Yearly Archives: 2019

Sian Berry, co-leader of the Green Party, visited a community-owned solar PV scheme in Burneside and a zero-waste shop in Penrith as part of her recent visit to Cumbria. In the south of the county, she visited the James Cropper Ltd plant in Burneside, learning about their recycling of coffee cups and their community energy partnership with Community Energy Cumbria, supported by CAfS. She also visited Ulverston to hear about proposals for empty commercial properties. In Penrith, Sian learnt about initiatives to reduce plastic, including a visit to the new zero-waste shop, Another Weigh. Local Green Party members and [...]

This year’s Cumbria Life Home & Garden Show will have opportunities to learn about making your home energy efficient and flood resilient – including a workshop by CAfS. CAfS is among the 80 exhibitors, for our third year at the show. We’ll be joined by Chris Morphet from Lake District Lime, so stop by for a chat about everything from draughtproofing to complete retrofits. We’re also hosting a workshop on making your home more resilient to extreme weather, such as flooding. Also among the exhibitors are architects with experience in low-energy buildings and extensions, suppliers of materials for [...]

A hearing on the proposed coal mine at Whitehaven, which was due to have happened on Friday 22 February, was postponed. The new date appears to be Tuesday 19 March. South Lakes Action on Climate Change is among the organisations that have objected to the proposal. A web page has been set up, which will be updated with details of any protests planned for the day, and it also includes SLACC’s letter of objection and more information about the proposal. See SLACC objection plus updates on the hearing and demonstrations

South Lakeland District Council (SLDC) has become the first local authority in Cumbria to declare a climate emergency, committing to cuts in carbon emissions in the area. Cumbria’s second declaration may not be far behind. Carlisle City Council will vote on a climate emergency motion next Tuesday, 5 March. SLDC’s climate emergency motion was approved unanimously at a meeting of the full council on 26 February. It was led by Dyan Jones, environment portfolio holder. The motion states: “Council confirms that it is committed to reducing its carbon emissions and continues to look at all areas of policy and [...]

We’ve been creating a brand-new website for CAfS, and we’d like to invite you to be the first to take a peek! It’s still a work in progress, with more content to be added, but we’d welcome your feedback. The site has been redesigned to make it quick and easy for visitors to find the information they need, to make life here in Cumbria more sustainable and tackle climate change. There’s a new sustainable living guide, with practical tips to reduce your carbon footprint – from travel and food to shopping and waste. The new ‘For your home’ section [...]

Students from Cumbria will be among the young people from 150 cities around the world going on strike on Friday 15 March, demanding urgent action on climate change. It’s the latest in a series of protests by young people since last summer, begun by the Swedish teenager Greta Thunberg. Next month’s protest is expected to be the biggest mobilisation of young people so far. Students from 150 cities are taking part, with university students now also starting to join their high-school counterparts. Youth Strike 4 Climate – Carlisle A group of young people from the Carlisle area have organised [...]

Churches from across Cumbria came together last month for a conference on the Christian response to the mounting environmental challenges. CAfS was among the environmental organisations taking part in the Caring for Our Common Home event, at Keswick School on 2 February 2019. Around 150 people attended the conference, which was a chance to reflect on why and how we should care for the Earth, our common home. The possibility of a follow-up conference is in active discussion, after the success of this event, which was sponsored by ECiC and Engaging Theology in Cumbria. "The event was excellent with [...]