February 7, 2010

Why I won’t be rushing to fit solar panels

So, the Government have released plans to encourage uptake of renewables, which Chris Goodall wrote about earlier in the week (his piece and the comments are worth reading). Yet, in the same week, a fantastic proposal to install a community renewables project in Birmingham failed at the planning stage:

“It is with some regret that SusMo must report that the application made by St. Mary’s Church with regards to the installation of a photovoltaic array on their south-facing roof has been turned down by the Planning Committee. We are very disappointed in their decision. Just last week, Birmingham launched its ‘Green New Deal’, and the City Council signed up to the 10:10, and for the Planning Committee to instantly reject a promising microgeneration project such as this has little resonance with those commitments, and bodes ill for Birmingham’s low carbon future”.

For most of us installing renewable technologies such as solar panels, groundsource heatpumps or wood pellet  boilers  etc will remain out of reach. Despite reports that the Government’s scheme will have a pay back of around £900 pounds a year, the upfront costs make sure it won’t be on my shopping list any time soon.

Writing in the Guardian Miles Brignall is optimistic about the benefits the scheme will bring to householders, quoting Ed Miliband

“The feed-in tariff will change the way householders and communities think about their future energy needs, making the payback for investment far shorter than in the past.”

Friends of mine installed solar panels a couple of years back and they do generate a significant amount of energy, thereby reducing the overall emissions of CO2 and for those who can afford it and have a suitable roof it’s an option that should be considered (after all measures to reduce energy demand have been taken which they did – see photo).

But for me, efficiency remains the primary route for tackling my household energy consumption. I think the situation is pretty similar for most of us – unless you happen to be a tennant of Housing Associations such as Wulvern who refurbished some of their homes with renewables technologies,making them warmer and cheaper to run, solar panels etc remain beyond reach until an effective loan or finance scheme is devised to assist people like me to get on the “renewables ladder”.

The example of Wulvern and other Housing Associations shows that renewables can be a smart choice for landlords, and schemes such as Low Carbon West Oxford’s  large scale project to install photovoltaics on community buildings show that it is possible to create a local demand for renewable technologies which can be accessed by everyone, not just the affluent, where there is suffient will from planners and landlords to make it happen.

Of course, I’m just bitter because I can’t afford to borrow the money I’d need to take advantage of the new scheme, and our woodburner doesn’t qualify as it’s not a new installation. So, forgive the rant, at least I know my carbon footprint is heaing in a downward direction, and surely that’s the bottom line?

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February 1, 2010

Is flying ever justified?

Well, yes and no. The whole issue is so complicated. But the reason I ask is that a well know climate change activist who questioned my daughter’s school trip (by plane) recently told me about plans to fly to Mexico for the next round of climate talks. “Surely some flights are justified?” s/he asked.

How am I supposed to pass judgement? Surely the “planet” doesn’t care if your flight is for work, play or environmental justice? What really matters is that we all fly less and that we lobby for suitable alternatives (whether that’s web conferencing, trains or whatever).  A quick poll of my neighbours reveals that 8 out of ten of us haven’t flown at all in the past five years (either because of lack of money or inclination or both),  I’ve been to more than a dozen European cities by train or car and had amazing adventures, but I would certainly never make a “no fly” commitment.

So, forgive me for asking, but what do you think? Are some flights more justifiable than others? Is my once every ten year flight to visit familiy in the States more sinful than an academic flying across the Atlantic  several times a year to give a 20 minute presentation at a climate change conference  or an activist flying to Copenhagen and then being denied access to the talks because of an oversubscription of delegates then catching  a return flight home to get back to work?

I doubt there’s a definitive answer. But, if you want to know the carbon cost of your travel take a look at RouteRank, a new website which compares CO2 emissions from various methods of transport and for goodness sake, remember that offsetting does not “neutralise” your carbon and that yes, a tree might “reabsorb” the CO2 emitted by your flight – but by the time it’s done so, the real human damage has already been done. On the face of it, sometimes flying really is Plane Stupid?

