Naomi Klein, The New Statesman, 29th October

In December 2012, a pink-haired complex systems researcher named Brad Werner made his way through the throng of 24,000 earth and space scientists at the Fall Meeting of the American Geophysical Union, held annually in San Francisco. This year’s conference had some big-name participants, from Ed Stone of Nasa’s Voyager project, explaining a new milestone on the path to interstellar space, to the film-maker James Cameron, discussing his adventures in deep-sea submersibles.

But it was Werner’s own session that was attracting much of the buzz. It was titled “Is Earth F**ked?” (full title: “Is Earth F**ked? Dynamical Futility of Global Environmental Management and Possibilities for Sustainability via Direct Action Activism”).

Standing at the front of the conference room, the geophysicist from the University of California, San Diego walked the crowd through the advanced computer model he was using to answer that question. He talked about system boundaries, perturbations, dissipation, attractors, bifurcations and a whole bunch of other stuff largely incomprehensible to those of us uninitiated in complex systems theory. But the bottom line was clear enough: global capitalism has made the depletion of resources so rapid, convenient and barrier-free that “earth-human systems” are becoming dangerously unstable in response. When pressed by a journalist for a clear answer on the “are we f**ked” question, Werner set the jargon aside and replied, “More or less.”

There was one dynamic in the model, however, that offered some hope. Werner termed it “resistance” – movements of “people or groups of people” who “adopt a certain set of dynamics that does not fit within the capitalist culture”. According to the abstract for his presentation, this includes “environmental direct action, resistance taken from outside the dominant culture, as in protests, blockades and sabotage by indigenous peoples, workers, anarchists and other activist groups”.

Serious scientific gatherings don’t usually feature calls for mass political resistance, much less direct action and sabotage. But then again, Werner wasn’t exactly calling for those things. He was merely observing that mass uprisings of people – along the lines of the abolition movement, the civil rights movement or Occupy Wall Street – represent the likeliest source of “friction” to slow down an economic machine that is careening out of control. We know that past social movements have “had tremendous influence on . . . how the dominant culture evolved”, he pointed out. So it stands to reason that, “if we’re thinking about the future of the earth, and the future of our coupling to the environment, we have to include resistance as part of that dynamics”. And that, Werner argued, is not a matter of opinion, but “really a geophysics problem”.

Plenty of scientists have been moved by their research findings to take action in the streets. Physicists, astronomers, medical doctors and biologists have been at the forefront of movements against nuclear weapons, nuclear power, war, chemical contamination and creationism. And in November 2012,Nature published a commentary by the financier and environmental philanthropist Jeremy Grantham urging scientists to join this tradition and “be arrested if necessary”, because climate change “is not only the crisis of your lives – it is also the crisis of our species’ existence”.

Some scientists need no convincing. The godfather of modern climate science, James Hansen, is a formidable activist, having been arrested some half-dozen times for resisting mountain-top removal coal mining and tar sands pipelines (he even left his job at Nasa this year in part to have more time for campaigning). Two years ago, when I was arrested outside the White House at a mass action against the Keystone XL tar sands pipeline, one of the 166 people in cuffs that day was a glaciologist named Jason Box, a world-renowned expert on Greenland’s melting ice sheet.

 “I couldn’t maintain my self-respect if I didn’t go,” Box said at the time, adding that “just voting doesn’t seem to be enough in this case. I need to be a citizen also.”

This is laudable, but what Werner is doing with his modelling is different. He isn’t saying that his research drove him to take action to stop a particular policy; he is saying that his research shows that our entire economic paradigm is a threat to ecological stability. And indeed that challenging this economic paradigm – through mass-movement counter-pressure – is humanity’s best shot at avoiding catastrophe.

That’s heavy stuff. But he’s not alone. Werner is part of a small but increasingly influential group of scientists whose research into the destabilisation of natural systems – particularly the climate system – is leading them to similarly transformative, even revolutionary, conclusions. And for any closet revolutionary who has ever dreamed of overthrowing the present economic order in favour of one a little less likely to cause Italian pensioners to hang themselves in their homes, this work should be of particular interest. Because it makes the ditching of that cruel system in favour of something new (and perhaps, with lots of work, better) no longer a matter of mere ideological preference but rather one of species-wide existential necessity.

To read the rest of article, click here.

Katie Allen, The Guardian, 15/10/13

When the latest unemployment figures are published on Wednesday, Jacob Deverill will not be among them. But not because he is in a job. The 19-year-old is out of work, was thrown off benefits in March and has not signed back on. Since then he has earned just £84 from a handful of shifts at a local factory. He has spent £40 of that on taxi and bus fares to more shifts at the plant, only to be turned away as he was no longer needed.

Deverill is one of thousands of young people classed by statisticians as “economically inactive”. His benefits were suspended, he says, when he was sanctioned by his jobcentre for going on a different college course from the one it recommended. He has not been back to sign on as a jobseeker.

Sitting in the community centre on the Nottingham estate where he lives with his mother, Deverill stares into his hands as he tries to sum up his status.

“I’m listless,” he says.

