Transition Town Tooting

Author: Transition Town Tooting

  • Tooting Community Garden…persistence in action!

    Sharing some pictures from the Community Garden – & we’re having a Garden working picnic on Sunday 15th July
    The gardeners (and plants) are persisting through the mixed weather  –

    

    Loads of broad beans
    in June

    

    Fertile conditions for all

    Great Willowherb
    Anti-slug mini greenhouses

    

    Water capture – and it supports the shed
    Beetle’s-eye view today of the potatoes
    planted two months ago during the
    Treasuring Tooting wellbeing walk
    Have a look again at the video which includes planting them:
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4RXo7G655SM&feature=player_embedded#!
    We’re having a Garden working picnic this weekend on Sunday 15th July, from 11:00 to 2:00 – all welcome. The garden is at the rear of the large house at 5 North Drive, on the south side of Tooting Common.
    There’s plenty of growing time left – and the 5th Tooting Foodival to look forward to on September 23rd. Do come and join us in the garden; for more info email Adrian at adifalconer@hotmail.com

  • Smartphone video reporting – taster training next Tuesday 3rd July 2012

    Ever fancied bypassing conventional media to talk directly to your own community and others all over the world? 
    Here’s your chance to learn how!
    This practical workshop has been developed by Mark Barto from visionOntv, and Patrick Chalmers, authour of Fraudcast News.

    Participants will learn to make short video reports for instant uploading to the web.

    Please come along – and bring a friend plus their smartphone if you don’t have your own phone!

    The workshop will be held at Mushkil Aasaan, 222 Upper Tooting Road, SW17, from 7-9pm. For details on booking, and on the types of phone that can be used, click here

    For details of other news highlighted in our latest ‘TTT email’, please click here
    And if you would like to receive this regular TTT email yourself, please contact us on transitiontowntooting@gmail.com

  • Two recent local low-carbon living events

    Carbon Conversations
    On Monday evening 25th June, we started our latest series of Carbon Conversations workshops with a talkative and diverse group. We will cover a lot – in particular focusing on what can be achieved at the individual, family and community levels.

    What are some of the participants’ reasons for joining? Responses included: ‘we’ve just moved – would like guidance on reducing carbon & energy use in our new home’; ‘I feel guilty that my footprint is too big’; ‘I’m concerned about the carbon impact of computer network servers’; ‘I’d like to know more about the financial aspects of reducing carbon’; ‘What grass-roots actions we can take?’

    Last evening we explored some of language & jargon of talking about ‘carbon’ as a shorthand for the impact of greenhouse gases, linked with energy use, cost saving, health, happiness, quality of life, and nature. Secondly we looked specifically at the numbers and relationships in measuring one’s carbon footprint: a valuable place to start.
    More to come!
    PS: thanks to Sophie at WBC for the Carbon Conversations shout-out at http://www.wandsworth.gov.uk/blog/recyclingblog/post/39

    Furzedown Low Carbon Zone (the ‘FLCZ’)
    At the Furzedown Festival’s Big Day Out on 23rd June, the FLCZ celebrated our first year of activities by having a pop-up AGM that ran through the afternoon, with any one who came to our stand. We had some great conversations with local people who would like to be involved – thank you. Please click here to read our short Annual Report, and please comment on our plans.

    We ran some games too – including the food chain game, in which players rank foods from high to low carbon impact, by lining up large-scale painted boxes from the market.
    Have a look below at some of the ways it was played….and come and try it sometime.

  • Rio+20: What if we got the future we want?

    On the evening of Wednesday 20th June a group in Tooting met to join in with the UK-wide Festival of Transition’s 24 Hours of Possibility. See http://www.festivaloftransition.net/experiments/67
    Why go to Rio when you can come to Tooting?

    For half the time we were catching up with the past and present.
    We had a lot of discussion, clarification and questioning based on hearing a BBC World Service programme on the run-up to Rio+20. 
    ( http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/p00stn02/One_Planet_Rio20_The_future_we_want/ )
    We explored the roles and representation at these summits – leaders, negotiators, lobbyists and NGOs, and ‘the people’: what is the quality of the exchanges and contacts?

    Then we did travel to our desired future, in groups, choosing a future role and an issue that we envisioned and then acted out to the rest of the group. A future family talked about new habits in purchasing and consumption… the local council proudly described to a journalist their achievements with energy (yes, the wool from the sheep on Tooting Common is being used as insulation in 2032)…a local shopkeeper showed off seasonal and local stock, and a customer went away with potatoes when they were looking for mangoes…

    It was great to see how much was covered and shared in a short time – when you are involved and listening.

    Thanks to all who came along to explore Tooting’s future now!

  • Carbon Conversations this June & July

    We’re starting a new series of fun and participative Carbon Conversations workshops on Monday June 25th at The Selkirk, Selkirk Rd, Tooting Broadway, from 630-830 pm, and continuing on the following three Mondays. Please click here for the detailed flyer.

    We’ll explore values, behaviours and feelings, and we will ‘count the carbon’ in our daily lives, so we can reduce our impact in 4 main areas: home energy, food, travel and transport, and consumption.

    You don’t need to be an expert: all welcome to join the workshops! 
    To join or ask any questions, please email us at transitiontowntooting@gmail.com

  • Transition Town Tooting hold regular planning meetings – all are welcome. Here are the pictorial notes from our last meeting on the 15th May. 
    Notes drawn by Jeni Walker – inspired by Alice Maggs. Click to enlarge.


  • We Have A Shop

    which sells nothing but offers much. Photos below and read Lucy’s Shop Diary to find out more.  Better still come down and discover for yourself at 68 Upper Tooting Rd, 10am-6pm till Sunday only! This link has full details of all the events.

  • Pictures and video of the Treasuring Tooting wellbeing walk

    Video of the day

    3 dozen photos from the Treasuring Tooting walk in slideshow format – enjoy!

  • The Treasuring Tooting walk was a success – and now the Transition Shop is open for another week

    On Saturday the 12th May we led our local wellbeing walk through Tooting and found a huge range of Treasure – the people we met (walkers who did some or all of the route, and the hosts at the venues), the surprising places we went, the conversations we shared, the stories we heard, the food and drink we were offered. The bee flew in the sun…

    We finished the walk at the Tooting Transition Shop, which is now open all day and every day through until Sunday 20th May (at 68 Upper Tooting Road, between The King’s Head and Tooting Bec tube station). At the celebration we did smash the bee piñata as promised – led by the Mayor of Wandsworth, Jane Cooper. Sadiq Khan MP had a bash too…then a group of children, and the artists who made the bee….until all the honeycomb treasure inside was found.

    Much more to share about the Walk and about everyone’s experiences in the Shop – on Monday a primary school class visited….maybe when you come and explore, you may have it to yourself, or maybe you will meet some new Tooting friends….

  • The Walk & The Shop

    There is such a lot of Transition in Tooting over the next 10 days!

    On Saturday (12th May) we hope as many as possible will be “Treasuring Tooting” by joining our wellbeing walk which will visit 12 different places in Tooting.  There will be a wide variety of activities and experiences across locations as diverse as the Bingo Hall, the Islamic Centre and the Community Garden.  Click here for the full plan for the day to see how you can join in!  And here for the Map.

    The final destination for the Walk will be the very exciting Tooting Transition Shop at 68 Upper Tooting Rd (formerly Xclusive Tiles & Bathrooms).  The Shop will be open every day between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. from Saturday until Sunday 20th May as part of the Wandsworth Arts Festival.

    Come and find out why this Shop has nothing for sale.  Come not to buy but to meet people, exchange stories, ideas, skills and food.