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February 1, 2010

More inspiration for meat free Mondays

A couple of weeks ago, I posted a list of my favourite meat free meals. As a result, someone challenged me to find meat free meal for every week of the year.  So, I asked the generous contributors on British Mummy Bloggers if they would share theirs. Here’s the result. A fine example of generosity and willingness to share if ever you saw one.

Thank you everyone for your contributions, I’m off to make macaroni cheese with pasta shells left over from yesterday, the recipe came courtesy of C Bailey.Who wrote “Hi We love Home made macaroni cheese, its really easy and cheap and tastes gorgeous, although we have been known to add a bit of gammon or tuna to give it a bit more ooomph ;-) “

Superlittlemen replied: ” Hi have you tried Quinoa? You can buy it in healthfood shops, I think Sainsbury’s do it as well. I like the red quinoa (as do my 2 boys, its full of protein and also very filling which is a plus). Follow the instructions on the packet to make the quinoa, and then I fry up some onions with garlic in a small amount of olive oil, chopped tomatoes, I also use a food chopper to chop tiny bits of carrots and pepper in it, and mix it all up together, season it and also add some herbs, either parsley or mixed, bit of worceter sauce or chilli, and mix it in with the quinoa, its really tasty. As a variety I have also used quorn pieces and it works well with chicken for meat eaters as well.Liz Jarvis told us  “I spent so many years as a veggie there’s nothing I can’t do with lentils. I can offer a veggie chilli recipe, veggie moussaka, leek and potato soup… but they’re not posts… do you need them to be posts, or do you just want the recipes?

Then Andrea Daly said ” I’ve been veggie for over 25 years and this has got to to be the easiest recipe ever! In fact we had it last night.

I roll out one sheet of ready made puff pastry and cut into squares, one for each person eating. using a knife to score a smaller square within the square I’ve just cut. Finely chop carrots, red onion and garlic and stick this in a pan with olive oil. Cook through and then fill the smaller square. Top with sun dried tomatoes and grated cheese and bake for 20mins at 200 in a fan oven. (Don’t know gas setting) The outer square will puff up and the mixture stays in the middle. It tastes great and looks like you spent hours on it!” If you’re interested, she’s right – and the teenagers here loved it.

Mummyzen wrote This is very quick and easy: Veggie Enchiladas:

Can of mixed beans in spicy sauce (or make your own spicy sauce with tomato, chilli pepper, seasoning)
Flour tortillas
Tomato sauce (make your own by reducing canned or fresh tomatoes with some salt, basil)
Cheese, grated

Heat up beans, put a serving into a tortilla and wrap. Place in an oven dish. Continue with the other tortillas until you’ve used up bean mixture.
Cover tortillas with thin layer of tomato sauce, sprinkle cheese on top and put in moderately hot oven for 15 mins.

Other suggestions:
Veggie lasagne
Vegetable egg-fried rice
Risotto (mushroom/leek/broccoli/squash are all good)

So, there you are an eclectic and tasty selection that will certainly see me through the year.

If you try any of the suggestions here, let me know how you get on.

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January 28, 2010

Adventure in social media

Picture the scene, It’s March 2008:

A middle aged woman is sitting a room full of mainly strangers, sipping tea and eavesdropping on the conversations.  Two men are comparing iPhones, words like RSS, tag, feed, code, drupal, wiki, wordpress and blog are tossed around by confident men and the woman begins to think she’s come to the wrong place, a “Focus group on Web 2.0″ maybe wasn’t such a good idea, after all. She decides to finish her tea and then quietly slip away. Then someone leans across and asks:

Have you got any idea what these guys are talking about?

“No”, She says.  They begin to talk about where they’ve come from and what has brought them to a day on Social Media and if you want to know what digital exclusion looks and feels like, she was in that room, feeling lost and bemused. But – to give away the ending – I stayed, and I’m so glad I did.

Soon introductions were made, friendly smiles exchanged and we played  a game. Now, my background is community work, so I like games. They break they ice, allow people to start making connections and a competitive edge always helps.

The game was called the Social Media Game, it’s undergone a few refinements since then and is still useful. I learnt that social media is just another tool for conversation, finding spaces to share, to be social and to collaborate. I knew that in my work with communities we weren’t being heard outside our own neighbourhoods, the “powers that be” were often  oblivious to what was going on at the grass roots and if I was serious about establishing a network of low carbon communities, I had to get myself online. Not to replace the conversations we were having on the streets, post office queues and school gates, but to have more conversations with more people who felt the same.