Not for much longer. Next week, Deverill starts on a job-finding scheme with local councillor and community worker Carole McCulloch. She smiles at him and says: “You’re on our list, duck. Don’t you worry.”

McCulloch, 48, is putting a group of young people from her estate through a training course with mentors from the council’s street cleaning team, helping them write CVs and apply for apprenticeships. It is the third time she has done it and she is becoming known locally as an alternative to the big private sector organisations running the government’s Work Programme.

She says: “I haven’t had to go out and find these kids. I have parents knock on my door and say ‘You’re the woman who gets people jobs.’ I say: ‘I don’t get them jobs, I get them the skills to find jobs.'”

McCulloch, who has four children, started her Communities Taking Control scheme three years ago when several families on her estate in the Aspley area of Nottingham were repeatedly reprimanded for antisocial behaviour. The complaints centred on a group of unemployed young men.

“They had been throwing eggs, intimidating other residents, breaking fences,” she says. “Some of the families were going to be evicted and I thought, that can’t happen.”

She invited the aggrieved residents, parents of the alleged troublemakers and police officers to a meeting where she suggested an alternative: “They had to clean up the mess they had made.”

They agreed to give it a go. Day by day the group of young people grew bigger and tidied up the road they had vandalised. Inspired by their enthusiasm, McCulloch launched a bigger scheme a few months later. The participants cleared alleyways, mended fences, tended gardens and gave out hanging baskets planted by primary school children.

McCulloch and other volunteers at her organisation, Aspley and Bells Lane Partnership, then helped the young people apply for work in the same field, including taking some of them out shopping for clothes.

Of 36 people on the estate clean-ups in 2011 and 2012, 18 went into jobs, 15 went into education or training and three remained on jobseeker benefits.

“These kids got thrown out of school with no prospects, only negativity from the community, and now they are working for the community, in the community, at barely any costs,” says McCulloch, who is a Labour councillor for Aspley.

She has calculated that the scheme costs £115.50 per young person. In contrast, the relative cost per job of the work programme is £2,097, according to back-to-work industry body the Employment Related Services Association (Ersa).

That makes the work programme the most cost effective scheme relative to any comparable scheme so far, says Ersa. But McCulloch and her colleagues are angry about the budgets given to big private sector organisations getting government back-to-work contracts.

“The organisations I can see are doing it for their own gain … I’m doing it for the community. I have a vested interest in these kids’ lives,” she says.

Nottingham city council is now looking into rolling out similar schemes across the city in the hope that bespoke, community-based help can get young people into long-term jobs.

Deverill hopes the scheme will give him a chance to prove he can and will work. He wants an income to help his mother, who was made redundant from her NHS job in January. He also wants an end to the crushing pattern of over-subscribed factory shift work.

“I want a job where you can turn up and not get turned away,” he says.

Lives changed

Rebekah Beresford was getting sick of people coming into the chip shop where she worked to report the latest misdeeds of her sons Daniel and Benjamin McGlinchey.

Until a community scheme helped to get them into apprenticeships, they were hanging around on the streets of their Nottingham estate. Daniel left school unable to read and write. Neither boy had GCSEs and they were struggling to find work or training.

“The routine was, get up in the morning; listen to me shout and scream and say, ‘I am fed up, I’m going to work.’ They would go out on the street, come back for something to eat, go out again,” says Beresford.

Then local councillor and community worker Carole McCulloch put them on her scheme to clean up the streets and get help applying for jobs.

When they got apprenticeships with the council’s cleansing team, life changed for the whole family, says Beresford. On the first morning her son put on his work clothes, she did not recognise him at first glance and thought someone had broken into her house. “He was stood there and said: ‘Do I look the part?’… He had gone to bed a boy and become a man overnight.”

“The biggest thing I got out of them having this apprenticeship is it gave them self respect and pride and something to get up for every day,” says Beresford.

“If we didn’t live on Carole’s estate, where would my boys be now? Leeching off the state in prison.”

Daniel, 21, has learned to read and write with help from his apprenticeship scheme and has moved out to live with his partner and young daughter. His younger brother, 19-year-old Ben, says he is loving going to work and the monthly pay cheques. He is keen to break down the perception that young people choose to “scrounge””. . “I could get 100 lads and say to them there is a job picking dog mess up, I am not exaggerating, and 95% would be up for it: ‘Give me a black bag, I’m off’. They would see the pay check of £1,100 for 27 days work and you can go to the shops and buy whatever you want.”

Citizens, groups and agencies from eleven Scottish rivers gathered for an unprecedented all volunteer event, “Exploring Our Rivers:  A Scottish Rivers Networking Day” in Grangemouth Town Hall on 9th October.  Over 100 attendees took part in this history-in-the-making day which was a Year of Natural Scotland 2013 event.  Included were River Avon, River Ayr, River Carron, River Clyde, River Doon, River Forth, River Garnock, River Girvan, River Irvine, River Stinchar and Water of Leith.  

Following on a discussion with Helen Brown, Water of Leith Trust Manager, who stated that more of the “friends of river groups” in Scotland might benefit from a networking day, Communities Along the Carron Association (CATCA) decided to host the event and Falkirk Council Development Services came forward with the funding.   

