Copy
Latest news from SW...
Sustainable Wantage
March 2019 Newsletter

The Mix logo

In The Mix in March:
 
Sat 2nd Repair Cafe (morning) and Go with the grain- pallet upcycling (afternoon)
Sun 3rd Scoop zero waste dried food pop-up shop
Mon 4th Mosaic evening course starts
Tues 5th Monthly Craft Night
Wed 6th Introduction to Upholstery continuers
Sat 9th Introduction to household plumbing - one day workshop U-bend
Sun 10th Make your own cleaning products (morning) and Vision board and intention setting workshop (afternoon)
Mon 11th Upholstery
Tues 12th Beginners knitting evening course starts
Wed 13th French conversation and coffee (morning) and Mindfulness meet-up (evening)
Sat 16th Designing edible spaces - one day workshop
Sun 17th Mosaic workshop
Sat 23rd Crochet - the next stitch (afternoon) and International Club (evening)
Sun 24th Fabrics galore! Pop-in to buy by the metre at knock down prices
Wed 27th French conversation and coffee (morning) and Green Drinks (evening)
Sat 30th Silver Jewellery workshopSun 31st Make a floral handbag for Mothers' Day

For more info or to book on any of the courses or workshops at The Mix, email Jo, call 07768 767787, or visit the Mix website.

At the start of April we'll be taking part in the Great British Spring Clean, picking up as much single-use plastic litter as we can around Wantage and Grove and recycling as much of it as possible! If you'd like to get involved contact Jo.
 
 
Crisp packetRecycling Crisp Packets and Wrappers with Terracycle

The Mix is now a collection point for crisp packets (all brands, but not popcorn, pretzel or meat snack bags or crisp tubes) and biscuit wrappers (including cracker and cake bar wrappers, only the thin plastic outer not cardboard or plastic trays which can be recycled in kerbside collection). These will be sent for processing to Terracycle who specialise in hard-to-recycle waste. The Beacon also has a crisp packet collection point so two chances to get your crisp packets recycled! Maybe you could collect at your place of work or amongst your neighbours? You can drop packets in to The Mix during any of our refill slots or when coming to a workshop or event.

 
Resource Bank logoJigsaw piece



We are collecting: Small items of all colours such as beads, buttons, ribbons or random bits and pieces like odd jigsaw puzzle pieces (for an art project -anything Glass jarsgoes!); wool and thread; newspapers.

We are offering: jam jars and glass bottles, bubble wrap.
 

Vale declares climate emergency

The Vale of the White Horse District Council has joined 27 local councils, including Oxford in voting almost unanimously to declare a climate emergency. You can read the full motion here. As more and more councils take this step, it is hoped that it will provide some leverage to increase local action to help combat climate change. This article explores why viewing the issue as an emergency might be helpful at this stage.

If you think this language is alarmist, this
article argues that the term 'alarmist' has become synonymous with scaremongering, which is getting in the way of a healthy, realistic and necessary sounding of the alarm. The IPCC warns that emissions must be slashed within 12 years to stand any chance of keeping temperature rise below 1.5ºC (and their conclusions are conservative due to the wide range of people involved).

Actions you can take:

* This petition calls on the government to declare a national climate emergency.
*
Contact Oxfordshire County Council, asking them to follow the lead of Oxford and the Vale, in declaring a climate emergency.



Young people strike for climate action

Young person holds banner at student strike for the climateMeanwhile in towns across the country, young people and students held a 'school strike' to call on the government to declare a national climate emergency. Here are some photos. 1000-1500 young people demonstrated in Oxford.

Here 14-year-old
Zoe Bonnett explains why she decided to strike.

Although striking should be a last resort, time is running out. Every year that we delay serious climate action, the chances of avoiding runaway climate change go down. Last year, global emissions rose to a record high and this year an even worse rise in carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is expected. Whatever is being done currently, it is nowhere near enough. In Belgium, 3000 scientists told students they are right to strike.

16-year-old Greta Thunberg, leader of the student strikes, has won a pledge from the EU chief executive to
spend billions of euros on climate change. President Jean-Claude Juncker said “In the next financial period from 2021 to 2027, every fourth euro spent within the EU budget will go towards action to mitigate climate change”.

Teachers have also been campaigning, calling for the curriculum to be updated to reflect the latest science on climate change.


There will be an even bigger global strike on 15th March (including non-students), with mobilisations in at least 150 cities, including Oxford.


 
Supporting Local Low Waste Initiatives
 
Last month saw the closure of Faringdon Unwrapped, after five months of running a weekly pop-up refill shop. They wrote, "It became apparent that the resources, especially in terms of volunteers, were insufficient to run the cooperative."

It brings home how important it is to support our other local independent businesses where possible. More money coming in allows small ventures to become sustainable and flourish. Farm shops, organic box schemes, bakeries, markets etc are all likely to be low waste.

 
Detergent refills at The MixSESI refill station

From the start of March we are increasing our opening times. The Mix will be open for refills on;
Mon 4-7pm
Wed 1-4pm
Sat 9am-12 
And the first Sunday of every month 10am-2pm alongside Scoop zero waste
Thanks to all the volunteers that help us open for refills, if you can lend a hand so we can increase our hours further please get in touch with Jo!

SESI, which supplies its own eco detergent refills to The Mix, is fundraising. They currently have a network of 50 bottle refilling outlets, and would like to scale this up to 500 within two years. They want to see bottle refilling become the norm and expectation for millions of consumers in the UK. 
 
