Archived news from 2021

Sign up here for a fortnightly email bulletin listing events coming up and recent news from these pages. The next one is due on no newsletter scheduled
To get your events and news listed on these pages, please tell us about them here. Submit on or before to catch the next newsletter. Check our acceptance criteria here. Your item not listed? Check our NewsletterPolicy for when and how we include items in the newsletter

Transition Cambridge Christmas Quiz/Treasure Hunt

Win a Christmas veg box in our Christmas Quiz, and discover some of Transition Cambridge's activities over the last year! It's somewhere between a quiz and a treasure hunt, and it's quite challenging... Full details here, answers by midnight on Sunday 19th December. Whoever has the most right answers will win a lovely box of local seasonal organic vegetables, kindly donated by Waterland Organics. Have fun!
Source: Transition Cambridge 12 Dec 2021

Empty Common Community Garden - Annual Review

Here is Empty Common Community Garden's Annual Review - six slides full of pictures of the garden through the seasons, and showing some of the many activities that have taken place there this year. If you haven't visited yet, it's highly recommended - a really beautiful and inspiring place! Have a look at the ECCG blog to find out more...
Source: Empty Common Community Garden 12 Dec 2021

Daily Bread Community Garden


Courgette flower, photo taken by Nadia

Transition Cambridge's refurbished raised beds have been lovely this summer, providing passing customers with tasty broad beans, tomatoes, spinach, courgettes, herbs and strawberries and attracting lots of butterflies. Nadia from the Daily Bread Co-op helped with watering and care for the beds over the summer (and took this beautiful picture of a courgette flower) and Meg from TC planted, weeded and kept the grass short with shears. Now winter is nearly here, the beds have been replanted with a mix of broad beans, onion sets and some mustard to dig in as green manure. The strawberry plants and herb bed have been weeded and mulched and left to spring into life again next year. Go enjoy! More...
Source: Meg Clarke TC 08 Nov 2021

Transition Cambridge AGM

The AGM was held last week. About 15 of us gathered in a pub and celebrated the many and wonderful achievements of the past year. These included the winter online talk series, and the collaborations with other local groups including the Cambridge DEAG, the Web of Resilience and the proposed What If Shop/Climate Emergency Hub. Anna was reelected as Chair, Nicola as Secretary and Sam as Treasurer. The officers were all thanked for their work over the last challenging year and everyone hugely enjoyed being together again in person. Minutes will be available soon.
Source: Transition Cambridge 02 Nov 2021

Homes wanted for retrofit study

A project team of Bioregional, Transition by Design and 3GCC are carrying out a study of how to retrofit private housing stock in Cambridge for the City Council. The study will produce a public facing guide on how to retrofit your home to zero carbon and how much it might cost.

The project team needs your help to conduct this study in gaining an accurate understanding of typical homes in Cambridge. We need to carry out simple site visits (around 1 hour) of homes to check assumptions of the condition, construction and energy use. In addition selected homes will receive a free air tightness test and basic retrofitting advice.

The homes we need are ones of typical condition and without significant retrofit measures already in place. If you would like to put your home forward, please fill in this form Many thanks in advance for your help. More...
Source: Transition by Design 28 Oct 2021

Award for Cambridge Co-Farm

CoFarm's founder Gavin Shelton has received a Points of Light award from the Prime Minister through a cross-party initiative that highlights the work of volunteers across the UK who are making positive changes in their communities.

"In one year alone you have harvested and donated organic fruit and vegetables to the value of £40,000 to those in need across Cambridge. Along with your fantastic group of 300 volunteers, you have created something truly special in your community.

'CoFarm' is a brilliantly innovative initiative and I wish you every success with your goal of rolling out your community farming model to 250,000 acres by 2030.

As we look forward to COP26, I am delighted to recognise you as a climate leader who is helping to make the UK greener and cleaner." Prime Minister Boris Johnson MP More...
Source: Meg Clarke 16 Oct 2021

Seeking reporters, photographers, cartoonists...

