#Manchester – Withington “Eco-house” seeks new members

Posted on March 6, 2014 by manchesterclimatemonthly

There’s a newly formed housing co-op based in Manchester looking for 2 more members.

“Rooms available in recently refurbished co-operative eco-house. £360 excluding bills. Withington. Near Burton road tram stop. For more information, or to arrange a visit then contact us at mailcordatacoop@gmail.com“kitchen1
What’s eco about it, MCFly asked. Came the reply –

Mostly the whole thing is an experiment. Socially, and perhaps technologically too. There’s insulation, internal, cavity and external. There’s solar water heating, solar tile panels, rainwater harvesting, mechical ventilation heat recovery, and other things. All the appliances are eco too.

Socially we’re going to try and live more eco friendly too. It’s just the start.

Posted in volunteer opportunity | 1 Comment

Research Training in #Manchester Sat 15th – a participant explains how research can help. Not just for #climate activists!

Posted on March 6, 2014 by manchesterclimatemonthly

There are still places left on the “Research Training for Activists” on Saturday 15th March. It’s FREE, and will help you gain
a) useful skills in how to use Freedom of Information Act, Companies House, Office of National Statistics and other databases (especially to research corporations)
b) contacts/relationships with other people in the North West who want to get/improve the ability to discover useful information

More information here. To apply, please send an email to mcmonthly@gmail.com with “Research Training” in the subject header, with your name and mobile phone number(s). You do NOT have to tell us who you are interested in researching. It would however help us if you would tell us
a) have you ever used the Freedom of Information Act?
b) have you ever done research on a company using Companies House?
c) have you ever done further research using other databases?

We will confirm receipt of your application within 48 hours.

Below the video interview with one of the participants, Nick Hildyard of the Cornerhouse, is an “interview” with Ben, who will be coming across from Leeds.

At university I undertook a year long sports community development project as part of my final year project, followed by working as an intern for the charity Envision. It is during this time I have flirted with using these kind of information data bases.

Since my time at university I have become passionate about politics and social issues and I want to equip myself with more knowledge and expertise to contribute to efforts that tackle the root cause of social problems. I also want to meet other people involved in meaningful activities within my locality

Why you used Companies House
I was unhappy paying rent for a  basement bedroom that had a serious damp problem. I saw this having a detrimental effect on my health.

What you got out of it
I discovered in-depth information about the company who were behind my tenancy. This information did not marry up with my tenancy agreement, casting doubt on the legitimacy of the contract. In a sense this experience peeled back a layer of information that shocked me and that previously I thought was not available to the average person. I was recommended to use companies house by an older friend who did part of the information digging with me.

What advice would you give your ‘younger self’ if you had a time machine
To use a source of information like this all the time – whenever entering into agreements or just using the services of corporate companies that you are not entirely sure of. This could have prevented stress and strain that I encountered in other instances!

On Office of National Statistics” and “Up My Street…”
Why you did it
As part of the projects background research prior to undertaking a qualitative research methodology – highlighted Girlington as an area of Bradford that had a rising population of young Eastern Europeans of which it was claimed were deprived of basic needs that other parts of the community had, issues of racism were claimed to be intrinsic to this. Basically, we wanted to find as much information about the area before going in to meet local people and professionals.

What you got out of it
A statistical understanding of the areas demographics such as ethnicity and broad issues such as poverty – The area fell into the bottom 10% of indices of deprivation nationally. We also mapped out what was available/missing in terms of local resources; such as sport facilities, youth clubs or groups ECT.

Posted in Upcoming Events | Leave a comment

#Manchester Council #climate boss replies to Open Letter from citizens

Posted on March 5, 2014 by manchesterclimatemonthly

Councillor Kate Chappell, the Executive Member for the Environment of Manchester City Council, has written a detailed and encouraging reply to citizens who want to see more climate action in Manchester.  In the letter (printed in full below) she commits to presenting quarterly progress reports on the Council’s own internal climate plan, to begin a blog of her own activities, and to encourage the Council’s 6 existing Scrutiny Committees to look at climate change issues. Specific other issues – around getting more for the Climate Change Action Plan she refers to the Manchester Climate “Steering Group”.  The letter concludes – “I look forward to speaking to you soon, and to working with you, and with all the signatories to make progress on Climate Change in Manchester.”

The letter is in response to an Open Letter (see video below!) signed by a variety of people from around the city. Councillor Chappell’s reply has been broadly welcomed by signatories of the letter.

