversial, and going to be increasingly important for Transition Initiatives in times to come. Join the discussion here:

 
PEAK OIL
 
Oil Crunch Video
An excellent new 12 min video available online (and to download) about Peak Oil. Jeremey Leggett decribes it as "the best short TV account I have yet seen on the peak-oil problem". He notes that "In it the IEA's chief economist is teased into going as far as I have ever seen or heard him go in saying that a crisis of global oil supply is near." Leggett adds that "a poll of oil-and-gas industry leaders shows that the majority  now think that the biggest share of world energy in 2025 will be held not by oil or gas, or coal, but renewables."
 
ASPO 9 Conference Presentations
The ninth international conference of the Association For the Study of Peak Oil (ASPO) took place at the end of April in Brussels. The presentation slides & videos are online. 
 
On Peak Oil, You Are Not Alone
While the signs are all around us nobody knows, and nobody cares. At least that’s how it seems. But people know something’s up.
 
How Many Days Work in A Litre of Oil?
Having often quoted “1 litre of oil equals 35 days of human work”, Rob Hopkins found his number challenged which sparked a lively discussion about what the real number is.

 
ELECTRICITY
 
Community-owned Solar Powers Brewery 
A project to put solar panels on the roof of Harvey's brewery in Lewes is tantalisingly close with only about £20,000 still to be raised this weekend.

Rob Hopkins has written a 'Transition Ingredient' about "Investing in Transition"  which covers the many ways Transition Initiatives can invest in their local communities
http://transitionculture.org/2011/05/03/ingredients-of-transition-investing-in-transition/
 
 
Linlithgow’s Solar Bulk Buying Scheme
In 2010 Transition Linlithgow began ambitious bulk buying project for solar thermal heating systems for over 160 homes.

 
EVENTS
 
Green Gathering is back - smaller but perfectly formed with a Transition area 28 July - 1 Aug 

Sunrise Festival will again be featuring the Transition Tin Village with
a full programme of workshops and films. 2 - 5th June
 
London and Thames Valley Transition Gathering, 11-June
Grow Heathrow is hosting a gathering for Transition Towns based in
London & the Thames Valley area.
 
 
Plus there are lots more in the directory including:
~ 'Imagine There’s a Future' short story competition for writers resident in SW England.
~ A weekend for Quakers in local Transition initiatives
~ Dragon Dreaming Training
~ London Permaculture Festival 2011 - Sat 16th July

 
TRAINING
There are a couple of places left in the training in London on May 14/15, and we can do those for a discounted price and also places left on Wivenhoe, Essex training 4/5th June.
 
Grow your Group
How thriving is your group? Is it in the first flush of action and enthusiasm? How will you
keep it so? Is it shrinking into a small core of overwhelmed people? GROW YOUR GROUP consultancy and training believe that successful groups need the same sort of care and attention as a garden.

 
TECH BYTES
 
Syndication and Social Media
We now have a page to explain where else we live on the web; to provide the more 'social network-y' types with our social network locations, and the initiative webmasters among you with tools to connect your sites with ours, and the most popular feeds to embed on your sites and aggregators.
 
What is the best way for Transition Initiatives to use Facebook and Twitter? 
Join the discussion here

And of course, we must mention that we now have an
Official Transition Network Facebook page. 

 
QUOTE OF THE MONTH
Happiness and good conversation are carbon-negative technologies that deserve re-discovery.
Energy Bulletin Editor
 
And Finally....
Gort and Klaatu's blog
Our poor specimen earthling continues his adventures into possible futures.

 
Follow Transition Network on Twitter 
 
Find previous editions of the newsletter here 
This newsletter is published on the first Friday of each month.
 
Newsletter Editor: Mike Grenville, from Transition Forest Row
Contact: transitionnetworknews@googlemail.com
+44 (0)7974 924289 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting              +44 (0)7974 924289      end_of_the_skype_highlighting
 

Sunday 1 May 2011

Special Trees of Sherwood Walks May 2011



Saturday 14th May 10-30am - 1.00
Thynghowe Trail

A gentle Stroll along forestry boundaries and tracks to the Viking Assembly of Thynghowe

Sunday 15 May 10.30am - 1.00pm
King's Wood & St Edwin's Chapel

An easy stroll around the sweet chestnut and oak wood witk owners and foresters Stuart Reddish and Lynda Mallett. Hear the story of centuries of woodland management including medieval deer leaps and ancient coppicing, then visit the site of St Edwin's Chapel.

Booking Details

For further details, contact the Trust on 01623 821490 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting              01623 821490      end_of_the_skype_highlighting begin_of_the_skype_highlighting              01623 821490      end_of_the_skype_highlighting begin_of_the_skype_highlighting              01623 821490