One of our members recently suggested that we should have a colourful cartoon strip on a topical subject in our newsletter. We think this is a great idea, and would love to hear from you if you'd like to create one! (Contact us here.) We also have quite a few events happening now, and it would be great to have a small team of Transition reporters and photographers so that we can write these events up for our newsletter and blog. Please get in touch if you'd like to get involved. Thanks!
Source: Transition Cambridge 05 Oct 2021

Antoinette Nestor chosen as a #OneStepGreener Ambassador to COP26

Congratulations to Antoinette Nestor, founder of "A Toy's Life and Beyond", on being chosen as one of 26 #OneStepGreener Ambassadors to COP26. So far 20 ambassadors have been picked - see them all here. 6 more ambassadors are still being sought and applications are open until 10 October (apply here). There are various resources available on COP26 here, including for schools. Read more about #OneStepGreener here and find out more about COP26 here: https://ukcop26.org/. More...
Source: Transition Cambridge 05 Oct 2021

What are we doing for climate change? - Survey results

Individually our actions are small but together we can make a difference. So what are we doing? Read the results of our survey. We asked you about food, travel, home energy, buying stuff, and wider influence. Our actions include changing our diets, cutting down on food waste, avoiding flying, cycling more and using the car less, buying less stuff, donating to environmental charities and shifting our investments away from fossil fuels. Be inspired! More...
Source: Transition Cambridge 04 Oct 2021

Library of Things is coming to Cambridge

Have you heard that a Library of Things is coming to Cambridge? A Library of Things is exactly what it sounds like - a place where you can borrow objects that you don't want to or can't buy. This helps you save money and reduce waste by affordably renting out useful stuff like drills, sound systems and sewing machines. Sharing things that we only use now and again cuts down on clutter, is more affordable, and is kinder to our planet. This type of library exists in many places in the UK and Europe, so why not Cambridge? That's exactly what local residents Alice and Lucy thought, and now they are working with the original Library of Things team in London to replicate the scheme in Cambridge. Things are moving fast and are at a stage where they could really use your help! If you have two minutes, visit the Cambridge Library of Things campaign page, show your support and sign up to receive news about how the project is progressing. You can follow us on @cambridgelibraryofthings on Instagram and @ThingsCambridge on Twitter or email if you are interested in learning more.
Source: Cambridge Library of Things 04 Oct 2021

New personal energy advice tool

The energy group have a completely new energy advice tool which you can use to get ideas for improving your home. The suggestions update dynamically according to your aims (indoor air quality, keeping warm, reducing bills, carbon emissions, keeping cool in summer) and what you already have in your home. Please do try it out. More...
Source: Transition Cambridge 21 Sep 2021

What are we doing for climate change - survey

Please fill in our survey on what we are doing for climate change (and what we would like to do). With COP 26 coming up the news is full of the awful things that might happen. However, we empower ourselves, our community (and our government) by doing something about it. We will publish the results of the survey in a few weeks. Here it is
Source: Transition Cambridge 21 Sep 2021

Coping with the Climate Crisis - online resources

In case you missed the workshop With Ro Randall and Daniela Fernandez-Catherall from Cambridge Climate Therapists, there are some great resources online. Ro Randall has created a series of videos to help explore the anxiety, distress and despair that many people feel when confronted with the climate crisis, which you can watch here. You may also be interested in a recording of a shorter version of the workshop, which Ro presented to the Centre for Alternative Technology. More...
Source: Cambridge Climate Therapists 11 Jul 2021

Help needed by Cambridge Community Kitchen

Cambridge Community Kitchen relies on volunteers both to cook and to deliver hot, plant-based meals every Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday to those who need them. With the recent summer exodus of undergraduates from Cambridge, they're finding it hard to find enough volunteers to keep the service running, despite demand running at an all-time high. If you have some free time to cook (3pm to 7pm) or to ride/drive around Cambridge delivering (6pm to 8pm), CCK would very much like to hear from you. Head over to cckitchen.uk and register, or write to them here. Cambridge Community Kitchen are a food solidarity collective tackling food poverty in Cambridge - if you'd like to make a donation, you can do so here.
Source: Cambridge Community Kitchen 11 Jul 2021

Proposal for Cambridge Nature Network launched by local Wildlife Trust

A proposal for a Cambridge Nature Network was launched earlier this month. The vision is for Cambridge to have significant areas of downland, fens, meadows and woodlands where nature can recover and thrive and to provide a systematic approach to bring about nature's recovery in and around the City for the benefit of wildlife and those who live, work, study in and visit Cambridge. More...
Source: Cambridgeshire Wildlife Trust 05 Jun 2021

Climate and Ecological Emergency Bill

Today, Cambridge City council is voting on whether to support the Climate and Ecological Emergency bill. This is a motion put forward by a newly elected Green Party councillor, Hannah Copley.