MCFly will respond to Councillor Chappell’s letter in detail soon. [Update: See here for that reply.]  In the meantime, we’re very interested to hear what YOU think, whether you signed the letter or not!  Please submit your comments!

letterfromkatechappelpage1 letterfromkatechappelpage2 letterfromkatechappelpage3 letterfromkatechappelpage4

Posted in #mcrclimateplan, Climate Change Action Plan, Manchester City Council | 5 Comments

Polar Bear Facepalm: Follow the (lack of) money if you want to know about this species’ future

Posted on March 5, 2014 by manchesterclimatemonthly

http://www.independent.co.uk/voices/comment/warm-too-warm-and-warmer-still-the-climate-movement-must-face-up-to-its-colossal-failure-9168228.html

polarbearinvestors

Posted in Polar Bear Facepalm, Signs of the Pending Ecological Debacle | 1 Comment

#Manchester Social Centre Wish List – please help if you can!!

Posted on March 4, 2014 by manchesterclimatemonthly

The Manchester Social Centre is opening soon (on Lloyd St South, on the Moss Side/Fallowfield border). Here’s a recent facebook message from them, asking for specific pieces of kit.

Hello, cheers for all the name suggestions, keep them coming – email manchestersocialcentre(at)googlemail.com or post on here, we will decide this coming Tuesday!

As you can see (below) the building work has commenced. Over the next few weeks we will be building, shifting,moving, making, rewiring, painting, plastering.. You get the idea.. We have a massive list of things that we need, we have budgeted for most of this, but this is a shout to see if we can get any free stuff.. Stuff that you dont need.. Stuff that might be clogging up your basement, attic, hallway..??

If you have any of the following please get in touch (number at the bottom) we can arrange pick up/drop offs. We hope to gather all this stuff over the next few weeks, any items we cant blag or borrow will be bought

Also, open meeting about getting involved in MSC when it’s up and running will be 18th March… More to come..!

OK here goes, this is a pretty ambitious list.. But.. If you don’t ask…!!!

Ring 07513666418 or email machestersocialcentre(at)googlemail.com

Kitchen

hand wash sink

fridge + freezer

coffee machine type of thing

display counter

stainless steel prep bench

sandwich grill

gas / hob cooker

toaster

deep fat fryer

microwave

large pots

frying pans and pans set

cutlery

plates

small plates

bowls

cups

glasses

Knifes, ladles, grater

kettle

measuring jug

sieve

potato masher

dustpan and brush, mop and bucket, sweeping brush SET

Tupperware containers (for storage)

weighing scales

mixing bowls

large bin

something to store recycling in

drying rack

salt and pepper pots (for tables)?

wooden spoons

tin opener

washing up bowl

rolling pin

colander

chopping boards (relevant colours)

baking trays

cake tins

casserole dishes

oven gloves

blender

food processor

tea towels

General space

chairs

tables

Books for library

Computers

large 2014 diary

scissors/ring binders/pens/notepads

carbon monoxide tester

fire alarms/fire blankets

sofas

room divider

projector (for films etc)

printer

bookshelf

cashbox/safe

ashtray for outside

stereo

first aid kit

speakers

Leaflets, zines, etc Display case

Posted in Campaign Update, inspire | Leave a comment

#Manchester Council Environment Executive Kate Chappell on #shale gas and #fracking -interviewed

Posted on March 4, 2014 by manchesterclimatemonthly

But not by MCFly*.

The folks at “Shale World”
shaleworld
seem a little confused about two things.

Firstly, the Councillor’s gender and secondly, the fact that the May conference of the shale gas industry has been shifted to Birmingham, (for reasons that have absolutely nothing to do with the protests at Barton Moss).
katechappellinterview
Cllr Chappell is asked to “give an update about shale development in Manchester?” She replies –

“Shale gas is something we have been regularly contacted by concerned residents. The Manchester City Council passed a resolution at a council meeting in July 2012, that said this council would support Friends of the Earth’s campaign on this issue. We decided we wouldn’t give any planning permissions for either exploratory sites or fracking sites until it was clear there are no scientific doubts regarding the process.”

It would be bad form (breach of copyright blah blah blah) to cut and paste more. The interview continues with questions on

What is your view about the supportive role that the government is showing towards shale gas?
How would you describe the public perception here of shale gas?
What would you like the EA [Environment Agency] and government to do?
Do you think shale gas will take off in the next couple of years?

You can read the whole thing (by clicking fwd on the slides – it does help their stats, and therefore their advertising rates), here.

Marc Hudson
whose Spanish isn’t as good as his English. #hypocrite?

* Scooped on our own turf. #dyingofshame

Posted in Fracking, Manchester City Council | Leave a comment

#Manchester Better Energy – better energy seems not to include greener energy… #climate #toast

Posted on March 4, 2014 by manchesterclimatemonthly

faqforbetterenergyThis “Dear Resident” email below comes to MCFly’s inbox, with the following comment;
“so – cheaper energy a good thing of course, but no green energy option in all this?  A distinct lack of joined up thinking here – especially as they used to be run from the GM Energy Saving Team… just saying…”
MCFly went and looked at the Frequently Asked Questions (see image). Nowt on the green-ness of it all.  And given how hopeless the Green Deal is looking, it’s almost as if we are toast rather than toasty…

 

Dear resident,

Time’s running out to reduce your energy bills – don’t miss the deadline of 9 March.

