Experiencing the camp at St Paul's

This past week, two TTT supporters have made separate visits to the 'Occupy London' camp outside St Paul's Cathedral. We asked them both to blog on our site to share their responses, and we hope you find their personal comments interesting and thought-provoking:

Jesse's experience:
On Saturday I decided to see what all the fuss was about and spend some time at the Occupy London Stock Exchange Camp outside St Paul’s. As has been commented on in the mainstream media it is difficult to simplify and describe; I thought it would be good to share my experience and let everyone know how they can get involved if they're interested.

Jane's experience:

I had been meaning to offer solidarity to the St Paul’s Camp for days and decided to spend last Wednesday there with the tenters. I arrived from the Tube fired up that someone is making a visible statement, to cry out against the extreme levels of inequality in our society. It has been too long.

Local Economy & Community Currency Event

What can we do together to support the local economy?

What's the value in developing a Tooting community currency?

Many local businesses are in direct competition with national chains, the internet and large suburban shopping centres. When 'big business' wins, another local shop closes or a small business goes bankrupt.

If you, like us, are concerned about the local economy and wish to talk to other like minded people our Local Economy & Community Currency event on Nov 1st might be just for you! We will be discussing how to strengthen our local economy, build new relationships, and how we spend our money. We will ask if we want a thriving local economy, or are we happy with our money going elsewhere? Do we want extended supply chains or short ones? How would this benefit us? Would a community currency help?

Venue: Mushkil Aasaan, 222 Upper Tooting Rd 7-9 pm.  All Welcome.

Gaia - the Cabaret

At short notice, Peter Horton of Gaia's Company is offering an extra night of his current cabaret tour of songs, sketches and curiosity.  Transition Town Tooting is delighted to support Gaia the Cabaret at the Wheatsheaf in Tooting Bec next Tues 25th Oct at 8pm.  Come along!

"Common Knowledge: Drawing Tooting"

Sunny weather brought 15 local people, including several Transition Tooting friends, onto Tooting Common to join a Wandsworth Arts ‘Big Draw’ event on Saturday 15th Oct:

"Explore the hidden ecology of Tooting Common

with artist Jacques Nimki through drawing, talking and walking.”

We practiced 'measured drawing', collected leaves and seeds in paper boxes which we made on the spot, and tried drawing in tiny sketchbooks – no excuses for not having materials with us!

We looked at the Common through our own varied and personal experience of the space - including searching for stories in the apparently random paths we followed (Jacques calls them ‘desire lines’). We felt this drawing and observing both plants and social meaning should be continued - all part of valuing what makes Tooting special.

Foodival & Roots

More photos from Foodival now online - thank you Chuck!  Keep 'em coming if you have any good ones!

Meanwhile congratulations to Tim for the successful first run out of a Tooting currency at Foodival with our prototype pound, already known on the streets of south London as a "ROOT" (rather than a quid). Go to the ROOT'S NEW WEBSITE (fast work there Tim) - it's the destination of choice for anyone out there even vaguely intrigued by the idea of helping put the Root in Tooting.

Fun at Foodival!

It was a great afternoon at the Tooting Foodival with local fruit and veg turned into delicious Tooting dishes by local restaurants and purchased by the Tooting public using a prototype Tooting currency the Tooting Root, all in our local Tooting Market!  Thanks to all who helped out including restaurants Meze, Al Mirage, Lahore Karahi, Rick's Cafe, Pooja and Spice Village not to mention the fabulous Brick Box for hosting the event.  More details and photos on the Foodival pages soon.

Queuing for food, "Tooting Roots" in hand

"I've never seen it so packed round here"

Countdown to Foodival

The Food Group are gearing up for Saturday's Foodival, this year taking place at Tooting Market, 21-23 Tooting High St.  All donations of fruit and veg to be magically transformed by local restuaurants into special low food mile Tooting dishes are very welcome.  There's a drop off at the Tooting Community Garden on Friday evening 4-7 pm and also a collection service.  Please see the Foodival page for full details.  We look forward to seeing you there!

 

To get involved, donate produce or ask a question please mail Giles

Foodival 2011

 

More details on the Foodival Blog

A weekend spent getting ecologically deep

I thought I’d take a few minutes to write a bit about a recent ecological/environmental conference I attended, which I found completely inspiring, energizing and life affirming.  If you’ve not come across Green & Away, it’s Europe’s only tented conference centre, with everything in the open air or under canvas.  Set in rolling fields outside Worcester, by the river Teme, I’d highly recommend it.  I took part in the Resurgence summer camp, and as well as several great speakers and workshops, found the experience of living outdoors for 4 days (including taking open air showers!) really lovely.  Satish Kumar, peace activist and ecological campaigner, ‘headlined’ and spoke of a trinity of ‘soil, soul and society’, which in essence I took to mean thinking of ecology as three inter-connected spheres which we must nurture as a whole if we're to find sustainable solutions to the challenges of climate change, inequality and the many other ills facing the world.  I was particularly interested in the ‘soul’ aspect, and the importance of connecting with our inner landscapes whilst moving away from a constant outer focus, for example on material possessions.

News from a Tooting front room near you!

Liz has been hosting a series of ‘Carbon Conversations’ meetings with neighbours in her front room: 

Our latest 'CC' is now taking a break for the summer, so I thought I'd take the opportunity for a quick update on how it's gone so far, since we started meeting once a week. In mid June a group of intrepid Tooting dwellers ventured up the hill into Furzedown, and we began by discussing :

'why on earth are we even having a conversation about carbon anyway?' 

