SH 2030 Join Steyning Climate Change March
Woodcraft member, Ursula, age 13, who led the march and introduced the speakers, summed up her feelings: “I think the Steyning march was great and showed the power of the community when we come together. I also think that the diversity of ages was amazing and it just goes to show that it isn’t just the next generation that’s worried, it’s everyone.”
Five hundred people took to the streets of Steyning on 20th September to join global protests calling for urgent climate action. Led by local school children, and backed by residents of all ages, it was the largest demonstration in Steyning for nearly forty years, bringing the High Street to a standstill.
“Don’t burn our future!” “There is no planet B!” “Act now or swim later!” These were just some of the messages captured in a whole series of colourful handmade posters made by the local Woodcraft Folk group, who organised the strike jointly with Greening Steyning.
Green corridor for bees on the Borrer Bank
Action took place up on Borrer Bank, opposite Nep Town Road, on Sunday 29 September 2019 when a group of SH2030 members led by Tony Baker supported Liz Taylor and other members of Henfield Garden Club, and Andrew Sharp of Henfield Conservation Volunteers, to plant 1000 bulbs (daffodils, crocuses and alliums) in less than an hour! The motivation behind planting the bulbs, other than to make Henfield more beautiful, was to help create a ‘bee corridor’, giving bees and other pollinators an uninterrupted route of suitable plants to pollinate, thus helping to sustain the environment.
West Sussex local authorities agree to step up action on Climate Change
The UK government and many local authorities including Henfield, Horsham and West Sussex have declared a Climate Emergency.
There is a world wide initiative to promote faster action on the Climate and Nature Emergency. Worldwide, populations covered by jurisdictions that have declared a climate emergency amount to 161 million citizens, with 47 million of these living in the United Kingdom (Henfield included). This means in Britain now roughly 64 per cent of the population lives in areas that have declared a climate emergency. There is still much to do to persuade governments to act on the real emergency we are facing.
Our own county council has launched the West Sussex Climate Pledge. The pledge focuses on key steps that can be taken to limit the impact of carbon emissions by raising awareness in various areas and advise on actions relating to travel, water, plastics and food.
