Transition Town Tooting

Category: Other stuff

A place to gather things that have no category!

  • the heART of the libraries: videos from a community group project in Tooting Library

    the heART of the libraries interactive project has been devised by artist Sam Haynes who has been piloting it with Wandsworth Libraries since the new year, and some of the results are can be seen in Tooting Library until the end of April.

    Two of us from TTT have been involved – this is a creative and original project which is working with diverse local groups and new technology. It’s all about new skills and ‘social’ sustainability linked with the accessible and welcoming community setting of local libraries.

    For example, members of the South London Tamil Welfare Group took part in a short workshop where they learned to use iPads, coached by Chris Nash from the Wandsworth City Learning Centre.



    Even though many participants had never touched an iPad before…

    …very soon they were onto the next step, which was to make a short video of subjects in the Library itself, recording their own commentary alongside the images..

    Now these videos are on view in Tooting Library by a very novel method – each video is accessible via a unique barcode which can be read by a smartphone or iPad with the Microsoft Tag application.

    You’ll find this on the App Store, or download to an android phone from http://gettag.mobi

    Here is one of the barcodes from the set by this group.

    If you download the app to your phone, you will be able to scan this barcode image as it’s shown here on TTT’s blog, in order to see one of the project videos.




    If you go to Tooting Library in the next week, with the app installed on your phone, you can find the other barcodes throughout the libary, and see all the other videos too.
    Sam’s website: http://www.samhaynesart.blogspot.co.uk/

    This technique has encouraged me to think about including this appoach in our Community Garden, Tooting Foodival or Gatton School projects. Children or adults could quickly share their own reponses to their experiences, and participate in fascinating new ways to communicate a story made of images, music or commentary in any language….and we can even design our own barcodes (seasonal vegetables?) to suit each project!  – Charles

     

  • Three practical local projects: do join us!

    Furzedown Low Carbon Zone
    We had a productive monthly planning meeting last week – please see the minutes and actions here. 
    In outline we’re at the stage of visiting local partners to explore sites where there is space and interest to be involved by ‘hosting’ renewable energy generation equipment – whatever technology is appropriate – and sharing in the benefits.
    A second stage will be to engage with local people who can become involved as co-owners of a community generation scheme. The Furzedown Festival in June is a target for that, certainly for informal sharing of the project.
    Next planning meetings are on 8th May and 3rd June in Furzedown…please come along if you would like to be involved at this stage. Details will be on the TTT Events Calendar on this blog. Contact us on this email link for any further information.

    Eighth series of our ‘Carbon Conversations’ meetings
    We are going to offer a free series of local Carbon Conversations from the 19th May to early July this year. Running on Monday evenings (with one Tuesday for luck), this will be a set of six participative meetings which enable individuals to discuss, understand and take control of their carbon footprint, and work out ways to reduce energy consumption and expenses.

    It’s a very engaging and practical set of meetings…..and even fun.
    We’ll cover home energy, food, travel and transport, and general consumption of ‘stuff’.
    All the details are in the flyer for this next series: please click here.
    Please contact Charles at transitiontowntooting@gmail.com with any questions.

    ‘Cleaner Air 4 Communities’ Project
    This project brings citizen science and local action to the challenge of measuring and advocating for clean air. The toolkit – click here to link to a pdf copy – describes some of the steps that can be taken by a community group.
    Graham Petersen recently took part in air quality measurement at Clapham Junction, with the Battersea Society (there’s a case study on this experience in the toolkit). There is some funding available to support this project, and Graham is investigating that, with a view to improving air quality in Tooting. Please use the Furzedown Low Carbon Zone contact email for more info.

    All welcome to join in with these three projects. Please get in touch!

  • Macro & Micro

    Trying to read today’s report from the IPCC about the effects of climate change on our planet, along with a mass of media commentary, feels like swimming through treacle, but the overall message is clear: the climate is changing like never before and with a high degree of certainty, the activities of our species are the major contributor. 

