Carbon Conversations Week 3

'Travel and Transport' was the theme of the evening's discussion this third week of Carbon Conversations.  Stories of favourite and nightmare journeys were shared - from wonderful night time cycling through Hyde Park to the extreme frustration of delays, queues and missed connections while under pressure to meet a deadline elsewhere.  We talked about what travel represents to each of us , especially within a culture where it has become so accessible and so enjoyed.  Aspirations to travel the world are encouraged almost as a rite of passage and, subsequently, many thousands of conversations coalesce around those experiences.  We looked at our reasons for making journeys and there was a recognition of the challenge that would be felt were the visiting of family and friends abroad to be restricted.

We talked about the advantages and deficiencies of cycling and the current public transport system - who it works for, or not, - and some of the steps that could be taken to make it more accessible for all and why the obstacles to this happening are so significant.  There was a recognition that solutions in potentially wonderful technologies may be still in their infancy! This theme of taking difficult carbon-reducing decisions was continued in the group game we played: we experienced how lifestyle changing decisions could be made at the individual family level (good, though sometimes not to our liking, inconvenient and expensive) alongside having the opportunity to make strategic policy decisions at a government level (also good, potentially having a great impact but likely to incur huge resistance from many quarters).

We spent some time reflecting on the dilemma of what feels acceptable behaviour and how we can take responsibility for our carbon footprint .  Our final activity was deciding on a manageable action that we want to take and then looking at the driving and restraining forces that we could see coming into play, and then focusing on reducing the effect of the restraining forces.  Plenty to think about during the week!

Pop-up Cinema in Furzedown on Fri 27th January: Naomi Klein's 'This Changes Everything'

Join the Furzedown Low Carbon Zone screening of Naomi Klein's 'This Changes Everything' The film explores the global fight against climate change, the role of capitalism and what citizens can do.

The film has been described as "purposely unsettling...ultimately encouraging".

When? Doors at 7:00 for film at 7:30 on Friday 27th January

Where? The Furzedown Project, 93 Moyser Road SW16 6SJ

Tickets cost £5 for waged and £2 for students / unemployed - including wine, soft drinks and our famous popcorn
  

All welcome!

Please reserve tickets by emailing us at furzedownlowcarbonzone@gmail.com 

Your ticket entitles you to a 50% discount on the purchase of low-energy LED light bulbs for use in many parts of the home. 

We're making this LED offer available via our bulk purchase, to enable you to start saving money and reduce your home's carbon footprint.

Pop-up Cinema in Furzedown Friday 10th July

Pop-Up Cinema on the Green at the local bowling club in Furzedown, to enjoy a social evening, meet people and raise funds for the Furzedown Low Carbon Zone workshops we're planning for this winter.  

Free popcorn!

At Streatham Park Bowling Club, Pringle Gardens, London SW16 1SH 

Timings: 7:00pm to 9:30pm 

We're showing 'The Emperor's New Clothes' by Michael Winterbottom with Russell Brand, plus a short film of Naomi Klein's 'This Changes Everything'.  The screen is in a marquee, Spanish street food stall Moyete Man will be serving his delicious dishes, and the bar is open before and after.

Tickets are selling fast - there's a handful left so do book now! Tickets cost £5, or £2 for students / unemployed. Reserve by emailing us or book online at eventbrite

London | Lambeth | Streatham
Streatham Park Bowling Club, Pringle Gardens, London SW16 1SH - See more at: http://www.projectdirt.com/apps/event/37051/#sthash.sJPmG3wS.dpuf

Pop-Up Cinema on the green at the local bowling club in Furzedown. The screen is in a marquee, bar is open all night and Spanish street food stall Moyete Man will be serving his delicious dishes. Tickets are selling already so remember to book. We're raising funds for the workshops we're planning for this winter.
Details below -
Pop-Up Cinema showing 'The Emperor's New Clothes' by Michael Winterbottom with Russell Brand, plus short film of Naomi Klein's 'This Changes Everything'
Book your Tickets: £5 or £2 for students / unemployed
Reserve by emailing us: furzedownlowcarbonzone@gmail.com or online:
eventbrite.co.uk/e/flcz-pop-up-cinema-tickets-17344991336
Screen in Marquee on the lawn
Bar open before and after
Free popcorn
- See more at: http://www.projectdirt.com/apps/event/37051/#sthash.sJPmG3wS.dpuf