According to the Climate and Ecological Emergency Bill the Government must develop an emergency strategy that:
(a)requires that the UK plays its fair and proper role in reducing greenhouse gas emissions consistent with limiting global temperature increase to 1.5 degrees C above pre-industrial temperatures;
(b)ensures that all the UK's consumption emissions are accounted for;
(c)includes emissions from aviation and shipping;
(d)protects and restores biodiverse habitats along overseas supply chains;
(e)restores and regenerates the UK's depleted soils, wildlife habitats and species populations to healthy and robust states, maximising their capacity to absorb CO2 and their resistance to climate heating;
(f) sets up an independent Citizens' Assembly, representative of the UK's population, to engage with Parliament and Government and help develop the emergency strategy.

Transition Cambridge wholeheartedly endorses this strategy.
Source: Transition Cambridge 27 May 2021

Cambridge - In Pursuit of Equality

A 6-part docuseries from Conscious Communications in partnership with Cambridge 2030, Cambridge - "In pursuit of equality", shines a light on why Cambridge has been named Britain's most unequal city for the past two years and what people think can be done about it. Hear from the people on the front line in the community, from teachers to foodbank volunteers, and those taking action to create a more equal and inclusive city, one where everyone can live happier, healthier lives. The podcasts are available here to listen to whenever you like.
Source: Meg Clarke TC 09 May 2021

The "What if...?" shop - a future pop-up space in town

There are currently several empty shops in the town centre, and it might be possible to use one of these spaces as a pop-up space, e.g. to showcase community projects, as a workshop space, and as a space to meet, plan and build for the future. It could perhaps be a "What if...?" shop, to invite people to imagine and take part in creating a better future for Cambridge. Transition Kentish Town have recently set up a similar space, called the "Think and Do" shop - you can hear more about it in this online talk. We've had one meeting so far, and there's lots of interest from several local community groups. If you'd like to get involved, please get in touch and we can send you more information - we are very open to ideas in terms of what we might do and how.
Source: Transition Cambridge 29 Apr 2021

Free training for community action on climate change - South Cambs district

Are you based in South Cambridgeshire and care about your community and climate change? The Net Zero Now training scheme can help you identify how and where you can take action on climate change in your local community. This free training course is designed to enable everyone, regardless of knowledge, skills or experience to participate. By the end of the programme participants will have the tools to get started on a carbon reduction initiative. This could be something as simple as setting up a new local clothes swap, or something as big as a community energy scheme. Featuring 8 fortnightly sessions of online interactive learning and skill sharing, the course will connect you with like minded individuals and help you create an action plan for change. The training will run June-October, with a 6 week break in the summer. Note that the deadline for applications is 9 May. Go to the Net Zero Now page of the Cambridge Carbon Footprint website for more info and an application form here.
Source: Cambridge Carbon Footprint 28 Apr 2021

Catch up with Earth Optimism summit

Missed some of the Earth Optimism sessions? Needing a dose of optimism? You can catch up via the website here. We particularly recommend (!) the TC contribution on Precious Water, created by Nicola Terry - here.
Source: Earth Optimism 13 Apr 2021

Precious Water - Earth Optimism

Transition Cambridge's water project, "Precious water" was in this year's Earth Optimism event, which formed part of the Cambridge Festival. The page is still available and includes several videos and lots of information, so do take a look! The videos describe and explore the effects of our consumption on the environment and what we can do about it. You will hear from Cllr Katie Thornburrow, from Cambridge City Council, and Ruth Hawkesley from the Wildlife Trust. You can also experiment with an animated aquifer and use our water calculator to see where the water goes in your home. More...
Source: Transition Cambridge 07 Apr 2021