    Watch the BBC’s short animation
    Though that might be evident to some (interested in for example and in no particular order peak oil, resource depletion, unsustainable fishing, pollutative extraction, toxic waste … please go on ad nauseam to yourself), it’s always good to get a reminder of the situation we face.  Human activity is screwing up the planet for humans and countless other species on a monumental scale.
    So here in south London, TTT is one of the global network of Transition Towns trying to take actions at the micro level to turn this destructive juggernaut around.  Not easy and it can seem like a drop in the ocean, but then an ocean does actually come from many raindrops …
    https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B5nR_h8Rei_2cUVRcVhuY0FaUUU/editOne “raindrop” here was our successful growing & seed swap event aiming to reconnect people to the growing cycle and the possibility of greater sustainability, and we hope that Tooting will be full of fruit, vegetables and flowers as a result.  Congratulations to Caroline Partridge, the lucky winner of one month’s worth of vegetables, generously donated by Abel and Cole.  Caroline happened across the event on her walk through Tooting on Saturday and has since planted plenty of the seeds out in pots in her garden.  We hope you enjoy your prize Caroline!
    Meanwhile, Tooting Community Garden tips for growing potatoes, runner beans and sweetcorn can be found by clicking the picture of all those lovely Foodival growers from last autumn.  Will you be joining them?  Could you grow Tooting’s biggest sunflower?

  • TTT SMArT Notice board update: 18th March 2014

    Arts & Making Happening Right Now In Tooting, courtesy of SMArT

    The newest items on the board this week are are on yellow post-its. You can email Jeni for more info on jeniannewalker@gmail.com. Alternatively just take the contact details from the post-it you are interested in.


    Great news for our next Meet & Make!
    Cressida from the Wandle Valley Girls Project has very kindly offered share the project with us as our feature make for April and you are invited. Attendees work will be exhibited as part of the chealsea fringe. ( work can be collected to keep at the end).
    Just for this special workshop Jeni is asking for people to let her know if they are planning to come so we can be sure of numbers. Cressida will be providing transported materials, and her expertise at cost and effort so lets make the most of this fantastic opportunity! email Jeni on Jeniannewalker@gmail.com

    Dates for your diary
    9th April: Meet & Make – Sprout – Wandle Valley Girls Project 
    14th May: Meet & Make – Sprout – Furzedown Oak project 
    11th June: Meet & Make – Sprout – Activity TBC 
    9th July: Meet & Make – Sprout – Activity TBC

  • Ecobuild 2014

    This year’s Ecobuild had plenty to catch the eye and ear.  I was particularly interested in the Resource section on reuse and the circular economy. Here’s three projects which sounded good:

    • The RSA’s Great Recovery Project about how redesigning systems can help conserve valuable resources and minimise waste. 
    • The London Re-use Network who give young people a chance to develop skills repairing unwanted household items which are then provided to those most in need, in social housing for example, at the same time saving more dumping in landfill. 
    • Rentez-vous which enables women to rent fashion items from each other and from fashion houses rather than buying wardrobes full of things rarely to be worn.

    Meanwhile a seminar we attended on Community Energy will definitely be helpful for the Furzedown Low Carbon Zone project.  As well as these highlights, Ecobuild as usual hosted the best in sustainable design, construction and renewable energy.  It’s invariably an inspiring event to sample all the latest ideas and to gather useful information.             dt

  • Meet & Make update from SMArT

    The Meet & Make at Sprout last Wednesday was really relaxing. The next time I feel like stepping off the treadmill of life for a few moments I might just reach for another ‘cathedral window’ quilting project which was our featured craft. Just look what we achieved in the 2 hours! It turns out it is more simple to do than it looks.Thanks go to Grandma Lawes in Salisbury who was caring enough to share this skill with me and, now lots of us.