After that day, I dipped a toe in the murky waters of “social media”, began to ask questions, google things I didn’t understand.  I’ve learnt a lot. I’ve made new friends who gave up their time to help me. I’ve had the opportunity to share some of my skills with others by running workshops  on blogging and twitter for community groups. The week after that focus group  I set up a twitter account, dived into facebook, even set up a blog (all by myself)!

So, fast forward two years to a freezing night in January. I’m in Manchester, sitting in a room once again full of strangers (though some friends are there too), I’m at the first meeting of the Manchester Net Tuesday at the recently opened Manchester Digital Laboratory on Edge St. We’re all here because we think we have something to offer and something to learn. Experiences vary and we’re all from different backgrounds -youth workers, IT professionals, volunteers, keen amateurs (like me),  we start playing the Social Media Game, expertly facilitated by Nick Booth and Amy Sample Ward – we begin to talk and more importantly to listen to each other and to talk about the potential we have to use our skills and create spaces for creativity (a phrase I stole from Amy, but I’m sure she won’t mind). We decided we’ll meet again, that we’ll find ways to collaborate to talk to each other to make things “happen”.

I left the meeting and walked back to the railway station with an old friend and a new one, then sat on the train, eating a hot pasty (it was cold) and thinking how far I’ve come.  I’ve learnt that anyone who tells you they’re an expert in social media probably isn’t, that the internet can’t be broken (just borked), that when you don’t understand something there are people who can explain, that the world is full of people trying to make connections and collaborate using  web based tools alonside traditional media.

Today I’m thriving on my social media adventures, I get a kick out of helping a community volunteer set up a twitter account, showing someone how to put a photo in the customisable header on a woprdpress blog. I can’t code, I can’t get the hang of wiki spaces and I still don’t  know what RSS feeds do (although I use them a lot).  I’m feeling ready to take off my armbands and swim out of my depth. But , if you’re still in the shallow end trying to figure out this whole social media  game, don’t worry  I haven’t gone so far I won’t swim back to help you and nor have my online friends*.

(*If  you want to know who they are read the acknowledgements page ).

Thanks to Paul Henderson and Nick Booth for the photos.

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January 19, 2010

A day in the life – Tameside 10:10 event

I don’t normally write about my work, but today I’m making an exception after a brilliant day in Droylsden  ( if you know Manchester, you’d have to agree it wouldn’t your first choice for a day out – no offence – I used to live just down the road and love going back). I was at an event for Third sector organisations (voluntary and community groups) as part of Tameside’s 10:10 Community Outreach. I love it when organisations “get” what the 10:10 Campaign is all about (it makes my job easier), and today was the perfect example of how to “do” 10:10.

The day kicked off with a superb post Copenhagen presentation from two old friends of mine, Jonathan Atkinson and Pete Abel called “What’s Going On and Why I should be Bothered”. They filled us in on the latest news about Manchester’s own plans and achievements and spoke about how “we”, that is individuals. community groups, businesses etc all need to step up a gear and promote our achievements. I tried to tweet it as they went along, but was too keen on taking part. The session was filmed and Jonathan has promised me a copy, so hopefully I’ll upload it here soon.

Next up was Tameside Council’s Energy Officers who ran a session on taking the first steps to reducing your energy demand. This was a lively session, full of great ideas from the participants and a perfect introduction to 10:10, even better because I didn’t need to say anything or do anything apart from say thanks for promoting the campaign so well – and with such enthusiasm!

Special mention must go to the team from MERCi, who already run a scheme to promote sustainability and carbon reduction to third sector organisations in the region called Sustaining Change and to Tanya and Andrew from GMCVO who did a good job of handling the post lunch “graveyard shift” with a quick run through their own experiences of having an energy audit and drawing up an action plan.

Unfortunately I didn’t stay for the quick audit of the building, instead I headed home.

Thanks to all the organisers for a great day, a delicicious lunch and some great inspiration for community carbon reduction.

