2012: On Earth Day, Carrie Cort planted a seed — not a literal one (well, maybe also that) — by starting a network of local people determined to green up their lives together, one lifestyle swap at a time. She trained as a voluntary West Sussex County Council Waste Prevention Advisor, hence our early focus was conservation of resources.

Growth spurt: That seed sprouted fast. Like actual mycelium, the network spread underground and popped up everywhere — volunteers in 22 villages started rescuing hard-to-recycle materials from landfill, sending them for recycling and teaching others to do the same.

2016: Carrie nurtured that growing movement by training with Al Gore and top climate scientists via the Climate Reality Leadership Corps.

2017: SGL set up West Sussex’s first-ever Repair Cafe — a place where broken toasters get a new season of life instead of being binned. It was so successful, SGL became the fairy godmother to mentoring the formation of over 45  repair cafes, as far away as Ireland and Wales.

2019: Carrie co-founded the South East Climate Alliance, because saving the planet is a team effort.

2020: SGL officially blossomed into a registered charity, with Carrie as CEO, backed by dedicated trustees and an ever growing army of volunteers. Its roots were firmly planted in three core missions: restoring biodiversity, conserving resources and sustainable food. As a way of getting back into the community after covid we purchased our eco float!

2024: Two new branches — the Green Business Network (helping businesses go green) and the Pollination Education Station Trail (helping to connect up nature corridors for the pollinators).

Today: SGL runs education and outreach everywhere — schools, councils, businesses, community events — often rolling up in their beloved 1974 eco float, a retrofitted milk float turned outdoor classroom on wheels. Fair warning: it’s slow, it’s iconic and if you’re stuck behind it on a Sussex road, just relax and enjoy the view. 🚙💨(not very 💨)

We are over the moon our projects are making a difference and being recognised. We won the Defra Bees Needs Champion Award this year – full story here.