The event was particularly important as it came during a time when the Scottish Government is seriously examining the environmental impact that people and industries are having on the land and waters. The all volunteer event followed on the heels of the government’s recent Litter and Marine Litter Strategy Consultations.  

Paul Wheelhouse BPA/MSP, Minister for Environment and Climate Change said “The regeneration, conservation and maintenance of the water environment in Scotland is important to us all. Scotland’s River Basin Management Plans set objectives to protect and improve the ecological quality of our water environment. Partnership working is key to meeting these objectives, the Communities Along the Carron Association is an excellent example and hopefully bringing other groups together will be a good networking opportunity to share ideas.” 

The event included classroom style presentations from various experts, researchers and river volunteers, stalls from 22 groups and agencies, and a viewing of the Jeremy Irons’ film “Trashed”, followed by a panel discussion on the impact of the plastic industry on our waters, both rivers and oceans.   The response to the film, of the 100 delegates, was a stunned silence until the panel discussion allowed the airing of questions and concerns.  

The presentations of the day ranged from the reintroduction of salmon in the River Clyde to natural flood management on the Allan Water. In between classes and during a network buffet lunch, visitors were able to visit stalls and engage in helpful conversations with a wide array of river-related groups and agencies:  Falkirk Invasive Species Forum, CATCA, Water of Leith, Local Biodiversity Action Plan, Larbert and Stenhousemuir Angling Club, Linlithgow Angling Club, River Avon Federation, SEPA, Slamannan Angling and Protective Association, Ayrshire Rivers Trust, Forth Invasive Non-Native Species project, River Forth Fisheries Trust, Centre for River EcoSystem Science (CRESS), Keep Scotland Beautiful, Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, Rory MacPhee Boatbuilder, Scottish Water, FIDRA, Marine Conservation Society, Scottish Natural Heritage, Falkirk Environment Trust, and Forth Environment Link. 

“One of the goals of CATCA was to bring together ‘the man on the street (or river)’ with the university sector, to help foster a conversation which is so important to both sectors, as they have much to learn from each other,” said Ian Howarth, Chairman of CATCA.  “The older anglers, for one, know the rivers inside and out and have much natural wisdom to share.  The researchers such as those at CRESS and University Marine Biological Station Millport, have a lot to tell us about water quality issues, current and future research.  Much more can happen to address these issues at the practical level, if we don’t all work in isolation.”  

Delegates left this unique event having made new friends, shared valuable information, sparked new ideas, new inspiration and new hope for the future of all of Scotland’s rivers.  

Links to presentations and photos will be available at www.catca.org.uk by the end of October.  

For further information on CATCA’s projects and events, contact CATCA Project Leader Christine Bell at christine.bell@falkirk.gov.uk.  

For further press information and photographs, contact Michelle MillerAllen at cmcc.michelle@btinternet.com or at 07720648317.  

Kenny Smith, Rutherglen Reformer, 2/10/13

Ambitious plans to turn Cambuslang into a cycling hub in the west of Scotland have been revealed.

Cambuslang Community Council’s meeting last month saw an impressive proposal put before the members, which would involve the town becoming a key part of the cycling network in the area.

Chairman Iain McKenzie said: “Before we broke up for the summer recess, I asked for suggestions for ways we could make a difference to the regeneration of Cambuslang, by way of a sort of Chairman’s Challenge.”

One proposal which was put forward came from Cambuslang man John Bachtler, a professor with Strathclyde University who specialises in regional and local economic development and works throughout Europe.

John said: “The Chairman’s Challenge was an incentive to set out some ideas. One possible project that has real potential is a cycle project. We have got two national cycle routes to the north and south of Cambuslang, but there are no links to these routes and no network. If you want to cycle to school or to the shops, there are virtually no on or off-road cycle paths.”

“Earlier this year it was announced that Healthy ‘n’ Happy Development Trust had launched an initiative to make Cambuslang and Rutherglen a Bike Town. They held a number of meetings to set priorities and the Cambuslang Cycling Project could be one of the initial projects. The idea is to create an ‘active travel hub’, ideally close to the Clyde cycle path, which would be a centre for people to drop in, get their bikes repaired, or take it down for a service if it’s been sitting for years in their garage, as well as having a bike exchange for young people to swap their bikes as they get older.”

“It could also be a base for a cycle training officer to organise cycle events in the area, and start working with Sustrans to map possible cycle routes, to connect with the national cycling routes, and link up with local schools, shops, churches, major employers and so on. We need to encourage people to cycle more but we also need to provide safer routes for them to get around”.

John presented an impressive three-page pitch for the project to those attending the meeting.

It states: “Cambuslang has major potential for getting more people to cycle, in particular because it is bounded by two national cycle routes, one of which leads directly into the centre of Glasgow.

“However, the potential is not being realised because of poor infrastructure links and facilities and low demand. Increasing the number of people who cycle for commuting and leisure purposes would have major health and environmental benefits. Providing better cycling facilities and links in the town would also contribute to economic and environmental regeneration.”

