Geoff Dann (fungi and foraging expert) from Transition Town Hastings features in a short documentary by Sadie Scarlett Smith submitted for her BA in Multimedia Broadcast Journalism final project. See Geoff at 7:12 mins into the film!
Last weekend, after making use of the donated compost from Gardenscape Direct volunteers enjoyed a cup of tea with doughnuts at Southwater Community Centre. They met a delightful Shiatzu practitioner who helped carry buckets of water out and pour it over the plants too! They also cleared some of the rubbish near the storeroom and planted wild flower seeds. See the gallery below.
The most urgent thing is getting raised beds made and in situ. We are in touch with Littlewoods fencing who are happy to donate materials. Then we need soil and plants to put in the beds. We have some plant donations ready and waiting but please get in touch if you have anything suitable such as edible plants, herbs and flowering plants.
Several committee members recently met with the Station manager, Natalie Leister. She is looking into supplying various items including high viz jackets, ID badges for volunteers, a promotional poster for the platform we can update regularly and a bin for the north platform (to encourage people not to litter). They are also planning to refurbish the buildings on the south platform in the near future.
They are also likely to give the go ahead for a mosaic on the wall to the left of the station entrance – more on that soon!
Two new low emission cars are now available for residents to hire in central Hastings, as part of a ‘pay-as-you-drive’ car club.
Hastings is the latest car club location to be launched by Co-wheels, the UK’s only independent car club operator, which runs successful car sharing schemes in over 60 locations across the UK. The scheme allows residents to have short term access to vehicles in an affordable and convenient way.
Residents and businesses can join the car club for a one-off fee of £25, which then allows them to quickly book cars online, and unlock them with a smartcard. Keys are kept in the car, and mileage and bookings are tracked with an on-board computer. At the end of the booking time, the car is returned to its bay.
The car club in Hastings has been brought about demand from environmentally-minded residents and community groups who have used car clubs elsewhere, and have campaigned to bring the service to Hastings. The council are not financing the scheme, but have provided two parking bays in Russell Street Car Park, where the cars have permits.
The two Toyota Aygo cars in Hastings can be hired from 30mins up to several days at a time, and are charged at £4.50/hr + 15p mile, which included insurance and fuel. This enables huge savings to be made on the cost of driving compared to car ownership, and studies show that anyone driving less than 6,000 miles per year could save money by switching to using a car club.
Car clubs also help to lower emissions and improve air quality in towns, as well as adding social value by providing access to cars for those unable to afford their own, or who need a second car occasionally.
Richard Falconer, Managing Director at Co-wheels said
“We are delighted to be expanding our service in response to demand from residents in Hastings. The car club will enable a new level of transport flexibility in the town, whilst encouraging people to think differently about car ownership.”
Residents can find out more about the scheme, and claim £10 free driving credit at www.co-wheels.org.uk/hastings
It’s quite hard to get your head around which of our actions create the largest CO2 emissions. Also how much do we need to reduce to keep temperatures from rising by more than 2°C above pre-industrial levels?
Ian Smith’s talk on Household Sustainability at Nico’s Kitchen last Saturday provided some answers. Many thanks to Nico’s Kitchen for hosting.
The talk, which you can download below, encouraged us all to consider our personal contribution to global carbon emissions.
Did you know that travelling on a cruise creates more CO2 than flying in a plane?*
Also, turning your thermostat down by 1°C could save 8-10% on your heating consumption?*
However, we all need to make big changes to our lifestyles to reach the ideal target of 2 tonnes of CO2 a year!
Download Household sustainability presentation file.
*Statistics above and in the presentation come from Carbon Conversations.
We’d really like to hold some Carbon Conversations for local residents. Please get in touch if you are interested in getting involved.
A fossil fuel divestment motion has been tabled for the Full Council meeting of Hastings Borough Council on Wednesday 13 April (6pm @ Hastings Town Hall). Please put this date in your diary now and contact your Councillor to urge them to support it! Please spread the word and encourage others to attend – the event lives on Facebook here.
Template letters for Labour and Conservative Councillors are available here:
Read more on the Fossil Free Hastings website:
Divestment motion tabled for Hastings Council meeting on 13 April – contact your Councillor now!
Includes discussions about projects to take forward.
TTH Energy group minutes 18 Feb 16
A great evening was had by everyone who made our first Pot Luck Social. Thanks to all for making it so special! Great food and exceptional company. Many new faces too.
There was a short session to tell people about transitioning and what the group in Hastings and St Leonards have achieved over the last year.
We discussed ideas for the future and ways the group can develop. Contributions included an update on the Greenway Group plans for Ore Valley, news on the Blueprint project for St Leonards and Zoom Arts new space at St Leonards Warrior Sq station.
A superb evening at Transition Town pot luck meal.Great to catch up with so many people.
C.RidgeNice to meet you all tonight. Here’s the recipe for the love cake fans, before I forget.
http://www.stylist.co.uk/life/recipes/sri-lankan-love-cake-recipe
C.Dann
Fruit trees donated by Keeper’s Nursery were planted last weekend at the community garden. Newly planted and young trees require frequent watering and we’ve been able to take a supply from the Southwater Community Centre. We’re really pleased to have support from the centre, although we hope to be installing water butts and collecting run off from a gulley on the slope near the tunnel.
We are very excited to report that we have a plan for the community garden spaces next to the north platform at Warrior Square Station.
One of our members, Julia Hilton, an artist and landscape designer has developed the plan which includes a small orchard, fruit bushes, flowers, herbs and vegetables.
On February 21st, volunteers planted a selection of fruit trees donated by Keeper’s Nursery in Kent.
It was very inspiring meeting and underlines what a broad range of interest and expertise there is in the community.
The minutes are quite detailed – mainly because we covered a wide range of potential local projects that we could promote, preferably with the backing of Amber Rudd (A divestment fund for energy, a school booklet, a Big Switch, a District Heating or Hospital scheme, an Open Homes event…).
A one stop online space to join conversations, learn more about our meetings and projects.
