29% of Horsham’s green space could be lost

/in , , , , , , , /by

HELP KEEP ROOKWOOD GREEN PLEASE!

On Tuesday 16th June our weekly Horsham Future Forum and Youth Eco Forum attendees listened to an excellent talk by Peter Simpson, Trustee of the Friends of Warnham Local Nature Reserve and Sally Sanderson, Chair of Friends of Horsham Park. Friends of Warnham Local Nature Reserve, Friends of Horsham Park and the Horsham Society have formed Keep Rookwood Green Alliance and are campaigning to retain Rookwood Golf Course as a public green space.

Those of us on this week’s Zoom call were shocked to learn of the ecological damage and the 29% loss of Horsham’s large green space that will occur if 1,100 houses are built on Rookwood Golf Course. The decision will be finalised before August and there is a short window of opportunity in which we can influence Horsham District Councillors. The more of us that make our views known known, the greater the chance that we will be heard and that we can Keep Rookwood Green!

Here are some ways that you can get involved: Read more

Fundraising to expand our single use plastic recycling operation

/in , , , , /by

Some ‘Wednesday Wombles’ sorting crisp packets pre covid

Bigger and better: Appeal for help to expand our single use plastic recycling operation and deliver a greener Horsham!

After a quiet start to the lockdown on the single use plastic recycling front, we are delighted to say that things are starting to pick up again and we are receiving increasing donations of single use plastics waste resources at the Quaker Meeting House drop off point. This is brilliant news as we want to make sure we’re diverting as much single use plastic household waste away from landfill and incineration, and finding new purposes for these materials through our TerraCycle recycling scheme.

We are extremely lucky to have our small but dedicated team of volunteers (affectionately known as the Wombles!) who throughout the lockdown have continued to sort through the donations on a weekly basis in a socially distanced manner. However as waste resource donations return to pre lockdown levels, SGL is in desperate need of support to expand its recycling capability. To give some indication of the quantities the team are working through, a staggering 120,000 crisp packets have been recycled by our team over the course of the last two years! Once single plastic donations are dropped off at the Quaker Meeting House, these are sorted through by hand by our volunteers, boxed up and sent to a company called TerraCycle who manage the recycling of these hard to recycle materials. Without these volunteers, crisp packets along with lots of other household single use plastic resources such as biscuit and snack wrappers would be discarded in waste bins, which currently are transported to Germany and Holland to be incinerated at significant financial and environmental cost. Read more

Help campaign for more cycling lanes

/in , , /by

Old Shoreham Road in Hove installed in May

On Tuesday 9th June the Sussex Green Living hosted weekly Horsham Future Forum and Youth Eco Forum listened to an excellent talk by Francis Vernon the chair of Horsham District Cycling forum. They are working hard to encourage Horsham District Council to install pop-up cycling lanes in Horsham town.

Message from Horsham District Cycling Forum

We’ve seen them going in across the country and now Horsham is finally getting its own pop-up cycle lanes along a section of Albion Way.

With the ongoing need to maintain social distancing as we ease out of lockdown, taking measures to enable active travel will be crucial in allowing people to get around safely. Read more

Horsham to get ‘pop-up’ cycle lanes along Albion Way

/in , , /by

Message from Horsham District Cycling Forum

Last month the Government called on councils to make swift and significant changes to their road layouts to give more space to cyclists and pedestrians so as to enable socially distanced active travel.

West Sussex County Council has responded with seven schemes across the county, including the plan to cone off one lane of Horsham’s Albion Way in each direction from Sainsbury’s and Waitrose to the Bishopric to make it safer for people to cycle and walk to the supermarkets and the town.

For an example of what this could look like I attach a picture of a ‘pop-up’ cycle lane on Kingston Bridge over the Thames.

Although initially only along a short length of road, the Cycling Forum supports this plan since it will help local people walk and cycle more safely whilst maintaining social distancing – particularly along the busy stretch of road between the Bishopric and Waitrose where many people walk. This will be good for key workers getting to work, for children on their way to school (once they’re back!), and for people going to the shops. Read more

Green Home

Green homes – save money, energy & the planet

/in , , , /by

Green HomeHeated households: New report reveals the energy usage and cost of household appliance

86% of the UK are consciously trying to be sustainable

A new report by Wren Kitchens has revealed the amount of energy used by kitchen appliances based on the average usage time and how much power they consume.

86% of the UK are now are consciously trying to be sustainable according to a new report by Wren Kitchens1.

Recycling, reusing, and repurposing have now become an everyday occurrence in the UK as households try and do ‘their bit’ for climate change and reduce their carbon footprint.