    All hand sewn
    and to keep you up to date with Arts In Transition locally, here is the SMArT Notice Board.
    Things are warming up
    for info or questions about making and arts in Tooting you can send Jeni an email on jeniannewalker@gmail.com

  • Tooting Transitioners Visit Lewes

    The sunshine on Saturday was a welcome break after long weeks of endless rain and stormy weather. It turned out to be a special day as a core group of Tooting Transitioners ventured out on their first outing to the historic market town of Lewes in East Sussex in hope of a “Fun Day Out”.

    Juliet from Transition Town Lewes met us at the station and showed us around, our first stop being to buy some Lewes Pounds, which have an established presence in many of Lewes’s shops and businesses. After a breeze through a vibrant farmers’ market, we headed to Seedy Saturday, a busy well attended event with a plethora of stands selling and swapping seeds, exchanging ideas on everything from growing fruit and vegetables to wild basketry and pottery.

    Whilst the sun was still out, the group decided to take in the local sites. Lewes is a cute market town with a castle on top of a hill and lots of narrow alleyways and twittens.  Few high street chains clutter up the high street here, but instead numerous individual shops, cafes and restaurants attract the eye. Lewes really is an idyllic place to spend exploring on a Saturday afternoon.

    After a hearty lunch at the Lewes Arms washed down with a pint or two of Harveys, we got the opportunity to enjoy a good chat and exchange ideas with Lewes transitioners, and compare the joys of living in our respective boroughs.

    After a further meander around town and down to the Ooze flood plain we were ready to finish our afternoon with another pint in the Snowdrop, the site of a tragic avalanche of snow (hence the name) which killed a number of Lewes cottage dwellers in that area.

    By now the TTTers and TTLers were on very friendly terms and before we kissed and departed we promised to keep in touch with each other in the hope that one day they too could be tempted to venture out to sample the delights of Tooting.  Malsara

  • Community Renewable Energy in Furzedown


    We want to share this exciting news from the Furzedown Low Carbon Zone (FLCZ) AGM last week. There’s no time like the present, and we have decided to take the plunge and try our hardest to establish a community renewable energy project in Furzedown.

    What will that look like?

    In outline we’ll be supporting the generation of local power that should bring local benefits; probably a co-operative enterprise with a legacy for the future.  There are several models for this across the UK and abroad, and there is good local advice available: at the same time it is a pioneering project, and it will be challenging.

    Much more information to come as we get going, and we welcome local participation, partners, and support. We have a diverse team who want to make this work. More contributors welcome!

    We covered other topics too in the AGM, and the FLCZ aims to keep being active on accessible social, behavioural and technical projects that help demonstrate the value of low-carbon living, now.
    Links: 2014 AGM minutes  For background: 2013 Annual Report.

  • Furzedown Low Carbon Zone AGM – Thursday 23rd January

    Furzedown Project, 91-93 Moyser Road, SW16 6SJ
    We have postponed the AGM, originally scheduled for January 16th, to next Thursday 23rd January from 7:30-9:00 pm.
    The FLCZ was established in 2011 to promote practical local action on sustainability, energy efficiency, and green jobs.
    We are considering a community renewable energy generating project, and will be discussing this among other topics…..all welcome!

  • Meet & Make Tonight

    Much like a tree in winter the Meet & Make notice board is looking a little sparse due to the season, we are all drawing our energies and preparing for flourishes throughout the rest of the year!

    Do check out the picture for what is going on and get in contact or chat to me tonight for more info on any of the items.Meet & Make Notice Board page #0-1
    And not to worry as this just leaves us with more making time at our Meet & Make tonight which is now confirmed to be at Sprout, who are kindly lending us the venue, at 6:30 – 8:30ish. See side bar on the right for the address.
    We have an official feature craft tonight which will be making ‘Ribbon  Zipper Bags’ as demonstrated in this fab Marc Montano video. I will bring materials and sewing machine!
    Come along to try this out or bring along something else you are working on to get in some quality making time.
    Hope to see you there, contact Jeni for more details or to join our Meet & Make mailing list – jeniannewalker@gmail.com