Newsletters20110207

Hi Everyone

There seem to be so many interesting events coming up these days! Don’t miss the Energy Group’s “Solar Electricity at Home” event this evening and I highly recommend the ZeroCarbonBritain2030 talk on Friday by a team from the influential Centre for Alternative Technology.

CONTENTS

Transition Events

  • Monday 07 February: Solar Electricity at Home
  • Wednesday 09 February: Transition Knitting Circle
  • Thursday 10 February: Last chance for Transition Carbon Conversations!
  • Tuesday 15 February: Film: 'The Turning Point'
  • Wednesday 16 February: Energy Group Meeting
  • Thursday 17 February: Transition cafe night - Threshing and milling wheat
  • Saturday 19 February: Transition Training (near Southwold)
  • Saturday 26 February: Visit to London City Farms
  • Tradeable energy quotas launched in House of Commons

Other News and Events

  • Wednesday 09 February: Uncertain Climate: Risk in the Media
  • Friday 11 February: Love Food week
  • Friday 11 February: Zero Carbon Britain 2030
  • Saturday 12 February: Bottisham and District Gardening Club Seed Exchange
  • Saturday 12 February: Film: "Gasland"
  • Sunday 13 February: Creating a Food Forest - 2 day course
  • Thursday 17 February: Love Food Hate Waste event
  • WWF report on renewable energy

Transition News and Events

Monday 07 February: Solar Electricity at Home

19:30-21:00, St Lukes United Reform Church, Victoria Road CB4 3DZ

Come here for advice on solar PV panels for your home: hat is involved, what you can earn from the feed in tariffs - at the same time as you are helping to reduce our dependency on oil and gas by generating renewable energy. Our panel will includes experienced householders as well as suppliers and Emma Davies from the City Council on planning and sustainability issues.

Entrance is free but donations to cover our costs will be welcome.

More details here.

Wednesday 09 February: Transition Knitting Circle

19:30-21:30, Lulu's house (off Coleridge Road, contact her for details)

Whether you're a seasoned knitter or just starting out, you'll be welcome at the Transition Knitting Circle, hosted by Lulu and Mae. Come along to learn how to knit and read patterns, find out about new techniques and yarns, and explore the joy of creating, customising and re-creating clothing. Beginners are requested to call ahead of sessions to make sure that someone will be available to teach and help them. All welcome. Suggested 50p contribution towards refreshments. Contact Lulu for her address (tel: 411350 / 07951 318116). If you've already tried to e-mail her but haven't received a reply, please try again as she's had to change her e-mail address following recent problems with it. Dates this term are 9th and 23rd Feb, 9th and 23rd March, 6th April, & 4th and 18th May.

Thursday 10 February: Last chance for Transition Carbon Conversations!

7.30 at Bev’s house (Hills Road near the station).

There is one space left in this group! Starting on February 10th, Liz Serocold and Bev Sedley will be running a 6-session Carbon Conversations group specially for Transition Cambridge. The group will run fortnightly on Thursday evenings for two hours and will cost £15 per person (to cover the cost of the materials). It's a great course, which helps people to reduce their carbon footprint in all areas - home energy, food, transport and other consumption/waste. And it will be good to participate with a group of like-minded Transitioners. If you are interested in taking part, contact Bev. Carbon Conversations groups are run by Cambridge Carbon Footprint.

Tuesday 15 February: Film: 'The Turning Point'

18:00-19:00, Transition Office, 154 Cherry Hinton Road (in the church), Cambridge, CB1 7AJ

This is an excellent film about how a community in Scotland are making the transition to a more localised and resilient way of life. More info about the film here. The film will start at 6 and last for an hour. The office will be open from 5 if you'd like to come by earlier to browse our little library or find out more about what we're doing over a cup of tea.

Wednesday 16 February: Energy Group Meeting

20:00-21:30, not yet decided

We will be reviewing feedback from the PV Forum and probably discussing kite energy some more and also the possibilities of lending out electricity monitors. Contact Nicola for details of venue.

Thursday 17 February: Transition cafe night - Threshing and milling wheat

19:30-22:00, 22 Jesus Lane

After a great evening threshing wheat in January, we'll be continuing with the second batch of wheat, and then milling the wheat afterwards. The wheat was grown in the gardens of Murray Edwards College, and some of it will be baked in the cob oven they built there last year - so the bread will have travelled less than 1 mile in its production. Come along to find out more and to join in!

Saturday 19 February: Transition Training (near Southwold)

09:30-16:30, National Trust Education Centre, Dunwich Heath IP17 3DJ (on the east coast, near Southwold)

This Transition Training is being put on by Suffolk Coastal, and is free! Transition Training is a great way to find out more about the Transition movement, and to think about which areas of the transition you'd like to get involved in. More info here (with booking information To get a flavour of what the training is about, have a look at the info on the Transition Network web-site. There are still some places left on this course, and the organisers recommend that people come on Friday evening and stay over. They will do their best to put people up for the two nights. If you'd like to travel with others from Cambridge, get in touch and we'll let you know who else is going.

Saturday 26 February: Visit to London City Farms

09:10-18:30, London (meet at Cambridge train station)

What are city farms and how do they work? Come and find out with us on a visit to two London city farms: Freightliners Farm and Surrey Docks Farm. This is a joint event between the Cambridge City Farm initiative and TC Farming Group, and everyone is welcome to come along! Children are also welcome to come (accompanied by adults).

Meet at 9:10am at Cambridge train station, we should get back by 6:30pm. Entrance to the city farms is free, but you'll need to buy your own train ticket and lunch in Freightliners cafe (or bring your own packed lunch). Please let Andrew know if you intend to come so that we can let you know any final up-dates.