The document then lists potential events which could run in the area, including a 5k cycle race for children between Cambuslang and Newton or between Cambuslang and Rutherglen (Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome), longer races for adults, a professionals’ uphill cycle race to the Cathkin Braes, cycle afternoons for families and pensioner groups.

John then provided a list of potential partners with whom the community council could work, including South Lanarkshire Council, Healthy ‘n’ Happy Community Development Trust, Cycling Scotland, Bikeability Scotland, Scottish Cycling, Paths for All, Sustrans, the Bike Station, Spokes, and the Scottish Government.

Cambuslang Community Council has agreed to set up a group to develop the idea and will be looking to involve cyclists, cycling groups or anyone with an interest in improving cycling in the area.

Chairman Iain McKenzie said: “We are keen to encourage people to get in touch and help get this project off the ground.”

Jane Churchill of the Healthy ‘n’ Happy Community Development Trust said: “We are very supportive of this excellent idea, which will be one of the first projects of the Rutherglen-Cambuslang Bike Town Initiative. Our recent survey of opinion in Cambuslang and Rutherglen showed that the majority of people would be willing to cycle much more if there were better facilities, safer roads and more cycle training available.”

“We look forward to working with Cambuslang Community Council, as well as other community organisations and local people, to bring about real improvements for cycling in the area and making a contribution to improving the quality of life of many local people.”

Labour councillor for Cambuslang West Richard Tullett attended the community council meeting.

He said: “Promoting exercise and reducing car usage can go hand in hand and I was very interested in the ideas which were put forward at the last meeting of Cambuslang Community Council and as recently as last Friday, was having discussions about this very issue.

“I have sought to arrange a meeting so that the proposals can be looked at in more detail and I will certainly be keen to follow this issue very closely indeed.”

What’s in a Year? Well in the simplest terms, it’s the amount of time it takes the Earth to orbit the Sun one time. Over this period the Scottish Healthy Living Centre (HLC) Alliance has been extremely busy.  As the Alliance approaches it’s AGM on 29th November 2013 the Directors and Alliance organisations can feel rightly proud of the last 12 months.  The Directors, who are made up of volunteers from the community-led health improvement organisations in the Alliance, have achieved a lot in the last orbit of the Sun.  The number of organisations which make up the Alliance has grown from 26 organisations to 74 this year.  These organisations employ over 500 staff, engage more than 3,000 volunteers and provide services to over 300,000 Scottish people every year.  The growth in the number of Alliance organisations has prompted a name change to Scottish Communities for Health and Wellbeing to encompass the character of the wide range of organisations. The name change will be ratified at the AGM.  And there’s more, the Alliance has successfully bid for over £300,000 funding from the Health and Social Care Alliance’s ‘Impact Fund’ and the Scottish Governments ‘16b Fund’ over 3 years.  This funding is supporting Alliance organisations to deliver ‘new’ much needed community-led, health improving initiatives in Scotland’s most disadvantaged neighbourhoods.   

The icing on this substantial cake was the Alliance’s week long appearance at the Scottish Parliament in September.  Many MSPs were bowled over by the achievements so far and the enthusiasm of the Directors.

Not bad for a single orbit of the sun!

To learn more about the HLC Alliance or to find out if your organisation can become part of the Alliance go to www.shlca.co.uk or speak to Lindsey on 0141 646 0123

Lesley Riddoch, September 29, 2013

Ed Miliband gets tough. Headline writers were clearly amazed. Nice, gentile, cuddly, polite Ed says a new Labour Government would bash the energy giants to save households £120 on energy bills. 

True – the Labour leader still faces the minor task of getting elected Prime Minister. But his get tough promise was serious enough to knock a cool thousand million pounds from Centrica share prices and – even more gratifying — to annoy the heck out of prickly old Peter Mandelson. Labour’s one-time Business Secretary warned a twenty month energy price freeze would send Britain into a time warp – back to the scary 1970s when governments ran vital industries like energy, water and rail and Margaret Thatcher had yet to flog off the family silver. Actually, what’s not to like? No-one in Scotland needs lectures about fuel poverty. Gas, coal, oil, hydro, wind and soon tidal power-rich Scotland still has old folk and young families choosing whether to be cold or hungry. And experts now agree dampness caused by poorly ventilated, hard to heat homes contributes to the “Scottish Effect” where Scots die sooner than folk on similar incomes in the rest of the UK. That’s nothing short of scandalous. 

Household energy bills have risen by £300 since just 2010 while the big six energy company have amassed £12 billion in profits. So anything that halts the energy rip is welcome. But there are snags. Any date for a price freeze gives wily operators the chance to hike prices ahead of time. David Cameron faced just such a problem a year back when he said energy companies must charge customers their lowest tariffs. Energy Secretary Ed Davey later admitted that would energy bills simpler but not cheaper – and the idea withered on the vine. There’s a bigger snag. As long as you only care about GDP it doesn’t matter if a few folk make big wonga while others live in fuel poverty. It all generates “economic activity”, stock market interest, and jobs in the City. Of course it isn’t morally right. But since Thatcher no-one has really cared if un-regulated markets deliver fairness or real competition. Will Ed be bold enough to tackle that whilst successfully wooing Conservative Middle England? I hae ma doots. 

