Monthly Archives: June 2015

More Balsam Bashing Dates!

25 Thursday Jun 2015

Posted by in Biodiversity, Events, Plants

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We’ve arranged a series of events around the town to help reduce the spread of an invasive weed, Himalayan Balsam. This plant grows quickly and spreads very rapidly, and is threatening both the number and variety of native plants, and also contributing to soil erosion once it has died back to leave bare soil in the winter. Initial Transition efforts to remove the plant in the Torrs were both successful and popular, so thanks to a Derbyshire County Council Greenwatch grant, we’re able to put on more events this year. Come and join us at the dates / venues below:

Sat 27 June 11:00-13:00,  Torrs, meet at Archie Torrs Hydro
Sun 28 June  11:00-13:00   Picker/SVT,    meet by old Pineapple pub, Salem Bridge
Sat  4 July   11:00-13:00   Picker   meet by old Pineapple pub, Salem Bridge

Wed   8  July    19:30-21:00   Torrs    meet at Archie Torrs Hydro
Sat 11 July   11:00-13:00  Mousley Bottom (tbc) Sat 18 July   11:00-13:00,   Picker  meet by old Pineapple pub, Salem Bridge
Sun 26 July   11:00-13:00,  Mousley Bottom (tbc)

Please put these in your diaries, it would be great to see you there!  Bring gardening gloves (some spares will be available) and stout footwear. No previous experience is necessary and brief training will be given.

Don’t forget, you can also Pledge to Pick a Patch of your choosing, for which you’d like to be responsible for keeping clear of balsam, or let us know if you want to be added to an informal list of bashers who prefer just to be alerted if anyone is going out bashing for an hour on an evening.  If you’d like to lead a session, similarly please let us know.

Your Money Affairs

20 Saturday Jun 2015

Posted by in Events

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Got a little money – lump sum or recurrent – you want a decent return from, but you want put to good use, avoiding unwise and ethically unsound investment? Or, maybe, you find ordinary credit lines difficult to access and want a responsible lender? Then read on…

Our friends at Sustainable Hayfield have organised an evening focused on ethical finance – the use of money to achieve commercial returns via ethically and environmentally sound practices. It’s at The Royal Hotel, Thursday July 2nd, from 8.00p.m.

They’ve managed to get senior people from some key financial institutions to come to Hayfield, to make presentations on what they do, their ethical stance, the products and advice they offer – and take questions from audience members. They include The Co-operative Bank, Investing Ethically (nationally-renowned independent ethical advisers with a deep commitment to ethical financial planning, linked to Quakers and Business) and the Manchester and High Peak Credit Union. And the event will be chaired by a staff member from Ethical Consumer magazine, based in Manchester.

Laurie from Sustainable Hayfield says, “It’s quite a coup to get these all to come. We’re fairly sure there’s not been anything like it in Hayfield before! Many of our supporters may have considered – at least in  principle – about how their investments might be more ethically-based but maybe haven’t known where to go for advice and information. This event may open doors, and answer questions, for all of us. We hope very much you’ll join us!”

The evening follows their AGM, being held at 7.30p.m., to which you’re also invited. It’s very brief and unfussy. If you like what you know about Sustainable Hayfield and want to get more closely involved/help shape their activities, contact their Chair, Cath Moss (cathmhayfieldsustain@btconnect.com).

 

International Transition Conference 2015

14 Sunday Jun 2015

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Transition Network International Conference 2015

September 18th-20th, Seale-Hayne, Devon, UK

The Transition Network is planning its next major Conference in the UK this year. The organisers are looking to create a truly international event, inviting worldwide attendance from the movement and creating a melting pot of inspiration, creativity and connection. Experience suggests that those who attend find the event rejuvenating, affirming and that it deepens their awareness and connection to Transition. Attendees look forward to the Conferences with excitement and this one is going to be very, very special.

If you would like to attend on behalf of Transition New Mills, we would happily subsidise you (probably very generously) from the training budget we got from Derbyshire County Council, although you must be a member. (We’ll let you join just for this if you’re not already!)

Conference details, including location, transport, ticketing and accommodation options, are available at the conference website:

https://conference15.transitionnetwork.org

If you can’t attend in person, you can take part in the Global Webcast: The global webcast will be an interactive event held during the conference aimed at deepening connections with Transitioners around the world. It will be an opportunity for Transitioners worldwide to engage with Transition Network, Hubs and others in the Movement. More details will be available about the webcast on the conference website soon.

If you have any questions, please contact the Project Coordinator,
Dan Hurring (conference@transitionnetwork.org)

AGM and Steady State Manchester

08 Monday Jun 2015

Posted by in Economy, Events

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We’re doubling up our Annual General Meeting this year with an event from Steady State Manchester (open to non-members). Those who saw this group speak in Buxton recently said they provided a stimulating, engaging and fun evening.

Can we live well, with greater equity and within planetary limits? Steady State Manchester thinks we can. They will invite us to combine our knowledge and experiences to explore how we can achieve this and how we might get there.

Steady State Manchester believes an alternative approach to economic development is essential. They call this ‘viable economics’, making decisions in terms of a ‘Safe Operating Zone’ for humanity, which includes:

  • Re-localising food and other production in and near to the city, providing decent green jobs and more income equality
  • More money staying local and more control over savings and investment
  • Targeting wealth towards energy efficient, affordable housing and investing in other local, green and ethical enterprises
  • Taking away the focus from growth for growth’s sake.

For more detail, see their new report ‘The Viable Economy’: http://steadystatemanchester.net/our-reports.

The AGM will begin at 7.30pm, Monday 29 June at the Volunteer Centre, Union Road. We’ll keep it short and from 8pm or before, we move on to the session with Steady State Manchester. We’ll be out and finished by 9.30pm at the latest.

An agenda for the AGM plus this year’s reports are attached.

Entry is £3 (£1 low-waged) but is free to members of Transition New Mills. You will be able to join on the night – it’s currently £3-£10 depending on how much you feel you can afford.

Everyone is welcome but you can only vote if you’re a member. Note that renewals of membership for the coming year are now due.

Once again, the Steering Group aren’t proposing any changes to our constitution but if you wish to propose any, please let us know in advance so that we can make sure time is given to discuss and vote on them.

The AGM is also the time to elect people to manage and facilitate activities for the group. We have an Administrative Group of 3 people (Julian Ashworth, Mike Daw and Angharad Hughes). If you would like to nominate yourself for this group, please let us know. We can take nominations up to one hour before the meeting. If you’re thinking about seeking election to the Administrative group, do get in touch and one of us will be happy to talk with you about what’s involved. Note that we’ll be asking each of the candidates to say a few words about themselves before holding the vote so, if you are nominating yourself, please come prepared.

We hope to see you there!

AGM 2015 Agenda

Activity report 2014-15

Membership report 2014-15

Accounts 2014-15