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"The journey of a thousand miles
must begin with a
single step."

Lao Tzu
4th century BC

TRANSITION ISLAND UPDATES

Transition Island Steering Group 4

We're official!

Road Show: We’re at Brading on Monday, we have some interested people (sparks) in Cowes, East Cowes, Newport, Bembridge, and venues identified for Cowes and Sandown. Rowan is working on Ventnor. We need a handout for Roadshow meetings, to put on chairs.

Publicity

  • Inorganic fertilisers seem to have doubled in price over the last year.
  • Oil hit $100 a barrel in USA, the Isle of Arran is looking at £3.00 a litre !
  • Water use is an increasing problem Island 2000 is doing a Rivers Festival in early May – IoW imports ¼ of its water ?and increasing?
  • Are there any stats from Totnes about energy consumption reduction?
  • We need to liaise with local groups such as Footprint Trust, Natural History and Archaeological Society, Island 2000, Island Distinctiveness (AONB), Friends of Ventnor Botanic Garden, etc (any more suggestions?)
  • Schools closure protest on next Saturday – should we attend and point out that fewer schools means more cars doing the school run, plus less health, mental stimulation and growth opportunities for children.
  • With petrol prices going up, and garages around the Island closing, should we try to meet garage owners and put the TT model in front of them to see if they can diversify (like farmers) eg bio-diesel, electric batteries, calorgas for cars, bicycles, etc.
  • We've had some newspaper articles published, and this has resulted in enquiries (a few!)

CarShare Scheme

  • Interest from Council and Health Trust, Dave has begun contact with Chamber of Commerce
  • Incentives – arguments for & against.
  • Suitability of Scheme for different groups of jobs, etc.
  • Could we bring in a School-run Mum’s circle? (see point above on school closures)
  • Personal safety issues
     

17/11/07 Steering Group Update 3

We are planning the Roadshow of public meetings in towns and villages. We are looking for good-sized meeting places where we can accommodate say 50 people, and costs between nothing and not very much. The plan is to go round the Island – not in any one direction, but as venues become available – and do as many as possibly before April 2008.

 

Each meeting will be a copy of the Launch meeting we held in Riverside Centre in October:

  • Transition Town Initiatives: What it’s all about and the various things other places are doing.

  • Documentary Film Show: “The Power of Community” records how Cuba coped when it was forced into an artificial ‘Peak Oil’ situation when Russia stopped exporting oil to them.

  • Open Space Discussion: Collecting questions, ideas, offers of help, ideas from other places… and beginning a process of preparation.

But these meetings will concern each town or village separately – because each place has different needs, different opportunities and different people. Please help: invite us to your Town or Village for a public meeting, put up posters (attached) and talk to like-mined neighbours to start gathering an audience.

 

We have had discussions with Jim Fawcett, Principal Policy Officer (Health & Sustainable Development) of the Council. He is very supportive of what we are doing. Also the Councils Eco-Isle initiative seems to be very timely and we are talking to other departments in the Council about exciting ideas for the whole Island. We are also talking to Island farmers and will approach Island businesses soon too.

 

We may have County Press reports soon, but that depends on them. We also recommend the Foot print Trust’s meeting at 7pm on 2/2/08 at the Riverside Centre with Jackie Carpenter, a civil engineer who asks “Could the UK run on 100% renewable energy?”. 

 

There’s a lot to do before April 2008, which is when these Steering Group members stand down and new ones take up the development process. This is the Transition Towns model and it stops anyone getting stale or flooded out with work. Please let us know if you want to help.

 

5/11/07 Steering Group Update 2

We are planning a Roadshow of public meetings like the Launch one held in the Riverside Centre, Newport. The aim is to take the message to each town and village so that local people can decide if they would like to form their own Transition Town project. This is the way most projects around the country have started.

 

Our list for the immediate future includes Ryde, Bembridge, Ventnor, Chale & Chale Green, Totland & Freshwater. We would like invitations to other places, and we are seeking free venues to hold these meetings as we have no funding.

 

We have the official criteria that the Transition Towns Network require of any Steering Group and we can explain them to interested groups. The aim of these Criteria is to prevent anyone being a flash in the pan, and ensuring they have the best chance of achieving something good. Possible funding hangs on this, and it is important to them that the Network idea is not devalued. We presenting Transition Island Criteria at the moment.

 

We also have a small temporary website hosted by Vav & Dave Simon at www.aldermoor-farm.co.uk/TransitionIsland and we hope to find a professional website business who would host it for us. If you know of anyone, please tell us on dave@aldermoor-farm.co.uk. In the meantime Dave & Angie Pullen are designing and doing the website, email communications, leaflets, business cards and posters.

See also Newsletters from:

Transition Network
 

Isle of Wight Biodiversity Action Plan
 
INDEX
5/11/07 Steering Group Update 2
17/11/07 Steering Group Update 3
19/1/08 Steering Group Update 4
 
 

Bored?   Frustrated?   Want to help with planning, developing, building, community projects
to ensure the Island copes with the changes ahead due to peak oil and climate change?
Contact us to discuss possibilities!

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