THE GREAT NEWS FOR THIS ISSUE IS THAT CREDITON IS NOW OFFICIALLY A TRANSITION TOWN.
After many months of threatening to become one CCA have now completed all the criteria necessary and been officially accepted!! Gerald Conyngham, our CCA Steering Group chair, has written a short piece you will find below to explain what this means to us as a group. Expect to see more about this in the press as well in weeks to come.
There are also reports on the activities of some of our Groups below. - As you can see we are expanding our work and vision in many areas, which is exciting and a great hope for the future of our town and its environs.
1. CCA Calendar for May/June 2008
Thursday 29th May 7.30pm Hearts and Minds Group First meeting, Well Being Centre, St Swithins Way (behind Lib Dem bookshop) ALL WELCOME. Just turn up.
Saturday 31st May WEN Cake and Plant Stall - 9am to 1pm outside Phillips Stationers.Crediton High St
Wednesday 4th June Steering Group Meeting, The Lamb Sandford 7.30pm -details from Anne Tucker catucker@btinternet.com
Friday 6th June Womens Environmental Network meeting 3 Little Pigs, Market Square Crediton 7.30pm - details from Kate Povey kate@gaianet.org
Thursday 12th June 7.30pm Tree Group Meeting - details from Molly.Mackay molly.mackay@virgin.net Phone: 01363 777130
Saturday 14th June WEN Teddy Bears Picnic. All welcome - more details in their news column belowand from Kate Povey as above
Saturday 21st June Transport Group Midsummer Cycle. All welcome - more details in their news column below and from Laura Coynygham laurac@eclipse.co.uk
Monday 23rd June ScHou/Co Housing Group meeting 7.30pm- 9.30pm at The Old Smithy, Westwood, Crediton. Please call Paula Kovacs on 01363 777077 for directions Tuesday 24th June Plastic Bag Group Meeting venue to be confirmed Details from Paula Mossman paula.mossman@lineone.net
Thurs 26th June, 7.30pm Energy Group Meeting Contact Tom Langdon-Davies tomgld1@aol.com for location
2. WEN News
The electronic silence has not meant a lack of activity! Crediton Women's Environmental Network has been busy organising our summer event - more details below. Please read on for dates to go in your diary.
2.1. Cake and Plant Stall - Saturday 31st May, 9am to 1pm outside Phillips Stationers. We are raising money to go towards the costs of putting on the Teddy Bears Picnic. Please can you bake cakes, biscuits or donate your spare vegetable or flower seedlings. You can drop off your goodies either on the day or on Friday by arrangement with Caroline (01363 776387, Tuckers Meadow), Anita (07890 174859, Queen Elizabeth Drive, Crediton), or me (01363 866468, near Kennerleigh). If you aren't a cake baking person, then please come along and buy or help out on the day for an hour or two!
2.2 Next Meeting - Friday 6 June, 7-30pm in the Three Little Pigs, Market Square in Crediton. We want to talk about WEN issues such as cosmetics, and local food production, as well as organising the Teddy Bears Picnic. We also would like your views on whether speakers, film showings, and a regular meeting slot would be popular.
2.3. Teddy Bears Picnic featuring a performance by Rosa Rebecka - Saturday 14 June, 12pm - 2pm. This is in Newcombes Meadow, the main park in Crediton with the bandstand - which we have booked. It will be a very family friendly event. We are encouraging people to bring a plate of food to share, ideally with local / homegrown / fair trade / organic ingredients. Rosa Rebecka will be performing songs from her new album 'Untold' which is launched this weekend. "Her songs are enchanting and beautiful". Please have a listen on her website - www.rebeckasongs.com. After the picnic, we will walk up to our new allotment for a bit of digging and planting, and scarecrow making for the children. We will need lots of help with this event - please come to the meeting or drop me a line if you fancy getting involved. Posters and flyers will be available tomorrow for putting up everywhere.
2.4. Allotment - our plot at Barnfield is up and running, with potatoes, shallots, beans, carrots and much more growing. If you don't have any space at home but would like to try your hand at gardening we always welcome new people, beginners or old hands. Please pass the news on to others if they don't get this email. Any questions please call or email Anita (07890 174859, a.clarinet@hotmail.co.uk). We may also be acquiring another plot in Sandford.
Kate Povey
3. Transport Group News
CCA Transport group is expanding.
On 21.5.08 Cllr Nick Way updated us on developments and on who to write to. We are campaigning for bike space on trains and for Cycle Path for Crediton.
Midsummer Cycle on Sat 21 June will include campaign letter writing / drawing (made easy).
Registered within national cycle week www.bikeweek.org it is open to all ages. We'll start opposite Crediton hospital at 11am, cycle slowly down High Street to Bike Shed. The optional extra will take us past Shell garage to Downes.
Please wear helmets and bring pen or pencil. Fluorescent vests and bike horns are reduced at Bike Shed for those who will be taking part.
4. Schou/Co Housing Group News
At the meeting on May 19th we were joined by Rob Rickey and Cllr David Nation. Rob, an architect with a special interest in sustainable design and building, shared information about projects around the UK and David gathered information for taking back to various MDDC committees. It was agreed that taking our turn on the CCA market stall was a good way to support CCA and advertise the group. An initial set of core SCHou values was agreed:
Eco-sensitive housing for a range of ages: to include singles, couples & families. A co-operative, mutually supportive ethos Balance between privacy and community Aiming for self sufficiency through growing own organic produce Affordable; reducing the need to borrow Sharing resources Reducing our carbon footprint Further discussion was around land availability in the Crediton area, types of building i.e. self-build, housing association ‘new build’, renovation of existing property. Next steps for the group will be to continue researching projects i.e. The Threshold Centre, Dorset, promote the group to increase membership, and draw up a business plan.
