November 2009
Turn On Turn Off
Designs that change behaviour RBS ‘the climate change bank’
Innovate your insulating
The nights are drawing in fast and thermostats are twitching skywards, so this month we challenge you to keep snug while keeping those ‘stats down. Seal up those cracks with draft excluders, make your own double glazing and improve your insulation.
Energy consumption in the home makes up more than a quarter of the UK’s CO2 emissions, most of this is heating. By turning the thermostat down a mere 1 degree C, you can reduce your contribution by 10% and save around £40 (best invested back into insulation).
If you’re lucky enough to have a wood fire you’ll be warmed with all the collecting, carrying and chopping before you even get on to the burning. A bit of vigorous knitting will also keep you warm whilst you’re making some wondrous woollen wear, legend has it that Fairisle knitting was developed in an effort to keep warm during long Scottish evenings. We want to know how else you’ll be warming your cockles this autumn (email your ideas to ). The winner with our favourite carbon-saving, warmth-giving idea will receive a fairtrade chocolate bar.
We like to change things
And we love to help other people change things too. So, we’ve launched the Change Projects to do just that. We’re working with schools, youth clubs and the Prince’s Trust xl clubs to help young people to set up and run a project that will help others in their communities to live more sustainable lifestyles.
If you are 14-18 in London or work with 14-18yr olds in London, get in touch () and let’s see if we can change things together.
Are you a woolly liberal?
A fluffy activist? Are you a curious, conscientious craftster? Then craftivism could be for you. Be it beautiful banners, subversive cross stitch, climate change crochet or recycled plastic patchwork- activism needs craft and craft is an act of activism. Each time and every time you make something you’re also making a difference, whether it's reusing materials, making rather than consuming or artfully delivering a message.
Bloomers, belles and bicycles
Susan B. Anthony, an American suffragette, reckoned that the bicycle had done “more for the emancipation of women than anything else in the world”. Not only did the bike allow women to travel indepenently, it also led to a revolution in clothing as women cast off their skirts in favour of bike friendly bloomers.
The UK has a poor record on cycling, only 2% of journeys are made by bike and only a quarter of those are made by women. In the European nether regions (the Netherlands) a whooping 27% of trips are made by bike, with women wheeling more than half of them.
In 1894 bloomer wearer Annie Kopchovsky cycled round the world. In 2009 we reckon women should be able to feel safe cycling to work. Sustrans interviewed 1000 women about cycling and discovered that overwhelmingly women wanted more cycle lanes separated from traffic. So they’ve created the Motion for Women petition, calling on local and national governments to prioritise the creation of environments that encourage and support cycling, including better cycle paths, as a way of enabling many more women to travel by bike.
We wheeley love our bikes and we wheeley want everyone to be able to (safely) enjoy pedal power too. Sign the Sustrans petition to improve cycle paths and make cycling safer for women (and for everyone).
10:10 community superheros
The clever folk at 10:10 have figured out that doing stuff, like reducing carbon emissions, works best when we do it together. They want to get out of cyberspace and create real life 10:10 Communities, of people all working together to reduce their carbon emission by 10%. If you’re into building communities and reducing carbon, you could be a 10:10 Community Champion. The Champions are being trained at Community Roadshows in London, Bristol and Manchester. They’ll equip you with resources, tips and put you in touch with other 10:10ers near you.
And finally
This month we’ve mostly been listening to Lulu and the Lampshades, practising strumming on our tupperwares and wondering why it’s so hard to book train tickets over the phone (maybe the aviation industry has infiltrated the booking system and is trying to bring down alternative forms of transport from the inside?)
Jo, Hanna, Liz, Busayo, Cress, Frankie & Carla
The Otesha Project UK
www.otesha.org.uk