We are in a climate and ecological crisis. Learn the facts, the latest news and solutions to combating climate change and protecting our planet for future generations.
An Interview with founder and CEO Carrie Cort – April 2022 When did you first gain an interest in the environment? I have lived in villages, had dogs and loved horses and riding in the countryside since a very young age. I feel at peace, calm and complete when I spend time in nature. The […]
Smarter fashion lesson
Clearly, it’s important for us all to use less of everything for so many reasons- resources are becoming scarcer on our small island – and on our small planet too, with its billions of people.
We hope this goes without saying but please only buy something if you need it!
When we do need to replace something, however, there are several ways we can help to guide companies to understand that we would like them to ‘go green.’ One of those ways is for us as customers to sign up to Easyfundraising, where there are over 6,000 retailers ready to make a donation – including eBay, Argos, John Lewis, ASOS, Booking.com and M&S – and it won’t cost you a penny extra to help raise funds for Sussex Green Living.
All you need to do is:
1. Go to our Sussex Green Living spot at easyfundraising.org.uk/causes/sussexgreenliving/ and join for free.
2. Then whenever you shop online, go to Easyfundraising first to find the site you want and start shopping. Read more
Don’t forget this Saturday it is our Sussex Green Hub event at the URC Horsham RH12 2RG (near Wilko off West Street and the Lynd Cross pub and opposite St John the Evangelist). This collaborative community event is on the last Saturday every month 10 – 4pm, this month we have some extra activities within the hub and just outside. Free food and free advice to help people, planet and pocket!
Horsham Repair Cafe repairs and our bottle refill service.
Carbon Clinic – every month going forward a new volunteer, Christian based at our Sussex Green Living (SGL) display area, is offering a carbon clinic. People are invited to sit and have a friendly non judgemental chat about their lifestyle choices, he will run through a survey with them, then he emails the participant with ideas for changes they can make to reduce their impact on the environment. Please make time to chat to Christian yourself, you will hopefully get a few new ideas. Learn more here.
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Calling all climate commandos!
We’re facing the greatest human challenge of the 21st century in attempting to avert the extreme climate collapse which is endangering all the living beings we share this beautiful green and blue sphere with.
We CAN all make a difference no matter how small we may feel. We human beings are capable of great destruction but also of great compassion. Please join us at our Sussex Green Hub at the United Reformed Church, RH12 1PT (near Wilko off West Street and the Lynd Cross pub and opposite St John the Evangelist) on the last Saturday every month 10am – 4pm. Here you can attend our Carbon Clinic which as been designed to offer tailored advice and feedback to make your everyday living more sustainable and help keep our planet steady at 1.5°C global mean surface temperature (GMST). Read more
The new Leader of Horsham District Council, Cllr Jonathan Chowen, has made a series of new cabinet appointments, including Cllr James Wright as Cabinet Member for Environment and Rural affairs, and Cllr Toni Bradnum as Cabinet Member for Recycling and Waste and we were delighted that they both saw our Sussex Green Hub in action […]
Beneath our feet is a world that many do not even consider to be part of us, yet within two handfuls of healthy soil are more living organisms than people on our planet. It is within the first four inches that most food chains start; at the microscopic levels, bacteria eating protozoa and nematodes. These […]
Press ReleaseAn eco 1974 milk float, pop-up shop and pop-up climate emergency centre – what do they all have in common? They are all initiatives offered by multi-award-winning charity Sussex Green Living, to help people reduce their carbon footprint.
It might be hot air in Glasgow but not at the grassroots where this charity is concerned. On the first day of COP26 the charity became part of a new pop-up shop on the high street. They popped up their first once a month climate emergency centre, the Sussex Green Hub, on 25th September and earlier in the year saw the first appearance of their unique and quirky mobile eco display, a 1974 retrofitted milk float, called the Inspiration Eco Station, and the launch of their Bright New Future Roadshow. Read more
I found myself in the role of Light-Police recently at a joyous family gathering to celebrate several ‘zero’ birthdays which had been postponed due to Covid.
At our beautiful AirBnB, bathroom lights, shower lights, bedroom lights, corridor lights and kitchen lights were left on even though the family were all outside for much of the time.
My dad grew up in poverty and was delighted to be able to provide for us- we had plenty, and he was very generous, but we learned the lesson young that lights should be switched off if you’re not in the room. Nothing should be wasted.
By coincidence that same weekend an article was published relating how Greta Thunberg taught her father the same switch-it-off lesson. Read more
The COP26 Climate Summit starts in Glasgow on November 1st. It’s an opportunity that simply can’t be missed if the world is to get on top of climate change, and the multiple threats it poses to the planet, before it’s too late.