5. Tree Group News
To respond to the request below please contact Molly McKay molly.mackay@virgin.net Phone: 01363 777130
I have a 2.8 acre organic/biodynamic smallholding a mile south of Yeoford. It's very diverse with chickens, geese, sheep, usually pigs (now only in the freezer) and bees, plus veg, soft and top fruit and an ornamental garden. I've been running it for nearly ten years, and make my living writing about it. There's far too much to do, I can't really cope, especially at this time of year. I wonder if there are any frustrated, plotless gardeners around who would like to volunteer help in exchange for experience and food and drink. I can't offer accommodation.
Would it be possible to ask the CCA group if anybody is interested?
6. Plastic Bag Group News
Encouraged by CCA, a committee of influential town traders has now agreed that we should aim to go pb free in Crediton by mid October 2008. As a result Barny Butterfield, the town centre manager, is now approaching all the remaining town traders individually to gain their support. We have also secured the funding for the first batch of 'Crediton Bags' with which to launch 'Plastic Bag Free Crediton in the autumn. ' Thanks very much to the Crediton Gazette, Town Council and Chamber of Commerce who have all pledged funding which will be sufficient to purchase over 1,000 jute bags.
Thanks also to the Nancy Dowling and the other people who carried out the Plastic Litter Collection recently which got some good press coverage for our cause. Worst item discovered - dog poo tied in plastic bags and left in the hedgerows!! - As an aside here if you have a dog you might like to know that the Green House sells compostable dog poo bags!!
Members of our working group have been on the phones surveying how many plastic carriers are currently being used in Crediton each month. Figures in the next issue when they have been collated. However THE GOOD NEWS is that all the shops we have asked for numbers say that plastic carrier use has declined DRAMATICALLY in the last six months, so we are having a fantastic effect already folks. Please keep up the good work and thanks for your support.
7. Energy Group News Crediton Town Council has donated £125 to the Energy Group to purchase Smart Electrcity meters. The plan is to distribute these meters to local schools for pupils to take home and monitor the energy usage of common household appliances such as kettles, toasters, computers etc to encourage people to 'switch off' and use appliances more responsibly. Lets get the kids to nag their parents on this important issue!!
8. TRANSITION TOWN CREDITON - ITS OFFICIAL !! Crediton Climate Action has now been approved as a Transition Town. We are part of a wider network which includes over 50 other towns and villages, all committed to taking action in their local communities and working together for wider changes in society. Key principles underlying this movement include the following:
A recognition that climate change and peak oil require urgent action, and this needs planning for, since it has major implications for the way society is organised. We need to act together and if we do so, we can use our creativity to create a future that is more fulfilling and enriching than our present lifestyle.
Some of the key steps include awareness raising, networking with other groups, organising public meetings, forming working groups, helping people to develop new skills, building contacts with local government, and creating an energy descent plan.
Much of this has been happening in Crediton, which is why we have been approved, but we still have a long way to go. Our next step is to hold a strategy meeting at which we can look at what we need to do at the local, regional and national levels. We hope to involve as many of you as possible in this process.
If you would like to know more about the transition movement, look at the following website: www.transitiontowns.org
NB We are not planning to change our name since most people do not understand the term ‘transition town’!
Gerald Conyngham Chair of CCA
9. Free Free Free Free --- Garden/Allotment
A garden in Sandford could be a free-of-charge allotment for anyone who would like to grow their own vegetables.
Laura Conyngham 773000 has details.
10. Electric Bikes and Cars - A request
Please respond with an email to paula.mossman@lineone.net and I will pass it on to Sue below
Is there anyone in the group who's researched/ experience of electric bikes/cars? I've recently joined the group, via Mike Brett as we've put up PVs etc since moving from Bristol last year. We're in a v rural location, lots of hills about 4 miles from Tiverton. So I'm thinking hard about how we'll keep mobile--a pony comes to mind, but alot of work & alot of land space I want for growing veg etc. As we generate our electricity, I'm thinking of electric bike/car---but not sure where these are at now. Alas we can't get broadband so my research facilities are a bit reduced. If there's someone in the know, I'd be grateful if you'd put me in touch/forward this e-mail.
Best Wishes, Sue Hannam
10. Peak Oil, Climate Change - what next??
On the 5th June Low Carbon Exeter have a talk
Global Water Challenges. Can We Avert the Crisis?
Thursday 5th June 7.00 p.m. at Exeter Central Library Admission Free—donations welcome
Musa M. Abseno is an Ethiopian water resources expert, currently living in Exeter and engaged in a postgraduate research on international water law and policy at the UNESCO Centre for Water Law, Policy and Science at the University of Dundee. He also advises the Ministry of Water Resources (Ethiopia), Nile Basin Initiative Secretariat.
11. Say No to 'New' Coal - Lobbying request for this issue
Did you know the Govt are planning to build 8 new coal fired power stations in the UK in the next decade to 'solve' the coming energy crisis?
The folks at I Count would like us to contact the Energy Minister to say 'NO' thank you!!
Find out more and email the Energy Minister at the links below.
http://dotm1.net/960937/263399393/19069915/550404/29473/0/t2.aspx - email
http://dotm1.net/964919/263399393/19069915/550404/29473/0/t2.aspx - information
Thats all for this time. Thanks for all you do to make the world a better place
Paula