News

Brilliant news this week: we are finalists in three categories of the Community Energy England Awards this year. We're shortlisted for the Climate & Environmental Impact, the Community Energy Organisation of the Year and Fuel Poverty Action.  The Community Energy Awards is an annual event that recognises and celebrates outstanding achievements in community energy. This ceremony brings together individuals, organisations, and initiatives that are making significant contributions to the advancement of sustainable and locally-driven energy solutions. This year's ceremony, supported by Electricity North West, will take place in Manchester on Friday 17 November, 6-10pm. Karen Mitchell, our CEO explains what the shortlisting [...]

CAfS and several industry partners are delighted to have received a significant funding boost of £571,359 to establish a pioneering business decarbonisation hub. The initiative, set to exclusively support the Westmorland & Furness area, is funded by the UK Shared Prosperity Fund and aims to bolster the sustainability efforts of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), charities, community businesses, and social enterprises. Up to 300 local organisations looking to reduce their carbon footprint and save costs will be able to benefit from a range of free and subsidised services, a comprehensive ‘one stop shop’ of carbon reduction support. The services available [...]

Marjolein Thickett comes on board this October to work as a freelance language advisor, editor/proofreader and subtitler for Cumbria Action for Sustainability. Marjolein runs The Native Crowd from the South Lakes, where she lives. In her business, she collaborates with smart and creative individuals and organisations to safeguard our world and promote a healthy and ethical lifestyle. The Native Crowd works with businesses that work in and on the environment, specifically in sports and sustainability. As part of her company’s commitment to the environment, Marjolein has chosen to volunteer her expertise to CAfS each month. She will be collaborating with [...]

CAFS staff and volunteers heard a talk from Joe Human this week about the growing crisis for the coffee industry suffering because of the impact of climate change. The enlightening talk went through the journey of coffee and the stories of coffee farmers that Joe, who has worked with coffee farmers for over 15 years, has visited. With over 2bn cups of coffee drunk worldwide every year the impact of climate change on coffee growing countries, such as the increase in annual temperatures and the decrease in rainfall cannot be underestimated. In Ethopia, farmers have reported weather patterns becoming more [...]

We're really excited to announce, along with our Zero Carbon Cumbria partners,  that we are are launching a new online chat to explore challenges, barriers, opportunities and solutions in response to the climate crisis. The informal events will be a conversation style; guest speakers with a wide range of experience and experts who can answer questions. And at just half an hour long they will be easy to catch up with in your break. Each Climate Cafe will have it's own theme, and they will be recorded to listen to or watch at a later date. Nigel Jenkins, Zero Carbon [...]

Response from Karen Mitchell, our CEO. This week has seen some concerning U-turns to the UK’s green policies, including delaying the ban on the sale of new petrol and diesel cars from 2030 to 2035, more time to transition from gas boilers to electric heat pumps and the scrapping of plans for landlords to upgrade the energy efficiency of their properties. Other proposals scrapped are around household recycling, car-sharing, diet and flying. These changes have implications not just for our work but for everyone concerned about the future of Cumbria and beyond, and flies in the face of the scientific [...]