Thanks to Ken Davis for making our first talk a great success. Ken gave a very informative talk, discussing how best to approach improving the energy efficiency of our homes.
Here are the key ‘take homes’:
Building need to adapt, conservation can’t continue to keep things the same as before.
We need to establish some new building techniques and methods and find new ways to understand buildings.
Breathability is important in older buildings, use materials that maintain air flow
Leave a year after moving into a property to understand how it breathes and how moisture moves around it.
Maintenance is the first step – review and fix gutters, etc
Insulate with natural materials such as wool, don’t use fibreglass.
If considering alternative energy sources and you can’t do anything else, start with a condensing boiler.
Do basics first- draught proofing and insulation.
Water recycling is expensive – start with a water butt.
We need better education about buildings, policy changes.
Use radiator thermostats
Use fans in kitchen and bathrooms to reduce moisture.
Right now renewable energy co-ops are unable to sell clean power directly to their neighbours. They have to sell their energy to a big power company for 4.5p, then buy it back for 15p or even 20p* – we at http://1010uk.org/ourpower want to change that.
We are collecting signatures to ask Amber Rudd to bring in a ‘right to supply’ for community energy groups. We are planning to put this petition on Amber Rudd’s desk in mid-July.
We believe that winning a ‘right to supply’ for community energy is the single best thing we can do right now to boost clean energy* and give more people a chance to benefit from it.
So if you want to buy your power direct from local wind and solar and stop the Big Six from buying your local wind and solar energy, and selling it back at 3 times the price-
Sign the petition to help make it possible! http://www.1010uk.org/ourpower
Since the vision’s event at the White Rock Hotel we’ve been very busy and wanted to update you on our progress so far:
We’ve started a Guerrilla Gardening group to look at which area/s in the town we could grow vegetables and flowers. This is partly ‘guerrilla’ and partly organized planting with the fundamental element of encouraging the targeted community to join in.
We’re organising some Foraging Walks led by Ben Fairlight to learn what we can use around our countryside for food and good health. We hope to be walking, talking and enjoying a picnic partly made up of foraged food!
We’ve arranged a visit to the Crowhurst Community Supported Agricultural (CSA) project (run by some of the original TT group) and usually there between 10-12 on Saturdays.
We’re looking at visiting the Real Junk Food Café in Brighton soon. This is a project using left over food from shops etc, cooking it and giving it away! For everyone to enjoy and donate what they can….or nothing if they can’t.
We’ve organised a talk on Energy Conservation & Alternative Energy Sources in Building by Ken Davis on 1st Aug at The White Rock Hotel at 11am-12.15pm, on a first come first served entry basis.
Our Energy Group has met several times and has its next meeting on 30/7/15 at 7pm at Hastings Trust office at Silchester Mews, 17a Silchester Rd, St Leonards, TN38 0JB. All welcome.
Next Core Group meeting is Monday 20/7/15 from 7-8pm at White Rock Hotel, and then from 8-9pm there will also be the first Local Economy Group meeting. Anyone welcome.
Warrior Square Station Community Garden project. We have asked about the possibility of using the north side platform of St Leonards Warrior Square station for growing veg and flowers for the community.
Please get in touch if you want to get involved in any of the projects and activities.
Several members made a visit to the Brighton Real Junk Food Project with Hastings Matters. They intercept edible food and serve it on a pay as you feel basis. Find them Wednesdays at the Churchill Square market and Fridays at the One Church.
The visitors were really impressed with the organisation and are considering doing something similar in Hastings.
Here are some observations by Carol Ridge.
Set up
Community Interest Company with six directors.
Ten chefs who include people who prep.and cook. Three to four people hold Food hygiene certificates.
Individuals are responsible for various tasks. Book keeping, Food collection etc
Volunteers
This group is from the community and includes anyone with a day to spare. It may also include people with mild learning difficulties. Volunteers are introduced a few at a time.
Food collection
Food is collected from supermarkets and shops/markets. Lidl supply a large proportion.
Venue
One Church in Gloucester place Brighton. Fully equipped kitchen with large ovens, work surfaces and dish washer. Crockery and utensils are provided by the church. Three shelves are allocated to the project in the pantry for “Dry stores”.
Diners pay as they wish but we saw many that did not pay at all. Biodegradable take away containers are provides for those who wish to take food home with them. There is also a small area where people may help themselves to items such as boxes of cereals, fresh fruit and snacks. It depends what is available each week. Any number from one to three hundred people are fed.
Diners from all sections of the community
The day we visited diners included the young and the elderly but on this visit there were more young people. The unemployed and the employed, the poor, the disabled, students, single mothers and their children and whole families. Even a group of international young people who were part of the “Couch surfing “organisation.
The atmosphere is so upbeat and positive.
Any unusable food waste is sent to SILO. This is a restaurant that has a super compost machine.
On Saturday 18th April 2015 we had our visions event at the White Rock Hotel, a fantastic afternoon when more than eighty people came together to contribute ideas for a more sustainable town. Here is a taster of some of the ideas discussed, including a few quirky ones:
Food growing
Community Gardens
Edible bus stops / guerilla gardening
Garden matching schemes
Transport
Car free days on the seafront
Travel passes for integrated transport system (including new funiculars to the West/East Hills)
Economy
Local currency
Skill share/swap
Energy
100% renewable energy owned by Hastings Community
Bio-digesters to generate energy from local garden waste
Housing
Rent reform / Land tax control
CPO / planning reform
Eco-housing including Eco Open Houses
Waste
Community composting
Packaging-free shops
Acknowledge the value in waste and use it.
Also, the presentations about Transition Town Lewes, Community Fruit and Veg Project, Trinity Wholefoods Coop, Energise Sussex Coast and a short film of a TED talk emphasised the power of community.
As such, it feels important to consider the following in the future work of Transition Town Hastings:
work with existing community groups
bring people together to create a friendlier and safer environment
bridging age gaps through common activities
developing Transition Streets
encouraging broader engagement
We were excited to discover lots of people at the event had valuable skills to offer and we hope to see these in action soon.
On Monday 25th May at 7pm there will be a core group Transition Town Hastings meeting in the Notley Room at the White Rock Hotel.