Tradeable energy quotas launched in House of Commons

The brilliantly simple carbon rationing approach developed by the late Dr. David Fleming with the support of ‘Transition Timeline’ author Shaun Chamberlin was launched in January in the House of Commons. The event generated some amazing media coverage, being picked up in most of the press, including a big piece in the Sunday Times.

Related News and Events

Wednesday 09 February: Uncertain Climate: Risk in the Media

17:30-18:45, Coleridge Room, Jesus College

Talk and discussion with Roger Harrabin, BBC Chief environmental analyst. Harrabin’s reporting is dominated by risk issues, and he has, in the past, been critical of the Media’s approach to reporting risk. He states that often major risk issues fail to fit news criteria of novelty, drama, conflict, personality and pictures. This leads the media to have given the wrong level of prominence to a range of risks including MMR , dirty bombs, child abduction, nuclear power and genetic modification. He argues that the media should find new ways of exploring long-term risk issues like preventive health and security of water, food, energy and climate. Everyone is welcome. Directions to the Coleridge Room will be sign-posted from Jesus College porters lodge.

11-20 February: Love Food week

11:00, The Larder at Burwash Manor, New Road, Barton, Cambridge CB23 7EY (map)

'Make the Most of Food' at Burwash Manor Larder's third annual Love Food Week! Burwash Larder's annual Love Food Week, from February 11-20th, promises to be the best yet with more suppliers, more cookery demonstrations and more informative talks than ever before! Now in its third year, the theme for this year's festival is 'Making the Most of Food', with a fantastic ten day programme of events.

Love Food Week gives customers the chance to meet the Larder's suppliers, ask questions and taste the diverse range of products that they have to offer. Tine Roche from the Cambridge Cookery School will be launching the festival with an exciting cookery demonstration alongside a talk on food waste reduction. The week to follow will give plenty more opportunity for culinary exploration, with an exciting bread baking day hosted by Glebe Farm, Dovecote and Priors, talks and tastings from the Cambridge Organic Food Company and Daisy Cakes and many, many more! Learn how to joint a lamb, what you need to produce the perfect cheese board for all occasions and how to grow beautiful vegetables even if you have no garden.

So join us for LoveFood on 11th-20th February from about 11.00 onwards. Full info here, including the programme of events!

Friday 11 February: Zero Carbon Britain 2030

19:30-21:30, St Luke's Church Centre, Victoria Road, Cambridge, CB4 3DZ

Can Britain eliminate emissions from fossils fuels within 20 years? Find out by listening to Professor Godfrey Boyle and Alex Randall from the Centre for Alternative Technology, who will be talking about CAT's groundbreaking ZeroCarbonBritain2030 report in which a team of distinguished academics and researchers show how Britain could eliminate emissions from fossil fuels within 20 years and break our dependence on imported energy. Admission Free. Organised by Cambridge Carbon Footprint.

Refreshments will be served. Retiring collection in aid of CAT charity. More details here.

Saturday 12 February: Bottisham and District Gardening Club Seed Exchange

14:00-16:00, Queens Court, Bottisham, CB25 9DD

This is our first seed exchange so we would appreciate lots of support! Please come along and donate or swap spare seeds. Entry is £1, children free. Teas, provided by Bottisham WI, will be available. A donation will be made to the Queens Court Comfort Fund. More details available on our website. Do come along and see what we are doing. Everyone welcome. More details here.

Saturday 12 February: Film: "Gasland"

19:30, Arts Picture House

The film raises awareness about gas drilling using a method called fracking, and the risks it poses to human and environmental health. The drilling has been going on in the US for about twenty years, and a week ago first such drilling had place in Blackpool.

Synopsis: When filmmaker Josh Fox is asked to lease his land for drilling, he embarks on a cross-country odyssey uncovering a trail of secrets, lies and contamination. A recently drilled nearby Pennsylvania town reports that residents are able to light their drinking water on fire. This is just one of the many absurd and astonishing revelations of a new country called "Gasland". Part travelogue, part expose, part mystery, part bluegrass banjo meltdown, part showdown.

"Gasland" will be screening at the Cambridge Arts Picturehouse on 12th February. For more info on the film and a full list of the upcoming screenings, see here.

Sunday 13 February: Creating a Food Forest - 2 day course

19:30,

The Triangle Garden Hitchin is running a 2 day course on 'Creating a Food Forest' (aka forest gardening) on 13th and 20th Feb - consecutive Sundays. Suitable for beginners. For more info, see their website, and contact Vicky if interested. Cost: £90 (£70 concessions). The Triangle Garden is a really interesting community garden project - it's about 10 minutes walk from Hitchin station; about 30 minutes by train from Cambridge.

Thursday 17 February: Love Food Hate Waste event

10:30-13:00, Arbury Community Centre, Campkin Road, Cambridge

The Recycling Champions are hosting a "Love Food, Hate Waste" event at Arbury Community Centre, Campkin Road, Cambridge on Tahursday 17th Feb. 10.30 - 1.00pm. All Welcome. Sponsored by RECAP & WRAP.

WWF report on renewable energy (from Ivan)

A new report published by WWF last week demonstrates that the world's energy needs could be met entirely from renewable resources by 2050. With 256 pages it should make for some serious bedtime reading and can be downloaded.

However a helpful overview can be found on the excellent Energy Bulletin website here - a useful primer ahead of CCF's Friday 11th February talk by the people from CAT.

So much going on! - and how about that wonderful-sounding Love Food Week!

Thanks for all your postings – keep them coming!

Bev

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Transition Cambridge aims to help Cambridge make the transition to ways of life that are more resilient in the face of rising energy prices and a changing climate.

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