But we don’t actually need to wait for 2015 and the uncertain prospect of an overall Labour victory.

We could cut energy bills right now with collective switching. 41% of us have never switched energy supplier — because we aren’t sure how, don’t have time to compare tariffs and doubt better deals will stay that way for very long. But if a trusted authority takes the initiative to make switching safe and easy they can give punters a better deal for years. It’s already happening.

The Eden Project are behind a Cornwall scheme with 20 thousand members set to save a whopping £3.7 million when their switch goes ahead. Almost 5 thousand Liverpudlians just saved £110 apiece the same way. Labour MSP Jenny Marra launched the first Scottish scheme last year – folk saved an average £154. It’s easy. Folk opt into an auction to see which energy supplier offers the lowest price — “group purchasing” like this in Belgium has knocked 25% off energy prices. Tidy. So why the heck isn’t every council, housing association and the Scottish Government backing collective switching across Scotland right now? Hard-pressed consumers could find they’re running the market together — not being steam-rollered by it – and raise confidence in cooperative ways of working. All that’s holding us back are red tape and lack of leadership. Alex Salmond and Scotland’s councils – over to you.

Conference in two weeks!

The full programme for Scotland’s Community Energy Conference was released yesterday (22nd October).  With just two weeks to go before the event commences in Glasgow on Tuesday 5th November, the line up and sessions have been tweaked and are now finalised.

Steven Watson, Corporate Manager for Community Energy Scotland said ‘I am delighted by the range of speakers who are coming to Glasgow to contribute.  We have input from over thirty speakers this year, covering all the hot energy topics including storage, generation and community involvement.

2 Day Conference Programme – outline

In addition to the summary programme, Community Energy Scotland’s Policy and Innovation manager Felix Wight has produced a Day One – Programme Detail   Felix said ‘We are providing some more detailed information so that all participants have a head start and ensure we maximise the benefits of the event.’  The first day will conclude with a reception and dinner at  the nearby Glasgow Hilton Grosvenor Hotel.

The Day Two Programme (Wednesday 6th November) is also finalised and highlights include a presentation on Scotland’s first solar meadow, and on funding through the Industrial and provident Society route, which is proving a successful method of achieving wider community ownership.

2 Day Conference Programme – outline

To reserve your place – Online booking – click here

If you wish to book and pay on invoice, please contact us by telephone 01349 860120

Minister for Environment and Climate Change, Paul Wheelhouse, announced on 3 October 2013 the award of over £3.6 million for 32 projects in the 15th round of grants from the Scottish Government’s Climate Challenge Fund.

The projects offered grant are:

Edinbane Community Hall Association in Portree has been awarded a grant to run the Edinbane Hall Energy Efficiency project which will install insulation in the hall, providing the community of Edinbane with a modern, energy efficient building with lower carbon emissions. £58,936

21st Century Families in East Kilbride has been awarded a grant to run the Families on a Budget project which aims to help reduce fuel poverty through supporting families to manage their household budget as well as to change habits to reduce energy usage and carbon emissions. £105,600

East Lothian Roots and Fruits has been awarded a grant to run The Garden Plate project, on behalf of five primary schools (Prestonpans, St Gabriel’s, Sanderson’s, Wynd Cockenzie and Whitecraig). The project will help these schools reduce their carbon emissions by growing local food on school allotments and by taking measures to reduce their food waste at school. £64,208

Mull and Iona Community Trust’s Sustainable Homes project will help islanders access appropriate and affordable solutions for reducing energy bills and carbon emissions with the help of an energy advisor. The project will also work in conjunction with academic, commercial and housing partners to develop new solutions for “hard to treat” properties. £61,225

Lismore Public Hall on the Isle of Lismore, Argyll and Bute, has been awarded a grant to run the Lismore Hall Energy project which will insulate and draught-proof the building, reducing carbon emissions and transforming the hall into a comfortable and warm hub for island activities. The project also aims to raise awareness of climate change and cut community-wide transport carbon emissions through promotion of lower carbon travel alternatives. £25,266

Whiteinch and Scotstoun Housing Association in Glasgow’s energy advice project will employ an Energy Advice Officer who will visit residents in their own homes to provide information, advice and assistance on energy efficiency and carbon reduction measures. The project aims to help households reduce their energy consumption, bills and associated carbon emissions. £57,762

The Island of Hoy Development Trust has been awarded a grant to run the Affordable Warmth and Service Support Scheme. The scheme will co-ordinate and signpost a qualified supply and installation chain of local contractors to install energy efficiency measures and upgrades across the local community. Through education, certified measurement (Green Deal Assessments) and qualified guidance, the project is targeting an overall reduction in carbon emissions. £110,225