We emailed you a few weeks ago to tell you about the new energy auction we are running. This was because you registered for the energy auction the Greater Manchester councils ran last year but didn’t take up your offer – probably because it wasn’t competitive enough.

This is a reminder to let you know that the deadline to sign up is getting close, so don’t miss out – sign up today.

We’ve taken steps to change how you sign up so the process should be quicker and easier. We’ll also show you other deals on the market when you get your personalised auction offer. There’s no obligation to take up any offer and you might just get a better offer this time around.

We all know that the energy companies have been putting their prices up, so it’s a good time to act.

You can sign up for free at www.betterenergydeals.org.uk or by calling 0800 988 2426.

How it works:

  • Sign up by 9 March – it’s quick, simple and you won’t need a bill
  • We negotiate a great energy deal for everyone that signs up – the more people that sign up the better
  • From 10 March we’ll notify you of how much money you can save
  • If you choose to switch we’ll organise everything for FREE!

Don’t miss out – register now at www.betterenergydeals.org.uk or call Freephone 0800 988 2426.

Thank you
The Greater Manchester Better Energy Deals team

Posted in Energy | 2 Comments

#Manchester Ward Plans NOT dead, only resting. #Climate action needed in #local neighbourhoods

Posted on March 3, 2014 by manchesterclimatemonthly

Last week Manchester Climate Monthly published a story with the snappy title “Manchester has 32 wards. All should have ward plans. Only 9 do. People gonna have to do it for themselves.”

We’d done an investigation of whether the “ward plans” for the 32 wards of Manchester City Council could be found on a methodical search of the Council’s website. Very few could, and those were out of date.  We’ve just (as in 10 minutes ago, received a reply sent “on behalf of” the head of regeneration.  It’s published in full below.  The italicised bits are the question that were sent in. The take home is this – Ward Plans continue to exist, and there are ways (not always easy and obvious) to get involved…

 

Good afternoon Mr Hudson

Thank you for your enquiry the response is as follows

The internet team are investigating the reason for the Fallowfield area reflecting the Rusholme Ward Plan and the Higher Blackley East plan and we will respond as soon as we have an answer thank you for raising these issues with us.  

Qa)         If the other ward plans exist, and if so, where I can find them?

Aa)        As you have mentioned although some of the 2013/14 Ward plans are on the internet not all Ward Plans are currently available. We have been working with the Communications team on refreshing / updating the Council’s website’s ‘my area’ pages which will merge to  ‘ your neighbourhood’  pages. We are working with Communications on further improvements to the new page including adding a link to the current ward plan, CASH grant applications etc.

Qb)         Are there ward plans for the year 2014/5 in development?

Ab)        Yes these are refreshed with Ward members on an annual basis and, when agreed, will be uploaded to the internet.  

Qc)         If the ward plan system is in fact being abandoned or is delayed, (as seems to be the case)  could you point me to any prior announcement of this by the Council?

Ac)        Ward co-ordination is a key part of MCC service delivery and there are no plans to abandon the Ward plans.  Copies of ward plans can be requested through the relevant regeneration co-ordinators: Philip Bradley; Richard Jones; Ruth Billingham; Martin Saker or Jane Archer.  

Qd)         If there is no prior announcement, could you please provide a statement as to why the ward system is being abandoned.

Ad)        The Ward system is not being abandoned,

Qe)         Finally, if people in Manchester are interested in getting involved in helping create a ward plan for their ward, who should they contact? Is it their councillors?  Is there a a central email address for ward co-ordinators, or a list of co-ordinators for the 32 different wards?

Ae)         Established Tenant Resident  Associations (TRAs) and community based organisations are invited to be involved in the ward co-ordination process E.G via Twitter for example @MCCCrumpsall, attending resident meetings, and in some cases inviting council officer to their meetings /  walkabouts etc.  
Ward plans are shared with TRAs at various meetings and progress is reported on them at resident meetings throughout the year. TRAs are also involved in reviewing and refreshing ward plans. So for example, all of North Manchester’s ward plans are currently being updated for 2014/15. The next cycle of resident meetings will be involved in commenting on the previous year’s achievements and draft priorities for the coming year.

Different Wards have different arrangements which are dependant on the local engagement structures for example in Moss Side they have 2 engagement forums one for TRAs and one for the Voluntary Community Sector Groups.  The meetings are quarterly and involve consultation including Ward planning and priority settings.  
In Rusholme for example there is a representation of the community in the Ward Meetings.  