And what do these 'tonnes' consist of, and what is 'carbon equivalent', and why should we bother when China builds a new coal power station every week? We all concluded that we did want to bother, and for me it felt good to be doing something positive.  
We had some fun thinking about what we'd say to the current prime minister about climate change if we got the chance; things like 'don't wait for other countries, just take a lead', 'be proud of the UK’s Climate Act - do more to promote it' and 'tackling inequality will help with climate change and vice versa, don't forget the multiple benefits to society'.

With thoughts racing through my mind we went on our way to ponder for a week before the next session. 

Transition Conference Report - Charles

Two of us have just been to the annual Transition Network Conference in Liverpool

Each of the 200-plus participants probably had a unique experience of the 3 days. Much of the time was offered in chunks of options...

Exciting choices, because most of the parallel sessions looked tempting…but you needed to select just one!  What would you do:  choose a very popular one with 40 people signed up, or go for a topic with a smaller group of 5? And would you prefer to be meeting the same people, or new ones?

My choices took me to sessions on social justice, on community renewable energy, on health in cities, on a long evening walk with a forester in local woods and fields, and on Kids in Transition.  

Transition Conference Report - Lucy

‘The change in direction represented by the Transition movement is as profound as any intentional change experienced by a civilisation’.

I have been at the national Transition Town Conference in Liverpool for three days. An intense experience, characterised by almost constant conversation with 259 other ‘transitioners’ from all over the world and the UK. The conference was on the campus of Hope University near Chilwall Woods in the North East of the City.

The conference recognised that after 5 years of existence the Transition movement has a great deal to reflect on. The movement can begin to look back at the evidence of its impact with confidence.  With initiatives across the world putting ‘transition’ principles successfully into action, responding quickly as communities pulling together has shown how resilience really counts. This has been especially so in the stark contexts of national crises such as New Zealand’s earthquake and Rio’s floods.   When things are destabilised you have to be ready with new ways of doing things. 

Tooting Community Garden

We have had an exciting few weeks at the Tooting Community Garden so here's a little update on recent activities. On 18th and 19th June we invited volunteers to come to the Big Dig. We certainly have some talented gardeners and knowledgeable people in Tooting. Sharing skills and knowledge was a feature of the weekend. We began by preparing the rectangular bed in the middle of the garden so we can grow some veggies. Although we are a bit late in the season we are confident we can grow some produce in time for the Tooting Foodival in September. A few weeks previously we had been prepared to dig by hand but the soil was so compact that when we were offered use of a rotivator (thanks to the lovely people at Share Community Garden!) we accepted. Following rotivation we marked out beds with concrete slabs we found in the garden. After preparing the soil a little more and adding some compost we were ready to plant.

Furzedown Low Carbon Zone

Transition Town Tooting is a partner in promoting the "Furzedown Low Carbon Zone", a new project that will help achieve the goal of an energy efficient, resilient Furzedown.  TTT has a stand at the Big Day Out and will co-host an inaugural meeting at the Furzedown Project, 91-93 Moyser Rd, SW16 6SJ on Monday 18th July, 7-9pm.  Further information will be posted soon!

Recycle Week June 20-26th

This has been Recycle Week and we were delighted to welcome Wandsworth Council's Recycling Team Sophie Chitty, at this week's TTT co-ordinating meeting. She writes about her visit here: 

Fancy a Tooting Carbon Conversation?

The next Carbon Conversation in Tooting starts next week on Monday 20th June.  Organiser Liz Darley says: "It should be fun and you should learn some new things!!"  

Carbon conversations are six meetings that explore how individuals and families can reduce their carbon footprint. Participants will find out how to make practical plans to reduce carbon consumption in areas such as home energy, travel, and food purchasing, as well as talking about their own personal visions and feelings on a low-carbon future in London.  Find out more details about how to join the conversation here.

Tooting Community Garden

The Tooting Community Garden is underway! We are now calling on volunteers to come and help turn our blank canvas into a beautiful, thriving garden. 

The land has been generously donated by Naseem, owner of Mushkil Asaan on Upper Tooting Road. If you have gardening skills and advice that you would like to share we would love to hear from you but most importantly we need willing hands and enthusiasm so if you have no experience in the garden then please don't let this stop you coming along. If you would like to join the Tooting garden mailing list then please email Abby on abigailcallen@gmail.com.  On the left is version 1 of a possible plan for the garden drawn by George.

What could you add to this?  We need your help and ideas!    Get in touch with TTT to get involved.

‘Seasonal Food and Seasonal Wellbeing’

Our monthly ‘First Tuesday’ meeting on 7^th June met at Mushkil Aasaan - with many thanks for the use of the hall.

Belinda, Tim & Charles used games and discussion to explore some of the interrelated features of the food we buy and grow – its nutritional value, its availability locally-grown, its ‘carbon footprint’, its degree of government subsidy or supermarket ‘shelf shout’, and food’s relationship with our own wellbeing.

We shared some favourite seasonal recipes, local picnic locations, and ideas for outdoor cooking and eating. We looked at packaging and waste – and linked this to composting, and to the satisfaction of growing our own food.

 Some of our discussions in more detail:

BATCA Fun Day 2011

TTT will again be participating in this year's BATCA Fun Day held as in previous years at the Gatton School and St Augustine's church opposite in Broadwater Rd, Tooting.  More details to follow soon but here is the BATCA poster: