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Transition New Mills Reading Group

23 Thursday Jul 2020

Posted by barnabycrawshaw in Uncategorized

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The New Mills Transition Reading Group meets monthly, currently on Zoom, to discuss a book, watch a film/video or host a speaker. This month we discussed Why I’m No Longer Talking to White People About Racism by Reni Eddo-Lodge. We are all white but some have close family members and friends who are people of colour.

Participants liked the book, found it readable and appreciated the author’s use of her personal experiences and anecdotes to explain well, in a few words, the situations and double binds that black people find themselves in when talking to white people about racism.

We found useful her explanation of the difference between prejudice and racism (prejudice plus power) and the discussion of institutionalised and structural racism. We found useful, if uncomfortable, her critique of the liberal approach which says ’everyone is equal’ but denies the existence of the power imbalance.

The chapter on black history was good and led to a discussion about the slave trade, the  development in the 19th century of a pseudoscience of racism, and the ways in which groups are deliberately ‘dehumanised’ in order to allow exploitation, discrimination, mistreatment or justify war. We looked at how the definitions and categories of racism have changed over time and place.

We discussed the powerful role of the media and culture in shaping and supporting racist ideology but noted that this reflects the structures of power in our society. Living in a small, predominantly white town whiteness is easily seen as the norm and we need to make more visible the diversity of backgrounds that we already have in order to challenge that assumption.  We discussed the section on feminism, racism in the women’s liberation movement (several of us are watching Mrs America) and the issue of intersectionality of different oppressions.

Being white and looking at racism from the position of privilege is uncomfortable but inaction is collusion. She puts it to white people to talk to each other and take action. We discussed experiences of interrupting racist comments and the Quaker response ‘I wouldn’t see it that way myself’. Change needs to happen in tandem between personal change together with social and institutional changes. Other suggestions from the group were – be friendly to counteract the hostility of white racism, get comfortable acknowledging mistakes.

Flatpack Democracy – Cafe Transition event

22 Monday Jun 2020

Posted by barnabycrawshaw in Uncategorized

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We are delighted to welcome Peter Macfadyen, author of the renowned book Flatpack Democracy (and 2!).

Starting in the Somerset town of Frome in 2013, the Flatpack Democracy movement has shown that by standing as a group of independent local councillors working closely together, people all over the country can and do steer their local councils to thrive and prosper. Flatpack Democracy is a practical guide and inspiration!

Join us on Thursday, 2 July 2020 from 19:30-21:30, using the link below:

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83256460019?pwd=ZC9ab0FiVTlvdHFvVkhWb3phK3duUT09

Feel free to invite your friends, too!

For further reading in the meantime, click here: https://www.flatpackdemocracy.co.uk/about/

New Mills 2030 is here!

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Posted by barnabycrawshaw in Uncategorized

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Click here to have a look…. https://transitionnewmills.org/nm2030/

https://transitionnewmills.org/nm2030/

Transition New Mills Reading Group

29 Friday May 2020

Posted by barnabycrawshaw in Uncategorized

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The Transition New Mills Reading Group continues to meet monthly on Zoom, to discuss a book, watch a film/video or host a speaker. This month we discussed Dieter Helm’s book Green and Prosperous Land – A Blueprint for Rescuing the British Countryside.

Dieter Helm is an economist and brings a pragmatic view to the discussion of how to repair the damage that has been done to the environment in the UK. He explains the concept of Natural Capital, these are free, natural assets. Some are non-renewable such as fossil fuels, others are productive on an ongoing basis and will deliver returns for ever unless they are damaged below a base survival level, for example our rivers/water supplies, land, marine environment etc

There are three principles underlying his proposal – Public money should only be used for public goods, the Polluter should pay and there should always be a Net environmental gain. He presents a strong argument for the inclusion of external costs (eg pollution) in the cost of things as this will lead to changes in behaviour. (we referred to the plastic bag charge several times as an example of how things can change behaviour overnight).

He chaired a government committee which has drawn up a 25 year plan to restore and improve the natural environment in the UK. It involves major changes to taxes, subsidies, regulation and enforcement but argues for local non profits (ie not government or private sector) to be the main agents to carry out the delivery. This is a very detailed and comprehensive plan which shows what can be done with the resources available to turn environmental degradation around.

We had some criticisms – that it only refers to the UK and some issues are global (eg. the aviation industry) and/or involve our relationship with other countries (for example food security) and there is no reference to wider issues such as class or decolonisation which could be relevant to the current situation.

Discussion Group: The Impact of Eating

03 Thursday Oct 2019

Posted by Julian Ashworth in Discussion, Food, Uncategorized

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The New Mills Transition Reading Group meets monthly in someone’s home to discuss a book or, occasionally, to watch a film/video or host a speaker. At the September meeting we discussed George Monbiot’s article in the Guardian on 9th August, ‘Here’s the true cost of eating meat. It’s worse than you think’ together with the piece on Silvopasture in ‘Drawdown’ edited by Paul Hawken and other online articles which deal with related subjects.
The George Monbiot article is here:
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2019/aug/08/ipcc-land-climate-report-carbon-cost-meat-dairy
Links to other articles that contributed to our discussion were:
https://science.sciencemag.org/content/360/6392/987
https://greenallianceblog.org.uk/2019/08/20/whats-the-beef-with-beef/
https://www.greenbiz.com/article/6-reasons-why-practice-silvopasture-will-help-save-modern-farming
Monbiot argues in favour of stopping eating meat because of its carbon footprint and to completely cease meat and dairy production in order to increase the rewilding of the countryside. Some thought that these were not the only possibilities and this generated a discussion about land use.
One of the background pieces for Monbiot’s article talks about a variation between best and worst producers of meat by a factor of 50 in terms of environmental impact so it was argued that if the worst producers could be targeted then this would have a far bigger impact than trying to stop production altogether. In addition, mixed farming can use animal manure for fertiliser, reducing dependency on chemicals and associated repercussions like runoff and water pollution.
The discussion included the issue of protein and where that comes from in a plant based diet. Also, referring back to an earlier book (The way we eat now by Bee Wilson) there is the issue of the economics of the food industry and the issues around providing cheap and nutritious food.
The general opinion was that there needs to be a significant reduction in meat consumption and a cultural shift to see a plant based diet as healthier and cheaper. Some of this is already taking place. In addition, it’s not just about personal choice, changes are needed at a government level including the revision of agricultural subsidies to assist the transition and the need for major changes in the food industry. One article mentions the need for a ‘just transition’ for farmers so they are paid properly for the food that they produce.
We discussed food security and the comment in Monbiot’s article about the 55% of UK cropping land being used for livestock feed. Monbiot heavily criticises extensive as against intensive farming of meat but (as discussed with Isabella Tree’s book Wilding) extensive farming can encourage increased biodiversity. Also, the carbon footprint of meat production may conflict with the issue of animal welfare. There are both ethical and environmental grounds for changing to a plant based diet but some may be more amenable to a process of reduction rather than sudden elimination.
Our next meeting is Monday October 21st at 8pm and the book is The Wall by John Lanchester
You don’t have to read the books to come along – someone will give a synopsis and all input to the discussion is welcome. Email transition.newmills@gmail.org for details of venue.

Many thanks to Sue Cooper for the post.

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