It's so refreshing to hear about communities taking responsibility for themselves and trying to improve the way they live. That's what the residents of March Farm Estate in Luton are doing thanks to the nations favourite tipple...tea. The 9,600 residents of the estate, which has seen riots back in the 90s due to poverty and drug addiction, have invested in one tonne of single estate tea from a group of growers in the Nilgiri Hills of southern India. The tea is being sold door to door, on market stalls and in a few of the local shops. A pack of 40 tea bags costs only 75p, which is not that remarkable considering some of the big supermarkets sell their own brands and value lines for this kind of price, but what is remarkable is that this tea is a fair trade product.
[via The Guardian]
Continue reading >>
A huge host of celebrities have picked up paintbrushes and coloured pencils to design one off pieces of art to raise money for the Dorset Wildlife Trust. TV stars such as Ricky Gervais and Graham Norton - whose (slightly lame) picture is seen here, have joined established artists like Damien Hirst and Tracey Emin to create images of butterflies and moths which will be used to help raise money to protect the county's wildlife.
The artworks will be auctioned off to the highest bidder on Ebay over the space of the next few months, starting on Sunday 16th September at 7.30pm. They will be put up for grabs a few at a time and the auctions will last one week each, with new pictures being added as the others are sold. Finally the piesta resistance will be a sale of the works by Hirst and Emin at Christie's. If you want to place a bid you can do it here.
October is officially Breast Cancer Awareness Month and one of the events taking place to help raise funds is Life Cycle. It's a fun challenge which asks participants to cycle various distances to raise funds for breast cancer research. You could cycle 50 miles in one month, 25 in one day, or another distance of your choosing and the highest individual fund raiser will win a top model mountain bike from Evans Cycles. It's a great opportunity to get fit, while raising money for a good cause.
There are many other events being organised across the country to help with this worthy cause, including running events, friendship walks, barbecues and simply wearing pink. If you want to take part in any of them, or would like to organise something of your own you can find details on the Breast Cancer Campaign website.
Let's face it...us Brits love a cup of tea. So what better way to help reduce poverty in the world than by having a brew? On Friday 21st September at 4pm Christian Aid are inviting people to hold a tea party for their friends, family and colleagues. The idea is to raise awareness of the plight of some of our poorest countries while raising money, through donations, in return for tea and cake. Anyone can host an event and they can be held anywhere - in your home, office or a community centre. You can apply to Christian Aid to be a host and they will send you an event pack which includes information, invitations, posters and recipes. The event is being held in partnership with 'teadirect' fairtrade tea.
Just remember - only boil as much water as you need to save electricity!
You still have a chance to register for the Tree-athlon events in London – on Saturday 15th September - and Leeds - on Sunday 23rd September in aid of Trees for Cities, a charity which aims to beautify cities and combat global warming through tree-planting.
The Tree-athlon events, like the more traditional triathlons, have three different parts to them: a 5km run, a ‘Tree Wish’ which will be printed on participants’ running bibs, and a fashion swap to recycle clothing you no longer want or need.
In addition to benefiting a good cause, you can challenge yourself with the run, reduce your carbon footprint (and need for wardrobe space) by getting rid of old clothes, and express your wishes for urban treescapes. Tree-athlon will soon be unveiling this year’s celebrity supporters so you never know who you might run into on the day. At the very least, you may just have a good day out and meet some like-minded souls.
The environmental impact of the collapse of the World Trade Centre towers on 11th September are still centre stage on this, the sixth anniversary of the attacks. Over 100 people who were present at 'Ground Zero' on that day have died and a staggering 70% of the 'first responders' are ill. Many believe it's as a direct result of breathing in the toxic dust on that fateful day. The dust contained particles of asbestos, lead, glass, and cement. If this rate of illness holds true for those who lived and worked near the Twin Towers the number of seriously ill New Yorkers could reach 300,000 in the near future. around 70,000 people have registered on the World Trade Center Health Registry, which tracks the health impact of 9/11, but this doesn't include those who claim to have been affected outwith the one mile radius of the disaster zone.
Continue reading >>
The London Week of Peace is an annual event celebrating community, diversity and cohesiveness in the capital, this year running between 9th and 16th September. This year’s theme is reconciliation, celebration, collaboration and there are loads of local events in and around the capital to get involved with.
If you’re sporty, there’s the 5km peace run, if you’re literary there’s the Poetry Competition. There’s also a Peace Concert and Talent Quest, as well as Peace Awards and various local events in each borough. Backed by the Peace Alliance, the idea is to bring people together and talk honestly, reminding people of what they have in common and of the need to work together to improve community ties and facilities. Its aims fit in very well with local green initiatives and permaculture groups, so maybe those of you involved in these kinds of groups should reach out and involve yourself here too, using the opportunity to reach the wider community.
digg this | del.icio.us this
| 
Stumble It!