But who knew that crucial, behind-the-scenes, preparations for the conference are happening right here in Sussex, at Wiston House, just up the road from Steyning.
That’s where Wilton Park, a specialist offshoot of the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, is based. In their 75th anniversary year, Wilton Park have been instrumental in convening a whole series of dialogues and meetings – mostly online, because of Covid – all geared to making the Glasgow Summit a success.
COP stands for the ‘Conference of the Parties’, and Glasgow is the 26th such event since the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) was signed in Rio at the 1992 Earth Summit. This one is particularly important. It is the first time that governments will be asked to report back on progress on the pledges made at the Paris Summit in 2016, and ‘ratchet’ them up with new and more demanding targets. Read more
PRESS RELEASE Repair, refill, recycle, reuse, restore, revive and reunite: These crucial ‘R’ words for building a sustainable world all came alive on Saturday 25th September in the Bishopric area in Horsham as Sussex Green Living launched its latest initiative – the Sussex Green Hub. The Hub was officially opened by the High Sheriff of West Sussex, […]
Do you have solar panels at home? Is it time to join the move to community funded renewable energy? Do you want to explore practical ways to make it happen here for Horsham? Maybe you’re able to use your skills in finance, marketing, law, engineering or management to help form a community group to do this?
Here at Sussex Green Ideas, we’re looking for people who want to respond practically to the challenges of reducing climate disruption and help us adapt to the changes which are now inevitable.
You’re welcome to join an online meeting on October 20th 7pm-8pm, as part of our Sussex Green Ideas series. Kate Meakin, from Energise South, will explain what’s involved in setting up a community energy scheme and what funding is available to support the development of such a community group. Read more
Knowing what to do in the face of the global climate crisis can often seem a daunting task.
Whilst it’s true that the really big changes need to be prompted by Government action there’s still a lot you can do as an individual. Small changes build up, especially when other people join in.
A major cause of global warming is our over-reliance on cars in towns and cities, which also contributes to poor air quality, traffic congestion, road danger and noise, and the obesity crisis.
One small step you can take is to cycle for those short journeys where through force of habit you instinctively get in the car.
For short journeys in town it’s often quicker by bike, and it saves you money too. What can be just as important – even where the journey time is slightly longer than by car – is that the time taken can be remarkably consistent, meaning you don’t need to leave extra time for your journey just in case you get stuck in traffic. Read more
Seals on our Sussex coast show that conservationists are getting something right. It’s not just Gavin the well-loved harbour seal who sports with paddle boarders in Littlehampton; we can see these marvellous creatures now in Chichester harbour, Eastbourne and in the Adur, where two seals named Bramble and Rivier (who swam in from Belgium) have generated their own following.
According to Zoologist Stephen Savage of the Sea Watch Foundation, it’s a wonderful sign that our waters are clean enough to support food for these large animals. “They like mullet, flatfish and crabs mainly” he explains, “but they hunt anywhere in tidal or brackish water, even as far up as The Black Rabbit at Arundel.”
Stephen, who is County Recorder for Sea Mammals, has studied seals since 1997. The public have been stalwart supporters. Initially he collated sighting reports, but eight years ago increasing seal numbers allowed him to build a picture of populations in Sussex. “We hope to learn even more through citizen science” says Stephen. “The interaction of seals and people will significantly add to this story.” Read more
Thanks to our Tesco Community Grant we were able to take our Bright New Futures Roadshow to St Mary’s CofE Primary School in Pulborough on the 22nd July . This is a large school with a new teacher leading their Eco activities. We started the planning process with the school many months in advance, then […]
How Green is Copper? With a rush for electric cars and renewable power some of the most biodiverse areas on Earth are under threat. Hidden beneath primary forest teeming with life metals lay buried.
Whilst Ecuador was the first country in the world to put the #rightsofnature in its #constitution, sadly this has not stopped foreign interest from wanting to mine one of the most biodiverse places on the planet.
The Los Cedros Reserve is almost 12,000 acres of untouched cloud forest. Imagine over 400 different kinds of orchids, over 350 species of birds, 800 different kinds of moths and uncountable species of fungi. 5 critically endangered and 31 endangered species make this their home.
This little known reserve is more biodiverse than the Amazon.
Still the Canadian mining company Cornerstone Capital Resources buy off the local people with trinkets , beads and the promise of work. They do not talk about the potential risk of contaminating their water source or of what will happen when they leave.
The world is watching this vital case. If Nature wins it means that not only Los Cedros can breathe a sigh of relief but over 6 million acres of protected land which is under the threat of mining. This will in turn set an international precedent. Read more
The Green Boutique