Welcome to Debenham Area Transition – ‘Growing Greener’! (Jan 2010)

Growing Greener aims to engage our communities in creating a positive vision of a low energy and more resilient future, in response to the challenges and opportunities presented by climate change and peak oil. These aims are the same as the Transition Towns movement – www.transitiontowns.org

How we began
Following the screening of ‘The Age of Stupid’ (July 09) a group of local people from 4 villages got together to plan a public meeting in our local service town of Debenham.

The meeting in September explored a number of issues:

·        Growing our own food

·        Rural transport & car share/lift schemes

·        Renewable Energy & Improving energy efficiency of our buildings

·        Developing local, small scale renewable energy

·        Reduce, re-use, re-cycle

What we have been doing

An energy interest group has been working to increase the take up of Insulation schemes and an Insulation Audit was circulated via the Parish Magazines, Debenham Website and the Christmas Late Night Shop event. Audits can still be posted in a box at the Post Office & Resource Centre.

We also have been given 5 energy monitors by the Suffolk Climate Change Partnership, which are being circulated around Debenham and villages. If you would like to use one to watch your energy consumption, please contact growinggreener@hotmail.co.uk

Our aim is to follow the Transition Town movement in the Debenham Area and we will be making links with the Town Council and the Parish Councils to see how we can work together.

Some of our team have attended a weekend of Transition training and already have links with other Transition neighbours, as well as the ‘Transition East Network’. We receive support from the Suffolk Climate Change Partnership and Mid Suffolk District Council, who supported ‘Insulate Debenham’.

In Mid Suffolk, thermal imaging of local communities is planned. We have recently been informed that  there will be a free DIY insulation offer in the spring and we hope to have a clear response from anyone who would like to take up this offer, by completing the Insulation Audit (see question 3)

What you can do

Although we have been concentrating on our energy saving we want to look at other areas. We can’t move forward without you – contact us now to start an interest group, to join a group taking action or to register your support – growinggreener@hotmail.co.uk