March-ing on!                   2nd March 2020

Thanks to all who took part in last month's CCF events! It was another fun month with lots of classes, workshops and visits.

We are now working with a lot more schools around Inverclyde, taking the Climate Challenge Fund to younger participants. We were also at the second Winter Wellness event held by Acumen, and got members of the public involved in planting up simple, easy microgreens! It was great to interact with different organisations throughout Greenock, in recognising the importance of reducing mental health stigma. We were part of the 'Climate Change Plan for Scotland' conference held in Glasgow, where we were able to input our ideas and opinions to representatives from the environmental sector. It was encouraging and inspiring to interact with different groups and individuals who held climate change interests at heart. 

Here are the events (so far!) that are planned for March. Please get involved by signing up via email, phone, or through social media. We must stress that you contact us as soon as you can, when you know that you cannot make the class - we don't want anyone missing out and spaces are limited.

As always, spaces are free and accessible for everyone. We'd love to see you get involved!

What have we been up to?              23rd January 2020

A happy new year to everyone involved in our Climate Challenge Fund project! It's been a busy January with plenty of events to plan and people to collaborate with. But we're back with the newest workshops and classes for February - find them in the cafe, on our social media pages, and on our website under 'CCF news'. Remember, we need to know who is coming along to our classes as spaces are limited. They're free, they're fun, and we're a friendly bunch, so come along and join in with one of our upcoming classes!

Over the past few months we have had new and used markets, swap shops, cooking classes, arts and crafts events, movie days, a Christmas fete, a tree planting day, and the opportunity to showcase our work at the Winter Wellness event held by local mental health 'Acumen' network. Our Pay What You Wish market raised £93.50 which was donated to Glasgow and the West 'Cash for Kids'. A massive thank you to everyone who helped out, especially our friends at the Energy Activators. Our Christmas fete had our local community involved with environmentally friendly arts and crafts, such as wooden ornament making and bauble decorating. We've also been cooking everything from breakfast food to desserts, and getting carbon literate through recycling classes and interactive movie days. 

We're looking to get a lot more planting and sowing done as the weather gets better, so watch out for gardening workshops and classes taking place in our brand new greenhouses. As always, message us with any questions you have about the project, and we hope to see you all soon!

Planting trees with the 'Garden Gang' and Natalie Jones from CGI Ltd.

A huge thank you to CGI Ltd, Carbon Footprint Ltd and everyone at InWork Enterprsies. 

Recycle Week 2019                                                   2nd October 2019

For those of you who may not know - last week was National Recycling Week 2019. The Scottish Government (with Zero Waste Scotland) has focussed on 'food waste' as a hot topic for this years recycling week! At the Hub, we welcomed any questions from those who were unsure of how to recycle their food waste properly. In our carbon literacy workshops, we discussed what can and what cannot be put in your food caddy for kerbside recycling. We looked at the amount of food waste as part of our carbon footprints, and debated the best way in which to store food and use up leftovers. 

On the 27th September, we had our well-awaited Swap Shop! We had a very successful day with plenty of swapping and donating. Customers were made aware of the 'exchange rate' of preloved items and the benefits of a circular economy. We welcomed Yvonne from Energy Activators and William from the WISE Group, to give people advice on energy efficiency. Thanks to some lovely donations, we now have a good stock of items to hold another swap shop in the future! 

Before the Flood - movie day                         23rd August 2019

Thank you to everyone who came along and enjoyed our special screening of 'Before the Flood'. As always, it is great to have a chat about the ways in which we are affected by global warming and what we can do as individuals, and in our community, to do our part. 

We had our fabulous Energy Activators present to answer your questions about energy efficiency, and to talk a little bit more about what they do with their Climate Challenge Fund project. We also had the lovely Jeanette from Heavenly SeaSources, who provided us with some samples of her delicious - and healthy! - snacks. Jeanette was able to tell us about the ethically sourced and lovingly made snacks she makes. 

We hope you can join us for the next CCF movie day - as always, suggestions are welcome!

(c) Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation

A huge thank you to everyone who braved the weather to come along to our movie day! We had a great time watching Chasing Coral, which both shocked and amazed us with beautiful imagery of life under the sea and the cruel effects of climate change on our coral reefs. Afterwards, we had a discussion about what we could do to stop contributing to climate change and how the next generation should be educated on this.

We were so happy to have the Energy Activators with us on the day. Mark and Lisa were able to give advice on energy saving measures and reducing the carbon footprint in the home. It was interesting to learn about the advantages of renewable energy, which tied in with the theme of our movie. We also had Catharine from 'Bee Happy' chocolates, who brought along some tasty - ethically and lovingly made - chocolate and showed off some of her stunning artwork. 

Overall, a brilliant day! Hope to see you all at the next showing!