A blog by Iain Shanks, PECT's weekly volunteer, on one of our newest projects, A Forest for Peterborough

Now I may be being a little biased here but having grown up in the Fens, an area distinctly short of trees for small boys to climb, I think the Forest for Peterborough is a great idea. Of course we need to create green corridors for wildlife in the city but we need to create them for us humans too.

I attended the Forest for Peterborough launch in November and heard Clive Anderson talking with great passion about planting trees. Not just for a day out with the family but as a means of making a mark on the world that will out live you. He inspired me to buy a tree as a Christmas present for my mum’s partner, who has recently become a grand father. I thought the notion of Grandad’s Tree was a far better gift than a CD, socks or a joke present, and with far longer lasting benefits.
I loved the idea of the family being able to plant the tree together. The forest for Peterborough seemed a much better option than planting a tree in the garden of a house – the house could be sold on and then ownership of the tree would pass on with the land but buying a tree in a public space means that future generations will always have access to it.

Grandad’s Tree looks like it will be planted on the 22nd of February, at Thorpe Meadows near the rowing lake, He was too busy to attend the January planting on the 23rd of this month, although anyone else is free to attend.

If you would like more information on forthcoming planting events and how to plant trees in the Forest for Peterborough for your family and friends to enjoy go to www.pect.org.uk/forest or contact This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it  

Tags: Creating the UK Environment Capital | Do your bit for the environment | Green news | Peterborough Environment City Trust | Iain Shanks

Tags: Do your bit for the environment | Green news | Iain Shanks

• The Queensgate Award for contribution to Environmental Capital - sponsored by Queensgate

• Green Volunteer/Community Award - sponsored by Opportunity Peterborough.

• Green Youth Group Award - sponsored by Cross Keys Homes

• Most Innovative Environmental Project - sponsored by Peterborough Renewable Energy Ltd

• The Green Family Award - sponsored by Peterborough City Council

• The Sustainable Food Provider Award

• Best kept allotment or garden - sponsored by Bettaland Products.

• The Environmental Photographer Award

• The Green Builder and Designer Award - sponsored by Eco Building Products

Tags: Creating the UK Environment Capital | Iain Shanks

This week Boris Johnson with his usual enthusiasm and bluster announced the arrival on the streets of the Capital of the new hybrid Routemaster, a big Red bus with green credentials, yes it uses fossil fuels as a power source but the bus will use the latest green technology. It will be 15 per cent more fuel efficient than existing hybrid buses, and 40 per cent more efficient than conventional diesel double decks and much quieter on the streets.

The bus looks amazing with all the contemporary  curves of that urban essential the  iphone. This is what green technology should represent. Everything the consumer wants with the minimum impact to the planet and the next step towards bringing our society back in step with the earth’s natural systems.

We have a society enhanced by the mobility given to us by the internal combustion engine, reducing its impact on the environment and making mass transport more attractive, is the most consumer friendly way of making our daily lives greener.

This is an action to make buses more exciting and to provide a more attractive alternative to the car in the capital.

Academics and big business are urging our politicians to act in this spirit and to take it further. The Hartwell Paper is an international report coordinated by the London School of Economics which advocates a three stage approach to reinvigorating environmental policy, the primary principle of which is the raising up of human dignity, through empowerment.

 

They see renewable energy sources as the route to sustainable development providing the power for cars homes and businesses without producing the carbon that causes global warming.

 

By increasing the quality of public services and reducing emissions these busses improve the way that people interact with their urban spaces and symbolise the principles behind the type of development advocated by the Hartwell paper’s authors. By increasing the dignity of people in our cities, individually and collectively, whilst using more fuel efficient vehicles and showing real innovation that will reduce the impact of our actions on the earth, and lowering emissions to levels that the planet can cope with.

 

Tags: Iain Shanks | Climate change | Groovy and green | Green news

Tags: Groovy and green | Do your bit for the environment | Iain Shanks