You may be aware that LancsCAN, or Lancashire Climate Action Network, has been formed this year, following a well-attended forum at Edge Hill University in May. Around 60 member groups have joined up including Climate Action Preston. The new county-wide network hopes to bring all kinds of groups together in their climate action work. The LancsCAN website has just gone live this week; have a look to see what is going on!

Article by Georgia Amis

On 30^th September 2023, Preston City Council hosted a local event that combined the worlds of fashion, sustainability, and education. The event collaborated with local organisations to offer an array of activities and insights to inspire attendees to embrace a more sustainable lifestyle.

The day kicked off with an original performance by Tenderfoot Theatre, an innovative eco-theatre company known for its thought-provoking productions that explore environmental themes. Their captivating performance of ‘Heirloom’ shed a light on the harmful effects of fast fashion and overconsumption whilst emphasising how memories are kept within each item of clothing. Their performance called on the audience to be more thoughtful when shopping for fashion.

Following the performance, a Q&A session was held with talented local student designer Ashwati Krishna, who also showcased her original pieces. Her creations were not only aesthetically pleasing but also served as a testament to the potential of sustainability in fashion design. Her dedication to eco-friendly design principles resonated with the audience, sparking discussions on how fashion can be produced more sustainably without sacrificing style and creativity.

The highlight of the event was the sustainable fashion show. Ten diverse looks ranging from office attire to streetwear, were showcased on the runway by volunteer models. Outfits were curated from second-hand clothing and accessories, donated by PCC colleagues, friends, and family. They were then styled by Jordan Brown, a fashion design student studying at the University of Central Lancashire in Preston. The runway served as a testament to the allure of pre-loved fashion, promoting affordability, originality, and the quality of items you can find. Following the show, all donated items were given to the Salvation Army for reuse and recycling. 

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Throughout the day, stalls offered educative and interactive experiences. Tenderfoot Theatre hosted a booth where they discussed the process of sustainable costuming and demonstrated the enchanting process of natural dyeing using humble cabbage, baking powder and lemon juice.

Climate Action Preston, from the Climate Emergency Centre, were on hand at their stall to impart wisdom on clothing repair through sewing, extending the life of garments and preventing them from ending up in landfills. The public could also learn more about climate projects and environmental issues relevant in their local community.

Lancashire County Council’s “Reuse 360” stall promoted their reuse shops, showing the public that these shops house a variety of different items at affordable prices, encouraging attendees to explore the benefits of giving items a second life. Preston City Council’s stall educated visitors on sustainable fashion and waste, engaging them in a match-the-stats game to enter a raffle for a chance to win a hamper full of snacks and DIY goodies.

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This event engaged passers-by, with an estimated 150-200 members of the public involved in the event through watching the performances and/or taking part in discussions at the stalls. The day celebrated sustainable fashion and showcased the collaborative efforts of organisations and individuals working towards a more environmentally friendly future, leaving attendees inspired and motivated to make more conscious choices in their fashion and lifestyle.

A well-attended Preston Pedals into the Future event was held at The Larder recently – see Preston Pedals page for more details

This CAP project which has been meeting for the last two years has received ‘Advancing a Shared Economy in Preston’ funding. It will be used to employ someone part time to progress solar installations.

Have your say on the future of this project to develop everyday cycling at The Larder July 16th 2.30-5.00pm.
See lots of updates on the Projects page.

There was a good turnout on 17th June for Robin Jones’ presentation on the progress of Community Energy Preston. Clear explanations of what CEP’s solar offer is, showed the audience that the project is well on its way to viability. An expected grant will enable the part-time appointment of someone to work with the volunteers and coordinate the next steps. Julie Ridley also had exciting news of the success of an application to LCC’s Access Fund for ‘Preston Pedals’ to move into the future.
Members of the public were invited to write ‘Letters to tomorrow’ recording fears of increasing threats to the natural world and demands for political leaders to act. These were published on the Great Big Green week site.

June presentation https://www.climateactionpreston.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/17-06-23-Community-Energy-Preston-CEC-Talk-1.pdf

Are you worried or frightened about climate change but not sure what to do to help, or who to share your feelings with? Come along to the Preston Climate Emergency Centre, 32 Cheapside (on the Flagmarket) between 11am and 3pm on Saturday 17th June where we will be holding an event for Great Big Green Week and writing “Letters to Tomorrow”.

Letters to Tomorrow is a project run by The Climate Coalition, encouraging people to write down their feelings about the future in the form of a letter. It could be a letter to a friend, or child or loved one, or even your future self, and should enable you to express your fears about the impacts of climate change if the planet continues to warm up at the current rate, but also your hopes for the governments of the world act quickly and decisively to soften these impacts. Letters can be typed, hand-written or be drawings; or you can help CAP with our group Letter to Tomorrow. For more information about the Letters to Tomorrow project, and to learn what happens after you write your letter, see their website https://www.letterstotomorrow.com/

This event will form part of our regular CAP members’ meeting but everyone, including non-members, is very welcome to join in! Look for the event in our Diary of events for further details.

Last Saturday May 13th, members of CAP and, happily, a few newcomers gathered at the Preston Climate Emergency Centre (CEC) for our annual workshop and development day. We were pleased to have Councillor Carol Henshaw, Preston City Council’s cabinet member for climate change and a supporter of CAP, attending too.  The day was facilitated by Helen Rimmer from Friends of the Earth North West who did a sterling job of keeping us inspired and focussed! We reviewed and celebrated many successes over the last year and reflected on lessons learnt. Most notable achievements include the Preston Pedals project which has completed many of its aims in helping more people to cycle rather than drive in Preston through delivering bike repair workshops and advice, cycling sessions for beginners and those wishing to regain confidence, and campaigning for safer cycling in the city. The opening of the CEC in August 2022 as well as progress in a number of other important ongoing projects such as the Community Energy project and Warm Homes Preston projects were celebrated. 

Lunchtime gave us a great opportunity to share ideas, not to mention a vegan Jacob’s Join which went down very well!

In the afternoon we put together our ideas for climate action for the coming year as well as plans for 2 upcoming events next month including a Great Big Green Week event on 17th June and an event during Refugee week with Preston City of Sanctuary on 24th June. More details for these events will be available on our calendar.

At the end of the day we all felt energised and inspired to get on with delivering our climate action plans.

Activism is, after all, one of the best remedies for eco-anxiety, and hopefully we may actually help to make Preston a better,  greener, cleaner, fairer city through our efforts. 

If you are interested in finding out more about Climate Action Preston and perhaps how you might be able to help, please contact us, or come along to our event on 17th June, to be held at the CEC.

May 13th 10-3 at CEC 32 Flag Market, Preston

Come and put heads together to plan events, projects and campaigns!

Free event facilitated by NW FoE staff member Helen Rimmer who did a similar workshop for us last year.