I am Bikes Limited has been awarded a grant to encourage the people of Cumbernauld to get on their bikes for the first Cycle to the Moon Challenge, which will record the cumulative number of weekly journeys by bike in a business or school. Results will be uploaded onto www.cumbernauldmoonrace.co.uk weekly to create a competitive environment which aims to encourage people to cycle instead of using the car, thus reducing carbon emissions. I am Bikes also aims to help people switch from car to bike by offering bike maintenance sessions, workplace audits, cycle journey planning and helping schools and employers work towards Cycling Scotland’s ‘Cycling Friendly’ status. £242,300

Twechar Community Action in East Dunbartonshire’s Green Energy Aware Twechar Water Reduction project will explore how rain water harvesting and reduction of water consumption both in the home and other premises in the village can reduce carbon emissions, tackle fuel poverty and support local food growing and adaptation initiatives. £87,454

Penicuik Community Development Trust has been awarded a grant to restore The Lost Garden of Penicuik (once an efficient fruit and vegetable garden) to full production as a sustainable local food source, thus reducing carbon emissions associated with food miles. This community-led project also aims to maximise the benefits of the garden as a place of therapeutic, social, educational and environmental value. £31,900

East Dunbartonshire’s Cycle Co-operative’s Good Moves Bishopbriggs project aims to reduce local carbon emissions through smarter (lower carbon) travel choices to school and work. The project aims to give direct support to 2,000 residents aged 3 to 83 and to influence a further 10,000 indirectly. £167,725

Burravoe Public Hall in Yell, Shetland, has been awarded a grant to run The Burravoe Public Hall Energy Saving Improvement project. The project will insulate the hall to make it a warm and comfortable community building with reduced energy use and carbon emissions. In addition, the project aims to inform the community how they can use the hall and their own homes in an energy efficient manner, decreasing energy use, bills and carbon emissions. £144,250

St Michael’s Parish Church of Scotland in Linlithgow has been awarded a grant to run the EMPOWERING St Michael’s and Linlithgow project which will replace inefficient lighting in the church with modern LED lighting technology. This will substantially reduce electricity consumption and carbon emissions and serve as a catalyst to encourage all users and visitors to St Michael’s to take similar action at home. £73,300

Robert Gordon University Student Association in Aberdeen, has been awarded a grant to run the RGU: Union Carbon Footprint Initiative project. The project will drive initiatives that allow students to gain transferable skills through training in energy efficiency, bike maintenance and development of vegetable plots. The acquired skills will allow students to give back to the community while reducing local carbon emissions, helpling to tackle climate change. £208,777

The Gate Christian Fellowship’s Gate Church Carbon Saving project in Dundee aims to promote behaviour changes towards low carbon lifestyles, increase the uptake of low carbon transport and install energy efficiency measures in two buildings in the West End of Dundee; Grade A listed St Marks Church on Perth Road and the community centre on Greenfield Place. £198,016

Milnathort and Kinross Allotment Association has been awarded a grant to provide community members and organisations in Kinross-shire with an opportunity to grow their own fruit and veg to reduce food miles and carbon emissions. They will convert an unused field into 30 allotment plots of various sizes, a community garden with communal facilities such as storage buildings, a poly-tunnel and water supply. They will also install raised beds to make gardening more accessible for older and disabled individuals and hold a range of educational activities. £38,436

The Grampian Housing Association has been awarded a grant to reduce carbon emissions from their houses in targeted areas in Moray. The Community Energy Challenge Moray project will focus on behaviour change in respect of the energy use of their tenants and also those of Langstane Housing Association. This will result in tenants being more aware of climate change, energy efficiency and will tackle fuel poverty resulting in an increase in tenants’ wellbeing. £54,891

Fallin Community Enterprises Recyke-a-Bike’s Cycling into Sustainability project aims to reach all sectors of local communities in Stirling, Clackmannan and Falkirk and promote cycling as a healthy, environmentally friendly activity and a first choice in local travel. Bike Doctor events and training in both cycle skills and bike maintenance aim to help individuals, community groups, youth groups, schools, businesses and third sector organisations make journeys by bike instead of by car, thus reducing local carbon emissions. £172,883

Glasgow School of Arts Sustainability in Action Group’s Artists using Resources in the Community (ARC) project will help the local artist community tackle climate change in their studios, halls of residence, flats and kitchens. The project will see action to save energy, water and food, plus initiatives to increase recycling levels and re-use more artistic materials. Together, these measures aim to reduce the school community’s and local artists’ carbon emissions. £94,000

Colintraive and Glendaruel Development Trust in Argyll & Bute has been awarded a grant to run the The Greener ColGlen project which aims to reduce carbon emissions in the areas of food, waste and energy within their local communities. The project will grow food locally in two polytunnels, compost waste and use the local forest as a sustainable source of woodfuel. Further initiatives will include a website, blog, food waste workshops and a harvest festival to celebrate their first growing season. £172,357

SCOREscotland’s Green Futures project will work with members of black and ethnic minority communities in south west Edinburgh to raise their awareness of climate change and support them to take actions to reduce carbon emissions that also have a positive impact on their lives and those of their families, friends, community and neighbourhoods. The project also aims to reduce fuel poverty, facilitate safe travel by lower carbon transport alternatives such as public transport and provide new opportunities for volunteers. £188,401