Pop-Up Cinema on the green at the local bowling club in Furzedown. The screen is in a marquee, bar is open all night and Spanish street food stall Moyete Man will be serving his delicious dishes. Tickets are selling already so remember to book. We're raising funds for the workshops we're planning for this winter.
Details below -
Pop-Up Cinema showing 'The Emperor's New Clothes' by Michael Winterbottom with Russell Brand, plus short film of Naomi Klein's 'This Changes Everything'
Book your Tickets: £5 or £2 for students / unemployed
Reserve by emailing us: furzedownlowcarbonzone@gmail.com or online:
eventbrite.co.uk/e/flcz-pop-up-cinema-tickets-17344991336
Screen in Marquee on the lawn
Bar open before and after
Free popcorn
- See more at: http://www.projectdirt.com/apps/event/37051/#sthash.sJPmG3wS.dpuf

Pop-Up Cinema on the green at the local bowling club in Furzedown. The screen is in a marquee, bar is open all night and Spanish street food stall Moyete Man will be serving his delicious dishes. Tickets are selling already so remember to book. We're raising funds for the workshops we're planning for this winter.
Details below -
Pop-Up Cinema showing 'The Emperor's New Clothes' by Michael Winterbottom with Russell Brand, plus short film of Naomi Klein's 'This Changes Everything'
Book your Tickets: £5 or £2 for students / unemployed
Reserve by emailing us: furzedownlowcarbonzone@gmail.com or online:
eventbrite.co.uk/e/flcz-pop-up-cinema-tickets-17344991336
Screen in Marquee on the lawn
Bar open before and after
Free popcorn
- See more at: http://www.projectdirt.com/apps/event/37051/#sthash.sJPmG3wS.dpuf

Furzedown Low Carbon Zone AGM, Friday 27th Feb

All welcome to the FLCZ annual general meeting
Friday 27th February 2015, 7:00pm to 9:00 pm

The AGM is at the Furzedown Project, 93 Moyser Road, SW16 6SJ
Join us to help make exciting plans for 2015 and beyond.
For info, please contact us at furzedownlowcarbonzone@gmail.com

Also concerned with making low-carbon living a reality now:

Ecobuild is running next week FOR FREE for 3 days at the Excel Centre - 3rd-5th March. It's a remarkable event!
If you have not attended before, it partly a gigantic trade show, and partly a superb series of seminars and lectures with experts.

For example - here's the link to Green Energy talks on the Tuesday. There is so much going on, organised into key themes....some technical, some community-oriented, some very creative - or all three.
Taking part is free - details on the Ecobuild site. See you there!

Growing, jenga, community energy and wellbeing at St George's Community Open Day, 15th Nov.

Thanks so much to St George's Healthcare NHS Trust for the invitation to have a stand at the Open Day last Saturday - our third year running.
And thanks to all who came to talk, share ideas, participate in the games for all ages, and sign up to our email lists to keep in contact. 

We chose three areas of what we do locally to share with visitors:

• The Tooting Community Garden
• Sustainable living and wellbeing games
• Our sister project, the Furzedown Low Carbon Zone

Some high points included:
 
Playing with the planet: 
plotting the sources of common foods on the world map

Giant jenga, with green living tips

There were twelve volunteers on the varied activities through the day, and there was a lot of preparation...

Sometimes action takes over

...the most valuable aspect of the day was having the time to talk to visitors about plans and ideas.

Making drinks carton wallets

Rhubarb on the St George's Allotment

Doing the day together as a team was also special.








TTT and the Furzedown Low Carbon Zone have some great events happening in the next month - see our Events Calendar on the top right of this blog homepage.  

All welcome!


  

Plus: we are discussing future projects with St George's. 
We'll share news soon..

Furzedown Low Carbon Zone: Film Night 22nd Oct

All welcome to a Film Night hosted by our sister project, Furzedown Low Carbon Zone.

Date: Wednesday October 22nd
Venue: The Furzedown Project, 93 Moyser Road, SW16 6SJ
Timings: Doors open at 7:30pm, and the showing starts at 8:00
Booking: Please book a ticket on our booking page here. Tickets are £5.00. Under-16s and over-60s are free (please book in all the same)

We'll finish by 9:30, but conversation can always move to the pub! 
Film is better with tea, coffee and cake - and if you came to the Tooting Foodival you know we make some great cakes.