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January 16, 2010

My favourite meat free meals

OK, I admit it. The moment someone tells me I have to do something or must buy something my hackles rise and a deeply buried desire to rebel and do the opposite  rises up in me.  This probably explains why I have such an irrational dislike of  “meat free Mondays“.

I agree with the general  assumption that most of us eat too much meat and dairy, and that this contributes to health problems and climate change, what I find heard is the concept of deliberately choosing a meat free day. Maybe it’s because I was brought up in the 1970’s, when meat free meals were part of the weekly menu. In our house, there was always fish on Fridays, chips and egg on Saturdays – perched on our knees while we watched Morcambe and Wise or the Generation Game – and followed by a tub of ski yoghurt * . Not  forgetting  the soups made with whatever was cheap at the market.

I don’t have a problem with vegetarianism either (I was vegan for years), so having thought about it long and hard I have to admit it’s just the need to rebel that’s the issue.

So, for any of you contemplating  eating less meat, here’s a list of my favourite meat free meals, the ones we eat regularly in our house, but never on a designated day of the week. Some are meat and dairy free, some just veggie. I haven’t given the recipes here, use a search engine or sit down with a cuppa and your favourite recipe book and gather some inspiration.

  1. Chick pea and potato curry
  2. Pasta bake (pasta shells, tomato sauce, topped with breadcrumbs, ground nuts and a drizzle of olive oil)
  3. Cous cous with roast butternut squash and hot peppadew peppers
  4. Leek and potato soup with home made crusty bread
  5. Red onion and red pepper ommelette with home made oven chips
  6. Hummous, guacomole and crudites with a cold beer and a good movie
  7. Home made falafel served with rice salad and chilli salsa
  8. And the old standbys: beans on toast, baked potato and beans, cheese on toast and my all time favourite -  a bag of chips – eaten out of newspaper sitting on a harbour wall looking out to sea.

* If you are of a “certain age” did you find yourself transported back to the sofa singing along “Ski, tastes natural and so good, just like you knew it would. Lalala la la?

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January 16, 2010

It’s all about me….

The minute you have an online identity (facebook, twitter or a blog), you have to accept that interaction with strangers is part of the deal.  Also, there are no more secrets, as I discovered when I posted this on my facebook page over the Christmas holidays:

“Sharing a bath with Monsieur Chardonnnay”

So, there it is, my carbon sin revealed to the world. I like baths. In fact I like them so much, my family bought me this for Christmas a couple of years ago, complete with wine glass holder and candle stick. What could be better, glass of wine, favourite magazine and a deep, hot bubble bath?

Whenever I read one of those “Top Tips to Save the Planet” leaflets you can guarantee that “take a bath not a shower”, is right up there in the top few. So it should be, the carbon footprint of water is a big deal and having a shower is more efficient than a bath (unless you have a power shower). But, that doesn’t mean you can’t ever have a bath, just make it a luxury,  an indulgent experience, to be savoured at the end of a long week /month/year. I live the life that feels right to me, not to be green or to save the planet but because I want to. I didn’t post that comment on my  facebook status  to be contraversial, or to  deliberately reveal my eco misdemeanours. It was just a spur of the moment thing, a bit of a laugh amongst friends – some of whom were once strangers – but are now part and parcel of my everyday life.

So, here is the lesson I’ve learnt. Have fun online, but  be sure your carbon sins will find you out – so stop worrying about  sinning and start living. Accept that choices need to be made, that what really matters is the carbon bottom line  – in other words it’s  the overall carbon footprint of your lifestyle that matters – not the minor and occasional misdemeanour. Oh and just for the record, here’s a few more: I sometimes leave the light on when I’m not in the room, I once forgot to switch the tv off standby, I sometimes drive short distances, I’m too lazy to insulate under my floorboards … I accept these as part of being human and if you think I’m bad, let she who is without carbon sin cast the first pumice stone…

Go on, reveal your carbon sins – if you dare x

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January 12, 2010

Dispelling the myth – I’m not rich!

Because I wrote about fancy cars and designer bags, it appears people think I’m rich. Far from it (unless we’re counting blessings, in which case I’m loaded). The rather sad and boring truth is that I’ve learned to be careful with money. So, here is a little bit about me. I’m very ordinary really. I don’t use a credit card, I save up for things I want.  I make, bake, sew (badly) and grow (better). I treasure time with my family and I’m a good friend. What more could a girl need?