Other zero waste initiatives:
Scoop (monthly at The Mix)
BZBwraps, Wantage (bees wax wraps - an alternative to food bags. Plus bamboo toothbrushes, reusable straws etc)
Oxunboxed, Oxford. Video here.
The Health Box, Lechlade.
The Market Garden, Eynsham.
Just Trading, Wallingford.
Cardews, Oxford (teas and coffees).
 
For other places, see The Zero Waster.
 

 
In BriefGrey squirrel

Would you eat squirrel meat? Grey squirrels are culled in some areas to protect trees and red squirrels, but they are usually disposed of in landfills. It is arguably one of the most sustainable kinds of meat, since it would otherwise go to waste.

2019 Low Carbon Hub Community Energy Fund. The latest share offer has attracted over £239,000 in investment for Oxfordshire community energy projects. The minimum investment is £250, and the deadline is 7th March.

Hottest winter's day since records began. This week the UK saw temperatures rise to a record-breaking 21.2
ºC, bringing with it the strange spectacle of large winter wildfires. Meanwhile some people used the sun to cook dinner:

Solar cooking in the UK this week

High Court accepts BBOWT's claim against the government over Oxford-Cambridge Expressway. BBOWT is arguing that the government has failed to assess the environmental impact of its plans. The court has agreed that there is an arguable case to be heard, so the issue will be taken to a full hearing.
Cargo bike
Share Oxford opens library of things This new library includes items such as tools, a cargo bike, bunting and a chocolate fountain. There is a choice of pay-as-you-go or membership with reduced rates for borrowing.
You can find the library's inventory here.

Plummeting insect numbers threaten collapse of nature. A startling new report has found that the total mass of insects is falling by a precipitous 2.5% a year, with the crisis apparently being global. 80% of the biomass of insects has disappeared in 25-30 years. Butterflies and moths are among those worst hit by factors including the intensification of agriculture, pesticide use, climate change and urbanisation. Prof Dave Goulson said “it should be of huge concern to all of us, for insects are at the heart of every food web, they pollinate the large majority of plant species, keep the soil healthy, recycle nutrients, control pests, and much more. Love them or loathe them, we humans cannot survive without insects.”

Go green for Lent. Here are two resources for observing the season of Lent environmentally: Less plastic for Lent and Living Lent.

What if we reduced carbon emissions to zero by 2025? No-one knows if it’s possible – let alone so quickly – but this article imagines how such a 'carbon cold-turkey' scenario might play out.
Frogspawn
Spawn Survey. If you have a local park or garden pond with evidence of breeding frogs and toads, or you spot some spawn while out on a walk, why not record your findings and contribute to the PondNet spawn survey?

 

Out and About in March

Mon 4th - Plastics Collaborate Group meeting, Oxford, OX2.

Mon 4th -
Young People and Climate Action, Oxford, OX1.

Thurs 7th - Inspired by Birds, Oxford, OX3.

Thurs 7th -
George Monbiot in conversation with Alan Rusbridger. Oxford, OX2.


Sat 9th - Climate Emergency - What Next?, West Oxford.

Sat 9th -
A Mindful Walk in Nature
, Thatcham.

Sun 10th - Willow Pollarding, Oxford, OX4.

Thurs 14th -
Heading for Extinction and What To Do about It - Talks by George Monbiot and Rachael Treharne.

Fri 15th -
Global Strike for the Climate, everywhere including Oxford.


Sun 17th - Small is Beautiful - Moss Walk, Witney.

Sun 17th -
Hedge laying, Oxford, OX2.

Sat 23rd -
Sustainable Living Event, Shrivenham. Good luck to the Sustainable Wantage Repair Cafe team who are making a guest appearance.

Sat 30th -
Osney Lock Hydro Maintenance, Oxford. Help tidy up at the first community-owned hydro scheme to be built on the Thames.

Sat 30th - Halting the Expressway Conference, Bicester.

Sat 30th -
Earth Hour - 8:30 - 9:30pm. Turn off your lights and appliances to signal your concern about the climate.
 

Green Drinks
Green Drinks Sustainable Wantage Social

Wed 27th March
7:30pm - 9pm in The Mix, Mill Street
Bring your own tipple. All welcome.

 

Sustainable Wantage
www.sustainablewantage.org.uk
Images: Puzzle Piece by Joey Day on Flickr; Jar Glass Container by Maxpixel; U-bend by mollydot on Flickr; Walkers Crisps.jpg by Si Griffiths on Wikimedia Commons; IMG_9798-46 (young person holds placard at the school strike for the climate) by Steve Eason on Flickr; House by pnging.com; Grey squirrel, London, UK by Dr. Raju Kasambe on Wikimedia Commons; Solar Cooking photos from Solar Cooking UK: Janet Payne's mushroom, red pepper and tomato frittata, with cheese and chive scone loaves, cooked in a Rand tube on 26th Feb; The Williams family's lentil and veg soup cooked in the All American Sun Oven, and egg cooked in the SM70 tube. WorkCycles Street Cleaning Trike by Workcycles on Wikimedia Commons; Frogspawn closeup by Tarquin via Wikipedia; Cup png image with transparent background from pngimg.com.
Copyright © 2019 Sustainable Wantage, All rights reserved.


Send any items for the next newsletter to zoeswnews@gmx.com
Email Marketing Powered by Mailchimp