We're showing 'Disruption':

a brand new film about climate change and community 

organisation in the face of apparent poltical apathy 

The film also covers the background to the New York City Climate March last month.

As well as fundraising for our activities, we'll be sharing the proceeds of the evening with Furzedown FACE, a group that supports the local community. 




The 'FLCZ' has been active for three years now
Furzedown Low Carbon Zone is a community association dedicated to reducing the carbon emissions of Furzedown and surrounding areas. You may have seen us at Furzedown Big Day Out, at Tooting Foodival or on the Climate March.

Two earlier FLCZ projects were carried out with many local partners including South Thames College, Eardley School, Furzedown enterprises and Transition Town Tooting. Do watch the project videos:

1 'The Greener Jobs Alliance' - watch it here

2 'Better Choices for a Better Tomorrow' - watch it here

We're proud that our first project won the Green Gown Awards 'Best Newcomer' category  in 2012 from The Environmental Association for Universities and Colleges.


If you'd like to find out about FLCZ activities, including our current focus on setting up a community renewable energy scheme, please contact us here.
We look forward to seeing you.

A follow-up to the People's Climate March

A huge event worldwide - maybe the biggest of its kind, ever.

Here's a map from 350.org, one of the 
campaign partners:


The march in New York City:

What's happened afterwards (so far)?
This article gives a good view from the UN:  'Five ways Ban Ki-moon's summit has changed international climate politics forever' http://gu.com/p/4xp6f

Please join us to carry out relevant, rewarding and practical local activities together, here in Tooting.  
Do get in contact with your ideas.

People's Climate March, London Sept 21 2014

Why take part in the Climate March?

With strong arms, one inspired person can achieve a lot!

By joining Transition Town Tooting, the Tooting Community Garden, and Furzedown Low Carbon Zone, and Transition Wandsworth together all under one banner - we can share the work and achieve even more.



Why take part...?
Young people can express themselves, we can all be inspired...
We can get talking to others by showing off our banner (thanks loads for making it, Alice).

Today's march was worthwhile for the sense of connection within a common cause, the conversations, the contacts made.

And some extra learning? Have longer bamboo poles next time..

All welcome to join us in Transition Tooting or the Furzedown Low Carbon Zone to get involved with practical community projects on food, growing, energy, air quality, sustainable living and more.
Together we're all contributing creativity and some local solutions to the global challenges we all face, whatever group we belong to.

There's a good new film: 'Disruption', reminding us why climate change is so significant: watch it here online for free.
And you can hear Naomi Klein (details here) talk about her new book 'This Changes Everything: Capitalism against the Climate' on October 6th in central London.

 

Please join in!

 

FLCZ at Furzedown Fun Day

Nice picture of the Furzedown Low Carbon Zone stall at the Furzedown Festival on Saturday.

FLCZ Chair Giles Read (who took the photo, thanks Giles) said: "what a brilliant event The Furzedown Festival was.  The interest in the FLCZ stall exceeded all expectations, from people interested in investing to those wanting information on solar panels or just enjoying cycling for a song!" 

Competition Cakes

On that score it really is interesting to "cycle for a song" to see how much pedal power it requires, in my case 5 minutes cycling to put a "Man On The Moon" courtesy of REM.  However it's actually much harder to power the 100W light bulb.  Some of the children trying out the bike were fascinated at the connection between their effort and the generation of electricity. Thanks again to Eleanor for the loan of her cycle power machine which has been a great addition over the last two weekends.

Green sky thinking - here in Tooting

On Tuesday evening 3rd June the Furzedown Low Carbon Zone is having its monthly planning meeting  at the Furzedown Pub, in the back room from 1900 to 2030.
The group has carried out diverse local projects for the past three years with many partners. On Tuesday we'll share updates on current plans and make new ones: our priority now is to develop a community renewable energy project locally.
For more info, email us at furzedownlowcarbonzone@gmail.com
All welcome - and we'd love to talk to you at the Furzedown Festival Big Day Out on 21st June http://furzedown.net/

At Sprout Arts on Wednesday 4th June, from 1900 to 2100, there's the first of a fascinating series of events with local architect Ayca Cutts.
'Green Thinking: Designing to Survive' is the title of Wednesday evening's participative workshop. For more details on Ayca's whole series at Sprout, click here.
We are looking forward to this - and it's a great fit with our Tooting Carbon Conversations series (click on this link for more info on our curent and past meetings)

Three practical local projects: do join us!