The House: We live in a 1970’s bungalow, three bedroooms, reasonably large garden and big enough for us. I don’t really fancy a bigger house, the space would be nice, but I don’t fancy all that extra housework. Oh – and who wants to be saddled with a huge mortgage payment every month – not me!

The Car:Yes, it’s true we recently bought a Jag. It’s the  cheapest and smallest  sized engine we could get in  a diesel estate, the fuel economy’s brillliant and for the record although I paid for it I’ve yet to sit behind the wheel (anyone who has seen me drive, knows I was “born to be driven”), I prefer public transport anyway. We simply couldn’t face another camping holiday with 4 people, dog, tent, mountain bikes etc all packed into and onto a Peugot 206! We saved up – an alien concept I know, but a good habit to learn.

Food and Drink: I started making my own bread, cakes and biscuits out of necessity, it was cheaper than buying them. Now, I make for pleasure. I like the satisfaction of watching something being made from  nothing and I get a kick out of making things look nice and giving them away. I like cooking a meal from scratch, it winds me down after a busy day. Just me, PM and Nigel Slater, utter bliss.  If you’re buying, I like whisky (current favourite is 16 year old Lagavulin) and I have a weak spot for champagne but I mainly drink water, straight from the tap – not very glamorous – but good for the complexion I’m told (still waiting to see the evidence).  I usually carry a flask, because it irks me to pay £2.00 for a coffee when I’m travelling. So, when I am out shopping with the girls and we stop for a latte, it really is a treat.

Clothes: Sadly, the nearest place for me to go shopping is the wonderfully named “Cheshire Oaks Designer Village”, which sells discount clothing and accessories. In the past year I’ve bought an Armani shirt for a fiver, a pair of Kurt Gieger mules for a quid (yes, really) and indulged my fetish for Mulberry bags in their outlet store. Unfortunatley, being a dumpy, middle aged housewife I usually end up looking like a sack of potatoes whaever I wear. But, it’s generally cheaper than the high street and I like to buy things which are made to last and not fall apart the first time you wash them.

Nice Things: I know it’s shallow, but I do like “nice things”, especially if they come in pretty boxes. Fortunately I have a kind and generous family to know the emailed links I send them at Christmas and birthdays are not heavy hints they are Instructions to be followed to the letter. That’s why you’re more likely to see me wearing Tiffany than Elizabeth Duke or  smelling of  Jo Malone – the latter to mask the smell of wet dog – which it doesn’t!

Life’s Too Good to Throw Away: A simple mantra, which serves me well, when you pay good money for “stuff” do you really want to throw it away? I don’t.  So, I don’t go in for disposable, single use or recyclable. I buy to last, in bulk and have become adept and finding new uses for old “stuff”. Laddered  tights get used to store home grown onions, 5l washing up liquid containers make great mini cloches (all cut to exactly the same size, in straight, neat rows bacause I like neat), leftover wine dregs get frozen in ice cube trays for stews, stale bread makes a delicious bread and butter pudding and worn out clothes get cut up for dusters (the buttons go in my button box).

Value Friendship: The greatest gift a girl can have is a best friend and a family who love her. I’m lucky to have lots of the first and one of the latter.

There, I told you I was ordinary.

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January 11, 2010

Lightbulbs I like

Before Christmas I wrote about the unsolicited mailing from NPower which contained 4 rather dodgy energy saving lightbulbs.  In response to all the comments,  and to redress the balance, here is a quick round up of bulbs I do like, all easily available on the high street or by mail order. It’s not my intention to set out to write a heap of “How to go green” blog posts, nor to persuade  you that so many myths about energy saving light bulbs are untrue. If you’ve yet to be convinced, try taking the lightbulb challenge. Or read this very helpful guide from B+Q or try out their lightbulb calculator.

