March 2013 Newsletter

A round up of news and views

Practical Permaculture for Transition - the first session, covering Ethics and Principles, was held last Saturday. There is one last place remaining, if you would like to fill it let Sam know asap: sampage_zim@yahoo.co.uk. The 10-week course programme is here...

Bedwyn bus - the Transport Group hosted a successful meeting to discuss the new bus timetable which starts on 20th April. Thanks to Wiltshire Council's Transport Officers, it is now possible to catch the fast, 0734 commuter train from Hungerford to Paddington and return in the evening via Bedwyn, for just £1 each way on the bus from/to Marlborough! So you can leave your car at home, save money and reduce CO2 emissions by 4kg per day (1,000kg per year). Check out the full bus and train timetable here...

Line electrification - on 13th March, members of TM's Transport Group and Bedwyn Trains Passenger Group joined other pressure group members, from between here and Westbury, at a meeting in Portcullis House, chaired by Claire Perry, MP. We met the ARUP consultants who are responsible for doing the cost-benefit analysis of electrifying the train line between Newbury and Westbury. We were also invited to provide our own evidence for this analysis. Thanks to Pewsey Train Watch for setting up an on-line survey at such short notice and thanks to everyone who filled it in. We will post the results as soon as we have them.

Seed Swap - the Permaculture Group had a great day in the Sunday Market giving away our seed. We also raised £43 in donations! We are grateful to all who took part.

Chasing Ice - there was a big turn out for this dramatic film. Well done to the Climate Group and thanks to everyone who donated - there was sufficient money to cover all hall hire and equipment costs.

Re-skilling Marlborough - We are still looking for people who want to learn new skills! If you want to attend a short course and are willing to share your new skill with others, TM can pay up to 50% of the cost. Thanks to a grant from the Area Board we are able to subsidise several people who are keen to help with this re-skilling process. Check out these exciting Centre for Alternative Technology short courses and also these Low-Impact Living short courses then get in touch with Sam:sampage_zim@yahoo.co.uk if you're interested in taking part.

Extending the cycle path to Tesco's Supermarket - last Friday, the Cycle Group met with other interested parties to try to determine how much work and money will be needed to clear the well-used, but over-grown, muddy path between Five Styles Road and Tesco's car park. Read Val's blog post about it here...

Earth Hour 2013 - From Colombo to the Kremlin, major landmarks, businesses and households in cities around the world turned their lights off for one hour at 8.30pm on Saturday 23 March, to raise awareness about climate change and show support for renewable energy. Unfortunately Marlborough didn't take part! If you have any bright ideas on how we could join in next year, please let us know. Click here to see how people celebrated it this year and get inspired.

The Transition Marlborough team