A partnership between Islay and Jura Community Enterprises Ltd and Islay Energy Trust has been awarded a grant to deliver the Whisky Island Sustainability project. The project will incorporate an Island Lift Share Scheme and the promotion of active modes of travel to reduce car journeys and associated carbon emissions on ‘Islay Whisky Island’. Further reductions in carbon emissions will be achieved through installation of new technology LED lighting and extra insulation at Mactaggart Leisure Centre, which will also reduce energy use and bills at this community hub. £106,168

West Lothian Financial Inclusion Network’s Home Energy Advice project will provide a range of advice and support to vulnerable groups and those in fuel poverty. As well as reducing bills, energy usage and carbon emissions through these activities the project also aims to provide education on long-term measures for fuel efficiency. £61,425

West of Scotland Regional Equality Council (WSREC) has been awarded a grant to run the Cook, Sew, Grow project. The project will focus on working with the Polish, African and Middle Eastern communities in Glasgow to increase community understanding of climate change and how to reduce carbon emissions. WSREC will be offering a programme of information sharing, cooking, growing, sewing and cycling to encourage individuals from these communities and others to take the lower carbon route. £99,344

Shopmobility Aberdeen’s Public Transport Outreach project will encourage the use of lower carbon transport alternatives instead of the car whilst providing mobility solutions. Shopmobility Aberdeen will provide trained volunteer companions to assist people with mobility and sensory impairments in their travel by lower carbon transport alternatives such as public transport. £74,792

Tullibody Healthy Living Initiative, has been awarded a grant to run the Tullibody Garden project which will engage with local people who have expressed a wish to buy and grow local produce. The aim of the garden project is to provide fresh produce for sale locally and to encourage every resident to grow their own in order to reduce food miles, and thus, the community’s carbon emissions. £150,450

Gorbals Healthy Living Network’s Greener Cleaner Gorbals project will create local food growing spaces and offer food growing workshops to the community to encourage consumption of locally grown and seasonal produce. As well as reducing carbon emissions associated with food miles the project also aims to reduce carbon emissions associated with vegetable waste going to landfill by offering a collection service and then composting the material. £138,695

The Maxwell Town Information Centre has been awarded a grant to run The Maxwell Centre Community Garden and Environment project which will give the community the chance to grow fruit, vegetables and herbs locally, thus reducing food miles and packaging waste. The project will also address air pollution, conservation and the sustainability of food through learning and development opportunities. £152,272

Sandwick Social and Economic Development Company, Shetland, has been awarded a grant to run the Hoswick Visitor Centre Energy Preservation project which will install energy saving measures such as insulation in the visitor centre. These measures will reduce energy use, bills and carbon emissions and will also mean that users of the centre will be able to plan events during the winter months knowing that the centre will be warm. £53,600

RecyColl’s Moving Coll Towards Zero Waste project will support the community on the Isle of Coll in adopting behaviours and practices to reduce carbon emissions, utilise local resources more effectively and increase social cohesion. The group is also working towards providing a centre for learning, information sharing, practical recycling and reuse activities on the island. £111,449

Forward Coupar Angus Ltd’s Energy Savings for Coupar Angus (ESCA) project will open an Energy Advice Centre in the Perthshire town. The Centre will give advice and practical help to the community on how to cut fuel bills and carbon emissions through reducing energy consumption and accessing existing funding for measures such as home insulation, heating and micro-renewables. £198,450

Transition Edinburgh South has been awarded a grant to run the Gilmerton, Gracemount & Moredun Grow Stronger project. This community-led food initiative aims to tackle barriers to local food production and reduction of food waste (including associated carbon emissions) by using community asset based approaches. The project will be delivered through building community capacity and individual volunteer skills and will use an inclusive inter-generational approach to involve the whole community in tackling carbon emissions and climate change. £122,886

Land Matters…the blog and website of Andy Wightman

A report was published today by Scotland’s Rural College (SRUC) entitled Family Estates and Rural Resiliance. It contains the findings from a series of 23 interviews with landowners of so-called “family estates”. The report contains a few interesting observations but adds little to our state of knowledge about landownership in Scotland.

First of all is the problem of definitions. What is a “family estate”? The report does not say. One presumes it is an estate owned by a whole family but I know of none that meet this definition. The report contains no analysis of whether estates are owned by companies, trusts, individuals or other legal entities. Such structures are important not least because they often constrain precisely who in the “family” is the owner – often this may be a son or grandchildren. But the most important information that is missing is any analysis of gender. Are these estates owned by men or women in the family and what stake do children have? Given the long history of primogeniture and male landowners, this missing gender dimension makes it difficult to understand precisely whose voice is doing the talking and on what basis.

Another problem is that the research in so far as it examines the role played by “family estates” in their wider community, only interviews the landowners and not the wider community. It would have been interesting to see whether the opinions of the interviewees are shared by the community with which most of them seem so enthusiastic to embrace.

For example (and this is purely anecdotal of course), I received this email today from somebody who is dealing with a well-known “family estate” I guess you might call it.