Halogens:


Yes, you can buy energy efficient halogens for those kitchen spotlights. Go Green Lights, B+Q and Nigels Eco store all sell them.  They are a bit pricey, but use about 80% less energy, so well worth the investment (look out for supermarket special offers too) . I’m told that if you search around you can buy them for under a fiver each. They also produce less heat and I think less glare. The LED ones are very bright and worth seeking out too (again, try Go green Lights or Nigel’s Eco Store).

Dimmerables:

In the past it was hard to find bulbs you could use with standard dimmer switches, we have 4 light fittings in our living room (eight  bulbs in total), all on a dimmer control and the first bulbs we tried from Megaman, weren’t a huge success, they flickered and hissed and gave me a headache (though I hear they have improved a lot in the past few years). Recently we treated ourselves to some new ones,  from a different manufacturer (GE), bought in a supermarket and very cheap they were  too. The quality of the light is fantastic, no flicker, quick to reach full intensity and best of all they fitted our tiny light fittings. Nigels eco store has some nice ones  too.

Candle bulbs:

If you’ve spent a small fortune on a lovely light fitting, the last thing you want to do is fit a clunky, unattractive bulb. There are some beautiful bulbs on the market now and there really is no excuse for this (see left) anymore, in fact the only reason it’s still in our bedroom is that (a)  I’m too mean to change it and (b) it’s adequate for the job. I’m sure you’d agree though, it’s not very pretty and doesn’t exactly conjure up a mood of romance or serenity! We recently spotted some gorgeous twisted candle bulbs in a hotel inGeneva,  the manager was very keen to tell us they had recently upgraded all the bulbs to energy efficient models and he had a draw full of the “U tube” variety (like in the picture) if any guest wanted to take them away! We have 32 light bulbs in our house, shocked? Count yours – oh and there’s a string of 100 LED party lights in the kitchen too. We didn’t replace all our bulbs at once, it took a couple of years. We started with the bulbs we use most, the kitchen, hall and living room. Firstly, we used the freebie U – tube shaped ones the Energy Saving Trust give away at community events and slowly sought out nicer ones. I also helped set up a light bulb library run by my local Brownie pack, thanks to the very helpful advice of Chris Goodall (author of  How to Live a Low Carbon Life), you can read his advice on light bulb libraries here and a review he wrote of a couple of carbon footprinting tools here.

Any lighting tips of your own? Do share….

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January 10, 2010

It’s not easy being green (or is it?)

Over the Christmas holidays we had our usual share of  work parties, visits to neighbours, catching up with family etc etc. As always these were accompanied by the inevitable  question:

Q: And what do you do these days?

Me: Errrr…

Which is usually followed by,”Who? what? Never heard of you / it / them”,  depending on which answer I choose to give.  After a dodgy incident with a full on “denier” in a Manchester pub in 2008 I usually say “Oh, I bake cakes, I write, a bit of environmental stuff …”.

Q: Oh, so you’re a housewife?

Me: Well, not exactly

We then usually end up with the inevitable conversation about “being green”, the “trouble with eco-mentallists” and end up with “Well, it’s all right for you to write about being green,  but I notice you’re wearing Mulberry / Tiffany / Armani /  driving a Jag (delete as appropriate, depending on the occasion), so you’re not really very green are you?

BINGO!

It’s true, I’m not a “Green”, in fact, 30 years after having my first piece printed in the local paper (a letter about the hole in the ozone layer) I’m still trying to work exactly what I am. House Beautiful called me an “Eco Pioneer”, the Sussex Advertiser said I was a “Climate Activist”, but I don’t recognise myself in those descriptions, do you?

So, reader, I’m looking for a word that sums up the many people like me:

  • We care about the world around us
  • Passionate about people, our friends, family and loved ones
  • Recycle and reduce waste because it’s just a normal part of our lives
  • Use gas  and electricity wisely becaue we don’t like paying more than we have to
  • Like to wear nice things, made to last and make us feel good
  • Choose to spend time outdoors because it lifts our spirits
  • Think that people can make a difference and that communities matter
  • Get satisfaction from making or growing things ourselves

If you recognise yourself in that list, how do you categorise yourself? I’m open to suggestions.

Meanwhile, I’m off to bake bread x

PS Yes, that is me looking like a startled rabbit with Dick Strawbridge, taken in October at an event we both spoke at in Manchester.

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