Low Carbon Driving

One of the world’s largest eco car trials has begun in the UK. Eight car makers have been awarded 25 million pounds in prize money from the British Government. This will be used to fund the next generation of greener car - electric, hydrogen and hybrids.

The aim of the trial is to get the cars onto the road, show people how they operate and test their effectiveness in real driving situations.

You can view Maryam Moshiri’s report from the BBC here.

The Green Interior Sustainable Design

The National Design Academy which is based right here in Nottingham, overlooks the river Trent and is set in the most beautiful and tranquil spot near the Nottingham Racecourse. Just a bike ride away from West Bridgford ( 15 minutes).

They are offering a workshop which will provide a balanced and holistic view on sustainability and sustainable design. It will include advice and information on environmental issues and responsible design. The workshop will offer an overview of architecture, landscape design, interior design and products with eco-credentials. The workshop will help to make informed and appropriate choices for the products and systems we use, strengthening responsibility towards the environment in which we live and those we share it with.

Purpose of Workshop: To offer an approach to interior design which takes into consideration the environment

Aims of Workshop: To develop an understanding of sustainable design; To apply a sustainable approach to interior design

Dates: June 18th, Thursday August 6th, Monday November 9th.
For more information or to book a place on the course £79. However, if a booking is placed by 3pm on 9th June and you quote The Ecolist, you will receive we would discount this total by £10.

The National Design Academy on 01159 1234 12.

Bamboo Brilliance

The things you can do with bamboo!! We just found this lovely website which sells a wide selection of bamboo items ranging from towels and clothing to fabric and baby items.

At Well Cultivated they concentrate their efforts on eco fabrics and textiles and the luxury products that can be produced from them. So, if you are looking for something which is good for your health, good for the environment and the workers who create the products take a browse round their website.

Well cultivated has been set up by Dave and Dora who both decided they didn’t want to have to work for anyone again and avoiding long, tiring commutes into London. So they moved to Nottingham to try to achieve this.

Their ideals are direct and simple - to make living more ethical and by selling products that they use themselves every day.

The site is easy to move round, has some great products and is well worth a look.


www.wellcultivated.co.uk

Green Weeks are nearly upon us!

In the next couple of weeks we will see the annual festival of Green Weeks where hundreds of people will combine their efforts to celebrate a green Nottinghamshire.

There are so many lovely activities organised over 3 weeks, some in the school holidays, that I thought you might like to take advantage of them.Please try and stay in the spirit of Green Streets and walk, cycle, car share or use public transport wherever you can.For full details see: Green Weeks

FREE Shower Smart water device

What is this all about?

Eaga, an energy efficiency provider and store, which sometimes delivers government energy saving programmes, has 100,000 free Showersmart devices, which make your shower more energy efficient, to give away to households in England, Scotland and Wales. Plus if you’re over 70 or receive means tested benefits (eg working tax credit, income support, housing benefit etc.) you can get 4 free energy saving light bulbs.

How do I get one?
Go to the eaga website and select if you are applying for just the Showersmart or the energy light bulbs too. Then just ‘click to apply’, ‘add to cart’, ‘checkout’ and enter your name and address. It should be dispatched within 6 to 8 weeks. They are only available while stocks last but with 100,000 on offer this shouldn’t run out any time soon. Its likely you will receive details of further offers, so beware if you dont want that.

How does the Showersmart work?
The Showersmart is a small device that you attach to your shower that claims to make it more energy efficient.The unit works by regulating the flow of water through your taps to an even 7.8 litres per minute, which according to the manufacturer saves a two person household £20 year in energy costs & water meter users £20/year too.The unit is about 5cm long and fits between your tap and the end of the shower hose. It’s supposed to be really easy to fit, so you don’t need a plumber to help.

Does it fit my shower?
The Showersmart is suitable for all mains-pressure showers where hot water comes from a combi-boiler or hot water tank. This includes non electric showers and bath/shower mixer taps but does not include electric showers, showers with multiple jets or rainwater showers.

Quick facts on eaga ShowerSmart
Save up to £600 over the product's lifetime.
Save up to £20 per year* on fuel bills.

Save up to £20 per year* if your water is metered.
15 Year manufacturer guarantee.
Easy self-installation.
Suitable for use with non-electric mixer showers or bath/shower mixer taps, provided they run off the mains water pressure.
Works by regulating the water flow, saving you water, energy and money

Out with the Old...in with the New

I read this article in the National Geographic Go Green magazine
and thought it might be of interest to most people who live in the UK.