Furzedown Low Carbon Zone
We had a productive monthly planning meeting last week - please see the minutes and actions here. 
In outline we're at the stage of visiting local partners to explore sites where there is space and interest to be involved by 'hosting' renewable energy generation equipment - whatever technology is appropriate - and sharing in the benefits.
A second stage will be to engage with local people who can become involved as co-owners of a community generation scheme. The Furzedown Festival in June is a target for that, certainly for informal sharing of the project.
Next planning meetings are on 8th May and 3rd June in Furzedown...please come along if you would like to be involved at this stage. Details will be on the TTT Events Calendar on this blog. Contact us on this email link for any further information.

Eighth series of our 'Carbon Conversations' meetings
We are going to offer a free series of local Carbon Conversations from the 19th May to early July this year. Running on Monday evenings (with one Tuesday for luck), this will be a set of six participative meetings which enable individuals to discuss, understand and take control of their carbon footprint, and work out ways to reduce energy consumption and expenses.

It's a very engaging and practical set of meetings.....and even fun.
We'll cover home energy, food, travel and transport, and general consumption of 'stuff'.
All the details are in the flyer for this next series: please click here.
Please contact Charles at transitiontowntooting@gmail.com with any questions.

'Cleaner Air 4 Communities' Project
This project brings citizen science and local action to the challenge of measuring and advocating for clean air. The toolkit - click here to link to a pdf copy - describes some of the steps that can be taken by a community group.
Graham Petersen recently took part in air quality measurement at Clapham Junction, with the Battersea Society (there's a case study on this experience in the toolkit). There is some funding available to support this project, and Graham is investigating that, with a view to improving air quality in Tooting. Please use the Furzedown Low Carbon Zone contact email for more info.

All welcome to join in with these three projects. Please get in touch!

Community Renewable Energy in Furzedown

We want to share this exciting news from the Furzedown Low Carbon Zone (FLCZ) AGM last week. There's no time like the present, and we have decided to take the plunge and try our hardest to establish a community renewable energy project in Furzedown.

What will that look like?

In outline we'll be supporting the generation of local power that should bring local benefits; probably a co-operative enterprise with a legacy for the future.  There are several models for this across the UK and abroad, and there is good local advice available: at the same time it is a pioneering project, and it will be challenging.

Much more information to come as we get going, and we welcome local participation, partners, and support. We have a diverse team who want to make this work. More contributors welcome!

We covered other topics too in the AGM, and the FLCZ aims to keep being active on accessible social, behavioural and technical projects that help demonstrate the value of low-carbon living, now.
Links: 2014 AGM minutes  For background: 2013 Annual Report.

Furzedown Low Carbon Zone AGM - Thursday 23rd January

Furzedown Low Carbon Zone AGM

Furzedown Project, 91-93 Moyser Road, SW16 6SJ

We have postponed the AGM, originally scheduled for January 16th, to next Thursday 23rd January from 7:30-9:00 pm.

The FLCZ was established in 2011 to promote practical local action on sustainability, energy efficiency, and green jobs.
We are considering a community renewable energy generating project, and will be discussing this among other topics.....all welcome!

Community Responses to the Energy Crisis

We hosted this meeting with the Furzedown Low Carbon Zone on Wednesday 27th November.

Giles from http://www.thinkingworks.co.uk/ gave an interactive talk sponsored by the Citizens' Advice Bureau.
He focused on understanding our own energy supply bills, on the grants and support schemes currently available, and who is eligible, on the energy efficiency challenges in Furzedown's housing stock, and on being aware of the energy consumption of many household items - all in a very practical 45 minutes.
Of course we still had questions - and Giles directed us to many places to find out much more detail.

Secondly, we briefly outlined the potential for a community energy generation scheme, and agreed to meet again in January 2014 to discuss this in more depth.
We realised we are 'surrounded' by local energy generation experiments and potential good advice - with schemes developed or en route in Brixton, Streatham, Kingston, and Wandsworth.

