May 2012

Tues 1 May NW Sustainable Futures Summit, Museum of Sicence and Industry.  It will cost you upwards of £75

Tuesday 1 May, 7pm for 7.30pm. Going Dutch: New homes, New travel arrangements in the Netherlands Transport consultant Richard Armitage is a member of SUNN, the Sustainable Urban Neighbourhoods Network. In autumn 2011 SUNN hosted a study tour of three Dutch cities to see how active travel opportunities can be designed into new developments.
Friends Meeting House
More details here

Weds 2 May, 2pm NB NEW TIME AND VENUE Dr Geoff Vigar (Newcastle) “Localism, Democracy and the State: an interpretive analysis of a Neighbourhood Planning Frontrunner”  HBS Planning Studio, second floor, HBS room 2.3.

Wed 2 May, 7.30-9.3pm Didsbury Film Society showing of ‘The Economics of Happiness‘. St James and Emmanuel Church, Barlow Moor Rd, Didsbury £4.50, includes wine/drinks/nibbles, good conversation afterwards!

Thurs 3 May Council elections

Friday 4th Climate Survivors meeting   call Pauline on 0777 992 3681 for the address – we often meet in someone’s house so we communicate this privately to those who are attending.

Sat 5 May

350.org are sending out a global invite….

In places from drought-stricken Mongolia to flood-stricken Thailand, from fire-ravaged Australia to Himalayan communities threatened by glacial melt, we will hold rallies reminding everyone what has happened in our neighborhoods. And at each of those rallies, from Kenya to Canada, from Vietnam to Vermont, someone will be holding a…dot. A huge black dot on a white banner, a “dot” of people holding hands, encircling a field where crops have dried up, a dot made of fabric and the picture taken from above — you get the idea. We’ll share those images the world around, to put a human face on climate change–we’ll hold up a mirror to the planet and force people to come face to face with the ravages of climate change.
1pm in Piccadilly Gardens…

Tues 8, 7pm Friends of the Earth full group meeting – on Bees. Greenfish Resource Centre, 46-50 Oldham St, City Centre

Weds 9 All shortlisted entries [for Greenbuild Awards] will be showcased in a dedicated part of Greenbuild Expo and announced with a celebratory dinner at Manchester’s Museum of Science and Industry.

9th & 10th Greenbuild Expo at Manchester Central. More than 100 seminars and workshops aimed at the built environment professional.

Thurs 10 May 11am coffee and registration, 11.30 am – 12.30 pm. SCI Seminar by Frank Geels entitled Sustainable production and consumption: A socio-technical transitions perspective. Conference Room 3.101, The Manchester Business School, Booth Street West, Manchester M15 6PB.

Thurs 10 7 to 9pm FoE Climate Subgroup meeting, Greenfish Resource Centre, Oldham St

Thurs 10, 8pm Green Party meeting informal meeting date on Thursday 10th May,  at The Claremont pub at 124 Claremont Rd, Moss Side M14 4RR from 8.00pm.  This will be a catchup following the recent elections.   Buses 101, 105 or 109 from Piccadilly Gardens; get off after the Phil Martin Centre on Princes Parkway (on the left), and turning into Claremont Rd the pub is on the right.

Fri 11- Sun 13 Resilient Cities 2012, (ICLEI conference), in Bonn, Germany
Preceding the UNFCCC Bonn Talks (14-25 May 2012)

Sat 12 12 noon to 1.30am Levenshulme Beer Festival. Klondyke Club. see http://www.manchesterbrewingcooperative.co.uk for details

Sat 12th May, 9am onwards Bicycle Village, Jackson’s Boat
Bicycle Village is a bike festival gathering together in one place independent bike shops, bike hire shops, cycling groups and organisations. Everyone who loves bikes or anyone who would like to know more about our two-wheeled friends are welcome to help us celebrate this wonderful human-powered machine.
See www.bicyclevillage.the-bike-barn.co.uk
Jackson’s Boat, by River Mersey at end of Rifle Road, Sale, M33 2LX (accessible by bike or on foot from Chorlton Green or Hardy Lane)

Mon 14, 7pm Greater Manchester Cycling Campaign monthly meeting, Friends Meeting House, Mount St

Weds 16 to Sat 19 May Future Everything. Art, Music, Ideas

Thurs 17 May, 5pm to 6pm ‘Building Cities for the Future – or how do you want to be living in 2050?’ – A Talk with Dr James Evans Room 4, University of Manchester Students’ Union, Oxford Road, Manchester, M13 9PR  Postponed