However, with energy use for household appliances tripling within the past 40 years2  just how much money and energy could we save by changing to a greener solution?

The new report has revealed that the kitchen is the most likely culprit for carbon and energy usage, due to the amount of appliances the room hosts whilst detailing tips on how to save energy and money. Read more

To Travel or Not to Travel? That Is The Question

/in , , , /by

Press release

Holidays on hold? Or help at hand

On Saturday 6 June, Sussex Green Living’s virtual Horsham Climate Café meeting will be focusing on what post-pandemic travel might look like once the world opens up again.

Many questions about the future of travel and holidays remain to be answered. With movement restrictions still in place and many holidaymakers still not knowing if, how or when they can expect to get away, the biggest question may be:

How will people feel about holidays after the pandemic and have travellers’ priorities changed?

Some may be desperate to get away after the lockdown and others may be feel it is too risky for health reasons. The nature recovery may have inspired people to stay at home whilst others may be motivated by sustainable holidays or wanting to make a difference overseas.

This week’s Climate Café event will discuss Ethical Travel, StayCations and SlowCation (travel by bike and train) and suggest possible alternatives to our traditional get-aways. Read more

Get Creative for Nature Over Half Term

/in , , , , , /by

Inspiring environmental art competition appeals for children and young people to get involved over holidays and the summer term. Thanks to a grant from The Boltini Trust, Sussex Green Living and the South Downs National Park Trust, which is the official charity of South Downs National Park, have developed this “Clean Up & Create” a Bright New Future competition for 5-16 year olds in Sussex and Hampshire.

Julie Fawcett, Chair of the South Downs National Park Trust, said “A key focus for the South Downs National Park Trust is to engage young people with this amazing natural asset on their doorstep with all its beautiful landscapes and wildlife.

“This competition offers a great way for children to get creative and think about ways we can conserve and enhance our environment in the years ahead. Young people are the future custodians of national gems such as the South Downs and this is a fantastic way to inspire them”

The aim is to encourage young people to design some artwork with a powerful message to raise awareness of the environment and represent the theme of a bright new future they want for the world.

There are two categories to choose from in each age group: Read more

Horsham Climate Cafe – the value of nature

/in , , , , /by

Horsham Climate Cafe – the value of nature All of us are experiencing the uncertainty the current pandemic has brought with it, alongside the forced physical disconnect from one another and our usual routines. However, while this situation has restricted us in many ways, it has also freed us in others. An overwhelming number of […]

Read more

News from the Horsham Repair Cafe

/in , , , /by

Sorry to say that the Horsham Repair Café will not be physically opening for our once a month repairs, refills and energy advice for a while. However we have reviewed the situation and are now going to trial a weekly repair service which will run alongside the household and personal hygiene bottle refill service. We can offer repairs to small electrical household and IT items only at the moment. This drop off and collection service will be offered each Saturday between 10-12 noon (with suitable covid social distancing and product handling restrictions).

Please book in your item by completing our online booking form here, we will then email to confirm the procedure and location for drop off. Please note that we are not able to repair any textiles for the foreseeable future.

Costs:

Electrical repairs – our volunteer repairer will assess the item and inform you if there is a need to purchase any parts. If you agree to the costs on collection you will be asked to pay for the costs, a voluntary donation to the Horsham Repair Café is optional. Read more

Message from Ecuadorian cloud forest

/in , , , , /by

One of the last hidden treasure/locations

Saturday 9th May the weekly virtual Horsham Climate Cafe focused on The Value of Nature, bringing attendees a special message from Nicola Peel who is locked down in a cloud forest in Los Cedros Biological Reserve in the Choco region of Ecuador full of yet to be discovered plant and animals. Plants which will provide cures to diseases, trees which give us oxygen to breath, things we take for granted. The debate is gold and copper mining for new phones or medicine and oxygen?

During this Climate Cafe session Victoria Wyllie de Echeverria also gave an informal talk about the deep connection indigenous people have to nature, their stewardship of the land and water and how they are adapting to climate change.

You can see Nicola’s video message at the bottom of this page. Learn here about Nicola’s lockdown location, one of the most biologically diverse and endemic habitats on Earth in her latest email:

Dear friends,

After finishing my work in the Ecuadorian Amazon I was about to have a week to myself on the coast. This was not to be. Like so many of us due to the unforeseen events our lives have changed.

I had returned to Quito and was staying with a friend when I heard that due to Corona Virus all borders were closed, flights to be cancelled and no more buses. I got out of the city on the last bus to Chontal and headed up to the Los Cedros Reserve. http://reservaloscedros.org/about/ Read more