“they have a huge influence on life in this area and I personally have noticed a fundamental change in the last 10 years or so where they have gone from being generally a well thought of and benevolant influence in the community to the complete opposite where now they are obstructive, disliked and untrustworthy. You will be hard pushed to find someone who has a good word to say about them.”

The most obvious problem with this piece of work, however is the sample. The findings are based upon interviews with only 23 landowners. That is a very small sample but there are two more serious flaws.

The sample is derived solely from the membership of Scottish Land and Estates (SLE) which immediately biases the sample towards those who choose for whatever reason to join this organisation. The most serious flaw, however, is the fact that Scottish Land and Estates had the final say selecting the 23 owners. SRUC initially selected random estates using codes from an anonymised database provided by SLE. Once selected, the codes were sent to SLE. In the words of the report, SLE “then checked that the ones we had selected were resident family estates. if not, we then re-selected, again from the anonymised database“.

This means that SLE had the opportunity of selecting those data subjects which would show “family estates” in the best light. Whether it did or not I cannot say and neither can the researchers – and that is the fundamental flaw in the research design. We cannot therefore trust that the sample is even representative of “family estates” who are members of SLE (a problem exacerbated by SLE who, it appears, used their own unpublished definition of a “family estate”).

Moreover, knowing the identity of the subjects means that SLE had the opportunity to speak to them in advance of the research. Whether it did or not I cannot say and neither can the researchers.

Not surprisingly perhaps, SLE are very happy with the report and are majoring on the theme at their trade stand at the SNP conference where they are launching a “Community Engagement Programme“.

To read more and in particular the contributions of others click here.

A starter for ten 

New Start Magazine 25th Sept 2013

The difficult challenges facing local government are also an opportunity to do things differently. It’s not an easy route but many councils are but innovating their way to a new future. Here’s ten of the best ideas for change in local government:

1. Embed innovation and leadership skills within a council: At the time when they need to be most innovative many councils are struggling to dedicate the time and resources to change. Monmouthshire Council has created an intrapreneurship school to allow its staff the chance to take time out of their day-to-day roles to think more creatively. FutureGov has created an innovation lab in partnership with Surrey Council. Called Shift, it is an ongoing design process to identify local priorities and prototype solutions. Devon Council held a month of events earlier this year to allow staff to become more creative while Oldham Council sent its councillors on a specially created local leadership course.

2. Create or join forces with energy companies: What better way to take control of local energy supplies than by setting up an energy company? That’s what Woking Council did in 1999. Through Thameswey Energy the council has adopted green energy technologies and radically reduced its energy consumption, saving thousands of pounds each year. Stoke Council has set out the ambitious goal of making the city energy self-sufficient and has set up a joint venture vehicle with a local energy company.

3. Use technology to redesign public services around people: Tyze is an online tool that brings together all of the people involved in the lives of someone with care needs. It’s been successful in Canada and is currently being trialled by local authorities and housing associations in the UK. Similarly Patchwork from FutureGov joins up the team of practitioners working with a vulnerable child or family.

4. Invest in local people: Jim McMahon, the leader of Oldham Council, has created an investment framework for the town, including a job guarantee for young people, and is using the assets already in the town – its land banks and social capital – to co-create a brighter future. ‘Oldham belongs to its people. The primary responsibility comes from them. We all need to roll our sleeves up and do better’, he said.

5. Pay employees a living wage: As people struggle to deal with the rising cost of living, councils are leading the way by signing up to a living wage for all employees and encouraging the private sector to do the same. The list of those accredited by the Living Wage Foundation is growing rapidly.

6. Develop a culture of enterprise: Rotherham Council’s vision is to ensure its young people have the skills they need to thrive in the 21st century economy by embedding enterprise within the curriculum of schools and colleges. Its Rotherham Ready project has helped hundreds of youth businesses get off the ground and led to the city being named the most enterprising place in Britain in 2010.

7. Help local business: Northamptonshire Council made a loan to Silverstone to keep 22,000 high-value engineering jobs in the county, the interest on which is now helping the council pay for children’s services. In the Liverpool City region a Skills for Growth Bank backed by the local enterprise partnership offers local businesses funding for skills projects.

8. Put local people and the local economy at the heart of commissioning: Co-operative approaches to commissioning prioritise social value, not just cost, and put citizens and co-production at the heart. Co-operative councils are embedding social value and corporate social responsibility into tendering processes, which means that local organisations committed to the area and to local employment and volunteering are more likely to be preferred. Some co-operative councils are using the commissioning process to build community resilience by, for example, working with local bus providers to reduce fares.

9. Tackle the rise of loan sharks: Glasgow Council and partners set up a community development finance institution Scotcash to help provide access to mainstream financial services and halt the rise of high-cost payday lenders. Recently the council has pledged to give every young person in the city a credit union account.

10. Apply to the Public Service Launchpad: The Public Service Launchpad is a new programme that aims to build a movement for innovation in local public services – particularly from those inside the sector. It offers a scholarship programme and support to bring early stage ideas to life. Find out more here.