Andy, Headteacher at Eardley School, described the final stages of the installation at half term of £10,000 worth of energy efficiency measures in the school. The funds for these steps came via the FLCZ project which ran locally earlier in 2014, where local college students engaged with aspects of sustainability within their courses.
(Have a look at our project video here).

To get involved or learn more, please contact Graham Petersen by email - we look forward to being in touch.
And thanks to Naked Loaf for making the delicious snacks in the same few days that they were painting floors and signs ready to open their new bakery and deli in Moyser Road.

BATCA Heroes Award for Gatton School & Tooting Community Garden

The Gatton School Community Garden project won a team award at the BATCA Community Heroes event held this evening at Jasmin's nightclub in Tooting. Congratulations to nominees Chuck and Deputy Head Hoosen Randaree pictured above with Head Teacher Rifat Batool and their awards. 
Many thanks to everyone involved, especially the children!

Late November: Six 'new beginnings'

Even though the year is moving into winter, there's six 'new beginnings' to share with you below.
We hope to see you at these events - all welcome to come along and maybe try something new..

1 On Tuesday 26th November we are starting to plan for the 2014 Tooting Foodival.
Do join us and suggest some new ideas, or become a new participant for next year.
We're meeting at The Selkirk, 60 Selkirk Rd, Tooting Broadway from 1900 to 2100 (details on Events Calendar opposite).


2 On Wednesday 27th November there is a SMArT Meet and Make workshop at Sprout in Moyser Road, Furzedown from 1830 to 2030. All welcome (details in the Events Calendar). The meeting will also start to look forward to the Christmas making and craft event on December 7th at Mushkil Aasaan - details to follow.

3 Also on Wednesday 27th November, along with the Furzedown Low Carbon Zone, we are co-hosting 'Community Responses to the Energy Crisis' at the Furzedown project from 1930. The meeting will help participants make sense of saving energy and reducing costs now, and we will start to explore developing a local renewable energy project.  Plus refreshments from Naked Loaf...please come along. See the complete flyer here

4 Naked Loaf made creative use of the bread flour we grew in the Tooting Community Garden this summer to make sourdough starter for dozens of delicious loaves at the Tooting Foodival in September. The new beginning for Naked Loaf is the exciting opening of their new organic bakery and deli at 70 Moyser Road, Furzedown, SW16 6SQ. They are finishing the decorating now and expecting to be fully open from Thursday 28th November, all day from 8:00 am. Best go and visit soon and try some of the great produce!

5 The 'Big Build' with Gatton School in the Community Garden is beginning to take shape, building on the children's enthusiasm and energy.
There'll be a celebration at the end of term to mark the rainwater catchment completion.

6 Not quite a sign of spring, but the broad beans planted a few weeks ago are beginning to show through - a very encouraging sight as the weather turns colder.
Do come and join us in the Community Garden every Sunday from 1100-1300.





For more info on any of these 'new beginnings', contact us on email at transitiontowntooting@gmail.com

Green Gown Awards 2012: the winner is our shared project in Tooting's Furzedown Low Carbon Zone

South Thames College has won the prestigious 2012 Green Gown Award in the 'Best Newcomer' category, from a strong field of 5 other finalists.

Sadiq Khan MP will celebrate the Award with a local presentation to Sue Rimmer, Principal of South Thames College

The Green Gown Awards recognise exceptional sustainability initiatives being undertaken in tertiary education across the UK
This award was won for the project carried out in the Furzedown Low Carbon Zone with the Greener Jobs Alliance, Transition Town Tooting, and other valued local partners.
That's fantastic recognition of hard work, and will help enormously with the profile (and funding!) of further projects.

For all the detail, see the Winner's brochure: on page 4 there's the detail about our project -  including a picture of a TTT Carbon Conversations workshop in action in Furzedown. Go to the Awards website at http://www.eauc.org.uk/2012_green_gown_awards

We made this video in spring 2012 about the project - do have another look at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VNRx6tNFG8U

Award celebration:
There's a celebration on Tuesday November 27th from 6 to 7pm at the Furzedown Project, 91-93 Moyser Road, SW16.
Sadiq Khan MP will present the Award to Sue Rimmer, Principal of South Thames College
All welcome for some celebration cake!
Details in the Events listing here on the TTT blog, and for a .pdf copy of the celebration flyer, click here.

 

For more information, email us at transitiontowntooting@gmail.com