| Haltwhistle Plant Festival & Craft Fair, Sat 18th May  Jo Aris will be running Sustainable Haltwhistle's Seed Swap at the Plant festival in the Swimming and Leisure Centre again this year.
There'll be an eclectic and intriguing selection, particularly veg, herbs and pollinator supporting flowers.
Home-saved and heritage varieties can be swapped (donations also welcome) but cannot be sold commercially.
Do say hello and share any ideas you might have for Sustainable Haltwhistle activities.
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| | Sustainable Haltwhistle get together
6 - 8pm Tues, May 21st, Garibaldi Room, Comrades Club, Haltwhistle
Buy a drink at the bar, we'll have snacks upstairs. What do you think are the most pressing issues?
What would you like to see Sustainable Haltwhistle do?
Sustainable Haltwhistle was launched last year, taking on some of South Tyne Sustainability's activities and adding more.
As the list below shows we're up for anything from small actions to benefit our local environment and community, to raising awareness and joining national campaigns. We can do things on our own but we like partnering with other groups to reach more people - it's definitely a case of more hands make light work rather than too many cooks!
In the last year we: - Organised 'Tyne for Change' a people's conference - our biggest event was with over 80 delegates from the length and breadth of the Tyne Valley.
- Screened Sustainability themed films in partnership with Haltwhistle Film Project.
- Made and screened our own film 'Worth It' featuring local people who have found adopting green energy technologies to be just that.
- Trialled a repair cafe.
- Joined the 'Defend our Juries' campaign to ensure jurors are aware of their right to acquit a defendant according to their conscience, by sitting with posters outside Carlisle Crown Court on two national days of action.
- Supported Haltwhistle Growing Together's lunchtime talks program by providing catering.
- Responded to an invitation from the Town Council and are working with them to increase biodiversity on the verge of Avenue St Meen.
- Continued our annual verge walks identifying wildflowers and monitoring verge diversity.
- Took a stall at Hexham Net Zero Fair and ran a seed swap at Haltwhistle Plant Festival.
- Sent out occasional e-newsletters.
- Set up a Haltwhistle Freecycle facebook group.
Do come along on 21st May for a catch up and to let us know what concerns you - and maybe get involved... If you can't come to the meeting we'd love to hear your suggestions: HaltwhistleClimateAction@protonmail.com
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| Tyne for Change
Sustainable Haltwhistle has the responses from Northumbria Water to the questions raised by delegates at our community conference - Tyne for Change. If you would like to see these and/or the recording of NWs visit to Hexham Town Council meeting please contact: HaltwhistleClimateAction@protonmail.com
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Palestinian crafts, produce and home-made Palestinian cakes will be on sale. Last month's film screening was 'Everything must change', a powerful film addressing the intersection of multiple crises and tracing these back to a common cause - the extractive and profit centred system of capitalism. The film looked at how grass-root struggles and strikes have achieved progress through solidarity and framed a possible future in which money was not prioritised over people or planet. We have a copy on DVD. If anyone would like to borrow it please contact: AbigailCheverst@protonmail.com |
| Tynedale Transformed & Hexham Debates The Future of Food and Farming in Northumberland
panel discussion
on 11am on Saturday 1st June
in the Church Hall, St Mary's Catholic Church, Hencotes, Hexham, NE46 2EB Panellists are:
Dr. Julia Cooper, Head of research, Organic Research Centre
Peter Samson, Smallholder, Hexham farmers' Market manager, Local food systems champion,
Yours truly!, Sue Seymour, Farmer,
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| | On the Verge 2024 Please join us for one or all of our short, slow moving verge walks
(1.5 mile there and back max.) to identify and survey wild flowers on or near road verges near Haltwhistle.
Tues 24th June: 7pm start
Haresby Lonnen to Stanegate, GR: 790661
Mon 23rd July: 7pm start
Greenhead Village, meet by church, GR: 660651
Tues 13th August: 7pm start
Bardon Mill, meet by War Memorial, GR: 782646
Just turn up, no need to book. We'll be on paths and/or tarmac. We aim to finish by 9pm. Any queries, please get in touch with Lesley Silvera: 07933 326711.
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| Freecycle group
https://www.facebook.com/groups/1186491895843534/
Responding to requests from Haltwhistle residents Sustainable Haltwhistle has set up a Freecycle group for the town which is managed by voluntary moderators. Despite only being set up a month ago the group has over 750 members with several items a day getting new, appreciative owners rather than ending up in the tip.
The rules are simple: Post items you no longer need and are happy to give away. NO SELLING PLEASE. Reply to posts you are interested in either directly or by PM to the author. This group is moderated by members of the Haltwhistle community. Please let us know from the facebook page if you are happy to be a voluntary moderator too and we'll add you. At the moment it's set so anyone can join but posts must be approved by moderators.
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|  Harriet writes: Our local landscapes are becoming changed by human-made impacts at an increasingly fast pace.
Witnessing this harm to the land is hard to bear.
It is widely understood that there are various ways to approach activism, such as environmental engagement, invoking political pressure and educational outreach. Yet between and surrounding this activism is found an emotional burden that can either galvanise, or at times overwhelm and lead to burnout.
Strong feelings such as anger, blame, confusion and grief are inevitable human responses to what we witness. Equally, when we do try our best and still things are hard or damaged in the landscape, our logic and sense-making simply cannot manage.
How as a community do we fare with acknowledging these strong emotions? How, frankly, do we turn towards damaged and wounded landscapes that we love, rather than turning away? In this short talk I suggest that activism (of any sort) must be a spiritually wise endeavour, one that builds from a direct relationship to the Earth. I will talk about the universally applicable practice called the 'Earth Exchange' and after the break, instead of our usual discussion I will lead a short 'Earth Exchange' outside the Brampton Community Centre for anyone who would like to participate in this experience.
Biography. Harriet Sams teaches, mentors, and facilitates archaeotherapy and ecotherapy. She co-hosts online conversations with ecological creators, thinkers and writers for the charity Radical Joy for Hard Times, and co-facilitates imaginal workshops for the Climate Psychology Alliance. She writes, presents and lectures about interconnected threads such as myth, archaeology, Earth-based spirituality, environmental art, and climate/ecological chaos. Harriet is currently researching her PhD in archaeotherapy at Bournemouth University and her work can be found here: http://www.nwyfre-earth.co
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| Case Dismissed Trudi Warner was accused of contempt for holding placard reminding jurors of their right to acquit based on conscience.
A High Court Judge dismissed the case against Trudi saying there were no grounds for prosecution.
https://theecologist.org/2024/apr/26/climate-activists-kafkaesque-trial
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| Get in touch
Any questions, comments or contributions to this monthly e-newsletter?
Please contact sue@mosspeteral.com 07935 259416
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| Sustainable Haltwhistle aims to reduce the impact of the community of Haltwhistle and surrounding villages on our environment. This will help individuals, families and our community save money and resources and ensure a more sustainable future for us all.
To join Sustainable Haltwhistle contact Sue Seymour, sue@mosspeteral.com 07935 259416
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