What to do with that much-loved pair of old shoes?

They may have seen better days but after years of loyal service, do they really deserve the tragic fate of he dustbin?

Apparently not, Many of us hoard our footwear in dark forgotten cupboards rather than throw them out with the rubbish. But why let those tired old flip-flops, slippers and wellies gather dust when you can do something useful and recycle them with Brantano?

In almost every African village, footwear can provide a major source of income and can be a lifeline for poverty sticken communities. By participating in Brantano's 'new for old' campaign your unwanted shoes could be delivered directly to African traders who will repair, clean and poslish them back to their best. The shoes can then be sold locally for an amount which although, modest, helps maintain and strengthen this essential cottage industry.

'New For Old' is a very simple concept. Take your old footwear no matter how worn or smelly, to any of the 149 Brantano outlets and for each pair you will receive a £10 off voucher. This voucher can then be put towards a brand new pair of stylish shoes from Brantano's hugh spring summer collections when you spend £40 or more.

For your nearest store call: 0870 990 1600 or visit www.brantano.co.uk

Green Streets West Bridgford launch on 24th April

On Friday 24th April, West Bridgford is invited to leave their cars at home and make a special effort to walk, cycle or use public transport to make the streets safer and quieter for all who want to join in.

Wear something Green and you may get special discounts and incentives from our local pub, shops and even the church.

For more information about all the events and activities organised see: http://www.greenstreetswb.blogspot.com/

If you don't live in West Bridgford, why not join in or set this up in your town. That's what Karina Wells did when she read about the scheme in Cambridge Mass. in the US where Janie Katz-christie set the scheme up 3 years ago.

Looking around my allotment complex you can see daily people walking up and down with wood to make their own raised beds. The end result can be very successful. Not all of us have time or expertese to make this in one's own backgardens. Now Recycle Works has come up with a very aestetically pleasing, very flexible Raised Garden Plots . For those of you that have a little bit more space this might be just the thing to start your own mini allotment in your own garden or back yard and compost at the same time!Wooden Raised Beds

These easy to assemble garden plots comprises 8 pointed posts - ready for knocking into the ground and eight sides boards.Special Offer! For a limted period of time, this product is available with a 10% discount.To purchase with the discount, please visit the Special Offers section. Watch a video review of our raised beds courtesy of http://www.gardencentretv.co.uk/ Price £53.34

The Queen Switches Off

We mentioned, last week, about the pending Earth Hour “switch off” (see the original item here).

There are already lots of images of how successful the event was around the world. Many people followed the various city switch-offs via networking site Twitter, which kept them up-to-date as the lights went out around the globe.

Even Buckingham Palace, in London, took part. Have a look at the photo here.

Local Food in Nottingham

I am a participant at the Hive business incubator at Nottingham Trent University is working towards setting up a locally sourced (reduced food miles) and environmentally friendly supermarket, hopefully in Nottingham. As part of the market research, there is a web survey which includes a chance to win £25. With the growing green community in Nottingham, this project may be of interest.

As many responses as possible are needed,. so please complete the survey and then forward it on to friends, family and colleagues. There is a £25 prize for one lucky respondent in a prize draw when the survey closes, so please do take part! It's a straightforward questionnaire taking around 5 minutes to complete.

Here's the link:

Kind regards
Helen Pack
helenpack@hotmail.com

Vote with Your Light Switch

We are forever being told that if we each do a little, we can achieve a lot. Here is a chance to do very little and make a massive impact.

On SATURDAY 28th March you can join Earth Hour. Vote for the fight against global warming and switch off a light for one hour. Unlike other campaigns where we have been asked to switch off lots of things all evening - this is painless.

Earth Hour has been transformed, this year, into a global election. For the first time in history, people of all ages, nationalities, race and background have the opportunity to use their light switch as their vote – Switching off your lights is a vote for Earth, or leaving them on is a vote for global warming.

WWF are urging the world to VOTE EARTH and reach the target of 1 billion votes, which will be presented to world leaders at the Global Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen 2009.

It all started in Sydney during 2007, when 2.2 million homes and businesses switched off their lights for one hour (Earth Hour). In 2008 the message had grown into a global sustainability movement, with 50 million people switching off their lights. Global landmarks such as the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, Rome’s Colosseum, the Sydney Opera House and the Coca Cola billboard in Times Square all stood in darkness.

This year it is VOTE EARTH. More details can be found on their website, www.voteearth2009.org

Join in by switching off your lights for one hour on Saturday, March 28th, 8.30 - 9.30 pm.