Friday 18th May, 7.30pm Running Order performance (Passenger 10)
a Virtual Migrants performance by artists Tracey Zengeni, Sai Murai, Razia Mohamed, Aidan Jolly, Tanha Mehrzad and Kooj Chuhan at the Creative Corner Café, 14 Milton Grove, Whalley Range, Manchester M16 0BP, UK Admission free
Connecting the climate with US wars, UK policing and the refugee experience is a challenge for aspiring radio presenter Amira.  A semi-improvised performance full of songs and poetry from contrasting geographies including Zimbabwe, Iran and the UK, performed in dialogue with the audience and accompanying the ‘Buy This’ video installation. ‘Running Order’ is the latest in the ‘Passenger’ series of events, involving the installation as an integral component.
Admission free – come early to be sure of a seat

Sat 19 May 11-am to 6pm Meat Free in Manchester (Albert Square)
The Vegetarian Society is launching National Vegetarian Week 2012 with Meat Free in Manchester, a free public event. Join us in the heart of Manchester for a day of fun, food and frolics for all the family, including:

* Interactive games
* Smoothie bikes
* Live cookery demos from Rose Elliott and the Cordon Vert Cookery School chefs
* Free information and food samples
* Live entertainment (including kids’ favourite Mr Bloom)

Sunday 20th May The Friends of the Fallowfield Loop will hold an opening ceremony for the new Levenshulme station community orchard and the refurbished Highfield Park ‘lattice footbridge’, starting at 11 a.m.

The planned programme for the event is:

* 11 a.m. at the orchard site (Crayfield Road/Kersh Avenue Loop entrance): opening remarks by Friends Secretary David Beetham, ceremonial tape-cutting by local residents and photo session.
* 11.30 a.m. (approximately) at the lattice bridge site: some reminiscences from Friends member (and Friends of Highfield Park chair) Alec Cowan, tape-cutting by him and St Andrew’s school representatives and photo session.

Weds 23 May  First meetings of rejigged Manchester City Council Scrutiny Committees – “Economy” and “Communities”.  The former committed itself to looking at Steady-State Economics. Will it ever do that? Time will tell.

Friday 25 May – Climate Jobs Caravan events
In Manchester the caravan will be in Piccadilly Gardens 11am to 3.30. All Saints from 4.15 till 6pm. The evening meeting will be at the Friends Meeting House (M2 5NS) from 7-9pm. Speakers will include Sir Richard Leese, Martin Empson from the Campaign against Climate Change and Hannah Thomas from the Otesha Project in London. We will argue that one million climate jobs could be created, cutting CO2 emissions by 80%, and we will call on the government to set up a National Climate Service (NCS) to invest in climate jobs.

Sat 26, 11am to 11pm ECODAYA “12 non stop hours of sustainable salsa fun” The Lifestyle Centre, Wythenshawe, M22 1QW

Mon 28 7pm, Withington Co-operative Eco-House meeting, upstairs in Fuel Cafe Bar to find out more.The Withington Co-operative Eco-house is a new project to enable a group of people to be given the opportunity to live together within the city in a more environmentally friendly and sustainable way.

An eco-refurbishment is currently underway, expected to complete by
September/October 2012. The house will provide accommodation for a household of six people, who we are currently looking for. No capital is required to join.

Please see http://www.coopliving.net for dates of future meetings, more information about the project, and to join our mailing list – or find us on Facebook.

Tues May 29 Greater Manchester Cycling Campaign meeting at Friends Meeting House, Manchester) and the discussion will start at 7pm prompt with an hour for informal networking with other delegates from 6pm to 7pm. The event will be designed to allow the maximum participation by delegates while referring to Richard Armitage for his professional experience in the sustainable travel field.

Thurs 31 May 2012, 6pm “Shale Gas in the UK: What, Where, Why, How?” Williamson Lecture Theatre, University of Manchester
Shale gas has developed over the past few years in the UK from a niche interest to a major potential source of indigenous gas- and an activity which has created much media interest. Ed’s talk will give a wide-ranging introduction to the subject, using examples from the UK and US. The reasons for why shale gas is possible now will be discussed, including advances in technology, a need for security of supply and the current gas market. Some of the main geological influences on prospective shales will be highlighted, including the influence of organic content, porosity and mineralogy, and some of the techniques used to evaluate potential reservoirs. Some of the main potential target horizons in the UK will be investigated, along with an outline of some of the main environmental considerations commonly associated with shale gas exploration and production.

The talk will be suitable as an introduction to the subject for a wide range of professionals, students and the general public with an interest in shale gas.
Speaker Ed Hough (Geologist and Team Leader, Data Capture and Best Practice – British Geological Survey)