What Next? Summit - catch up online

The What Next? Summit was a remarkable event - 2,000 community activists came together across 3 weeks, to listen to over 70 speakers and take part in a mesmerising multiplicity of conversations about positive changes in our communities. The summit aimed to connect up people within and between movements and organisations, to provide inspiration and deep reflective thinking from a diversity of perspectives, to highlight some big picture thinking that enables people to see their role and the role of others in creating change, and to empower people to self-organise and create impactful change. Many of the inspirational and practical sessions are now available online and you can catch up here. More...
Source: Transition Bounce Forward 27 Mar 2021

Heritage building (CPD), greenwood and rural skills courses

The Orchard Barn Environmental Education Centre are running a series of courses on heritage building, greenwood and rural skills. Upcoming courses include "An Introduction to using Lime" with Gemma Sayers (26 March), "Wattle and Daub" with Sarah Partridge (16 April) and "Timber Frame Restoration Skills" with Mike McConnell, Gemma Sayers and Sarah Partridge (26 to 28 April), and there are several more workshops coming up. Full details here. More...
Source: Orchard Barn 14 Mar 2021

Green Pages: Cambridge Sustainable Business Directory

Green Pages is a directory of local and online businesses that provide plastic-free and eco products and services to help you embrace a low carbon lifestyle. The website is run by a small team of volunteers, and will continue to be updated, so do check back regularly. Follow us on Twitter to find out about updates: @GreenPagesUK1. More...
Source: Green Pages 14 Mar 2021

Temporary jobs at ARU re Cambridge Doughnut Economics

Two short term Research Assistant roles - on the Food Map of Cambridge and on Doughnut Principles - are now open for applications. The dates are 12 April to 30 June; 37 hours per week, and the rate of pay is £13.85/hour. Apply online with a CV - more details of job descriptions and selection criteria, here for the food map and here for doughnut principles. More...
Source: Cambridge Doughnut Economics 14 Mar 2021

Job opportunity: Open Eco Homes 2021 Coordinator Vacancy

Cambridge Carbon Footprint is looking for an expert communicator to help organise and deliver this year's Open Eco Homes tours and talks. The role is fixed-term, 2.5 days/week, from about 19 Apr - 18 Oct 2021. The OEH Coordinator is a key role within the CCF team, responsible for delivering Open Eco Homes, supported by the OEH Manager, OEH volunteers and other CCF staff and volunteers. Working from home, the OEH Coordinator is a remote role. Find out more and apply here. More...
Source: Cambridge Carbon Footprint 10 Mar 2021

Webs of resilience - visual webs of Cambridge groups

Over the past few months, two separate "webs of connection" showing local environmental, sustainability and social justice groups in Cambridge city and Cambridge university have been created. The city web, "Cambridge Resilience Web" was originally created by Meg Clarke, and has now been digitised by Diner Ismail and populated with information by Helen Cook - it's wonderful to see how many local groups there are, all working on similar or related issues to what we are doing as Transition Cambridge. It's also amazing to see how many university groups there are on the Cambridge Map of Sustainability-Related Initiatives created by Lena Morrill - this map includes college societies and departmental research groups (choose what groups to view in the menu, and click generate). This university map is part of the new Wolfson College Interdisciplinary Research Hub on Sustainability & Conservation, led by Charlie Barty-King.

These webs are still works in progress - please let us know of any missing groups, connections or information, and any bugs with using them (the Cambridge Resilience Web doesn't work on mobile phones yet). We welcome your feedback and ideas for improvement (there are feedback links on the individual webs too), and we ask that you bear with the developers while they improve the webs over the next few months.

We hope that the webs will act as a navigation tool for those interested in getting involved locally, as well as enabling different groups to connect up and possibly collaborate more, and that overall the webs will inspire us all in our work by showing that we are part of a growing movement of positive change.
Source: Transition Cambridge and Wolfson College Interdisciplinary Research Hub on Sustainability & Conservation 01 Mar 2021

Sustainable Farming Film: "From the ground up"

