Climate Change & Local Action
Parish Councils
Parish councils are ideally placed to help co-ordinate action locally. Recognising the importance of climate and nature emergency is the first step. This could be through an emergency declaration, call to action or setting up a local group. Parishes may own buildings that or land that are suitable for renewable energy or have buildings that need to improve their energy efficiency. Friends of the Earth have produced a very useful guide to help Parish Councils.
Greening Campaign
The greening campaign is a community-based initiative to inspire action on climate change. It has seven phases starting with very simple steps to engage households in eco-behaviours all the way through to developing whole community plans. Each phase is supported with a plan on how to deliver it, marketing materials and resources. More information is available at: http://www.greening-campaign.org/
Plastic Free Communities
Why not help reduce single plastic use in your area and sign up to be a plastic free community.
Pennington solar farm was developed by the local community and generates enough electricity to supply 650 homes. The co-operative has supported solar installations on school roofs and is interested in developing more projects locally.
The Environment Centre, Southampton runs a range of sustainability projects and provides an advice helpline for the public.
Hampshire County Council have declared a climate emergency, their pages details their plans, provide information on climate change impacts and have useful links such as a carbon calculator and how to make your home resilient.
Centre for Alternative Technology is an educational charity dedicated to researching and communicating solutions for environmental change. The centre provides a range of training courses, webinars, master degrees and information for individuals, installers and local authorities.
Funding
Sustainable Community Fund – The aim of the fund is to strengthen the well-being and sustainability of communities within the National Park, grants of up to £2,000 are available to support a range of projects.
Rural Community Energy Fund – Government funding is available to develop renewable energy projects in rural areas. All of the New Forest is eligible for support. Grants of up to £40,000 are available for feasibility studies and £100,000 for developing business cases and planning. Projects must be owned/deliver by the community. The South West Energy Hub administer the scheme that covers the New Forest. It is highly recommend to speak to them first to check eligibility before completing any paperwork.
Other sources of funding:
https://www.salixfinance.co.uk/loans/parish-councils
https://communityenergyengland.org/pages/funding-opportunities-2