In areas without TRAs residents are engaged in the ward coordination process by attending ward coordination meetings and residents forums as well as receiving information via email and/ or twitter.

There is not a central email address for ward co-ordinators however if you scroll to the very bottom of the front page of the Council Internet Site and enter your postcode in the “your neighbourhood” box it will give an email address for your local Ward co-ordinator.  

Many thanks in advance for your reply to all these questions!

You are very welcome should you have any further queries please could you contact a member of the regeneration team in the first instance their details are.
Jane Archer@manchester.gov.uk
Ruth Billingham@manchester.gov.uk
Philip Bradley@manchester.gov.uk
Richard M Jones@manchester.gov.uk        
Martin Saker@manchester.gov.uk

Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

#Manchester Green Infrastructure Plan (progress report) to be scrutinised, Tues 4th March

Posted on March 3, 2014 by manchesterclimatemonthly

On Tuesday 4th March Manchester City Council’s bureaucracy will do something that is both note-worthy and praise-worthy. It will … present a “work in progress” document for inspection by elected members of the Council. The Green and Blue Infrastructure Strategy (green = parks etc, blue = canals, lakes etc) will be examined by members of the Neighbourhoods Scrutiny Committee, at their 2pm meeting in the Town Hall Extension. (The meeting is open to public, no need to book).

As the summary at the beginning of the 25 page document says –

“Mapping of the city’s Green Infrastructure (GI), partner consultation, evidence base scoping and research was undertaken in 2013. This identified the need for a robust local evidence base to be produced to underpin the strategy, for GI to be embedded across a range of Council policy documents, and the key role that external partners could play in its delivery.
This report provides a summary of the work to date. It describes the need to establish a clear understanding of the value of the city’s GI, in terms of its contribution to a range of social, economic and environmental objectives, and the work currently underway to establish this evidence base. It also provides an overview of a range of on-the-ground activities, setting out that work to continue to enhance the city’s GI resource is ongoing, running in parallel with the development of the strategy….

We asked our resident biodiversity expert Dave Bishop for questions and comments. He sent in the following –

1. Will the Council ensure that, in local green spaces, a proper balance is struck between visitor access and the conservation of biodiversity? In the past – particularly in the Mersey Valley – there has been an overwhelming emphasis on the former and the latter has been almost completely neglected.

2. Will provisions be put in place to manage Sites of Biological Importance (SBIs) and Local Nature Reserves (LNRs) in accordance with their written management plans?

3. Will provisions be put in place to ensure that linear features in the local environment, e.g. railway and tram tracks, roadside verges, cycle tracks and river and canal banks, are managed in such a way that they can act as viable wildlife corridors connecting together green spaces such as SBIs, LNRs, parks and gardens?

with the following recommendations.

1. Remember that tree planting is not a universal panacea for biodiversity loss. Any planted trees should be certified ‘disease free’ (remember Ash Die-back!).

2. Species-rich grassland is much more biodiverse than planted woodland. Ensure that any remaining scraps are conserved and appropriately managed. Create new ones using seed which is appropriate for the area.

3. Create more ponds.

The meeting starts at 2pm., with the Strategy one of the first agenda items.  Dave Bishop and MCFly editor Marc Hudson plan to be there, and would welcome other folks who want to see democracy inaction.

Posted in Biodiversity, Manchester City Council, Upcoming Events | Tagged | 4 Comments

Research Training for Activists, #Manchester Sat 15th March; Interview with Nick Hildyard

Posted on March 2, 2014 by manchesterclimatemonthly

Here’s an interview with Nick Hildyard of the Cornerhouse, who will be part of the “Research Training for Activists” workshop on Sat 15th March. There are still some places left on that – see below the video for more information

Over the coming week we will be putting up individual clips from it, but in my opinion the whole twenty minutes is worth your undivided attention right now…

Information is power. If you want to stop stupid things happening to your neighbourhood, city or planet, one of the things you need is accurate facts about who owns what, who is planning what. This very interactive training day will help you get research skills so you can investigate what local authorities, government and corporations have planned for your area.

It is free to attend, and will be held in Central Manchester on Saturday 15th March from 10.30am to 4pm.

The event is being organised by Manchester Climate Monthly and Manchester Citizenship, but IS open to people from all over the country (we are especially interested in for a good turn out from the North West).

Because we want the day to be genuinely interactive and useful to all, we are capping numbers at twenty-five. Please only apply if you can definitely come!
No prior experience is necessary, but we do want you to do some homework before you come (see below).

To apply, please send an email to mcmonthly@gmail.com with “Research Training” in the subject header, with your name and mobile phone number(s). You do NOT have to tell us who you are interested in researching. It would however help us if you would tell us
a) have you ever used the Freedom of Information Act?
b) have you ever done research on a company using Companies House?
c) have you ever done further research using other databases?

Posted in Upcoming Events | Leave a comment