This inspiring 38 minute film, by Carbon Neutral Cambridge and Dragonlight Films, shares the experience of five commercial farmers from the Cambridgeshire region on how they are adapting their farming practices to help cut carbon and double nature. Find out more and view it here. It will be of interest to farmers, rural landowners, policy makers, other expert participants and those interested in practical solutions to climate change and biodiversity loss. It features 5 Cambridgeshire farmers at different stages of their journey to regenerate their soil health. The farmers: David White, Matt Redman, Tom Mead, Charles Shropshire and Martin Lines are interviewed "farmer-to-farmer", discussing what they've done and why - looking at both the highs and the lows of their experience and their aims for the future. More...
Source: Carbon Neutral Cambridge 01 Mar 2021

Starting after Easter - 'What now? What next? A small group for thinking about our future'

As the ongoing pandemic impacts on our health, our security and our hopes for the future, the climate crisis seems to have slipped into the background. Some of us might absorb ourselves in activism regardless or others retreat into despair or denial. But wherever we find ourselves the old adage still stands, talking with others helps: this group will be a place where people can share their concerns, hopes and fears. It will be held weekly over a period of 9 weeks and we aim to start after Easter, either face to face in Cambridge or online.

To find out more or to register your interest please contact Jacqui Davis or Anne Murray. More...
Source: Cambridge Climate Therapists 10 Feb 2021

Transition to a Better Future - Online talk series

Tuesdays in January, February and March, 7:30-8:30pm, via Zoom. Full details and booking here.

The "transition" to a better future is as relevant today as ever, with numerous environmental and human-made challenges facing us. In this online talk series, local and national speakers will talk about different aspects of this transition. Confirmed speakers include Rob Hopkins (cofounder of the Transition movement), Tony Juniper (Chair of Natural England), Jeremy Purseglove (author of "Working with Nature"), Nick Anim (Inclusion and Diversity Advisor at Transition Network), Stephen Tomkins (Cam Valley Forum), Hilary Cox Condron (community artist), Ann Mitchell (Cambridge Sustainable Food), and Transition members Nicola Terry, Jacky Sutton-Adam and Meg Clarke. Topics range from democracy, imagination and nature to water, food, art, diversity and energy. Full details here, with booking links for each talk.
Source: Transition Cambridge 29 Jan 2021

New podcast - 'Cambridge - in pursuit of equality'

A 6-part docuseries from Conscious Communications in partnership with Cambridge 2030, 'Cambridge - in pursuit of equality' shines a light on why Cambridge has been named Britain's most unequal city for the past two years and what people think can be done about it. Hear from the people on the front line in the community, from teachers to foodbank volunteers, and those taking action to create a more equal and inclusive city, one where everyone can live happier, healthier lives. There are 5 episodes, 30 minutes each, it's free - more info here. More...
Source: Cambridge 2030 25 Jan 2021

Petition to keep Cambridge Market open during lockdown

You may have heard that Cambridge Market has been closed in this latest lockdown (see Cambridge News article here). A group of people are asking for it to remain open to enable some people to do their food shopping in the open air, at lower risk from covid. If you would like to sign a petition about this, you can do so here.
Source: change.org 05 Jan 2021

"Save the Cam" petition

The Friends of the River Cam are asking individuals and organisations to put pressure on local government, water companies and the Environment Agency in the Cambridge area to Save the River Cam and its tributaries by signing up to support the Cam River Charter. If you'd like to sign their petition, you can do so here. The River Cam and its tributaries are suffering badly from over-abstraction, agricultural run-off and sewage discharge leaving them in poor condition with very low flow levels and dirty water. We believe this vital chalk stream river system, so integral to the character and nature of the Cam landscape, must be helped to recover to a cleaner and more natural state. The climate emergency makes a bad situation worse. Find out more here.
Source: The Friends of the River Cam 05 Jan 2021

Consultation on the closure to traffic of Mill Road bridge

Cambridgeshire County Council are consulting on the closure of Mill Road Bridge to vehicles (except buses and emergency vehicles). Currently the closure is temporary, and strong views have been expressed both for and against. Please let the council know what you think by taking their survey here (takes 5 minutes to fill out). Find out more here.
Source: Cambridgeshire County Council 21 Dec 2020

Archive news: From 2021 - From 2020->TranNews2020]] - From 2019 - From 2018 - From 2017 - From 2015/2016 - Earlier and archived news off the front page.

Share this page