Oxfam Bath

Last week, Bath Oxfam members met to 'stitch n bitch' at Green Park Brasserie, making more squares for the visual 'Baby Blanket' petition against maternal mortality that Oxfam will present to Gordon Brown. In fact, we even met some non-knitters whilst there, who gace us a hand and attempted a few rows, so Thank You!!

If you don't feel you can knit squares, you can still support the petition by telling Gordon Brown why every woman has the right to a healthy pregnancy - http://www.oxfam.org.uk/get_involved/campaign/actions/maternal_emergency....

We have several dozen squares so far, but could still do with more, so if please do knit more if you can! Send your knitted squares by the end of August to Oxfam Bath, Flat 5, 14 Norfolk Crescent, Bath, BA1 2BE!!

Janine

Hi All,

I thought you'd like to see a copy of the latest Oxfam South West newsletter (attached), giving information on how campaigners all over our area are campaigning on issues of social justice.

Look out for the story on our very own group supporting the knitting campaign at the launch of the Green Companion! Hopefully we can add more squares to this campaign, both on Thursday at our Stitch n Bitch at Green Park Brasserie, or, if you can't make the meeting, do please still knit, get your friends and family to knit, and send your squares to Oxfam Bath, Flat 5 14 Norfolk Crescent, Bath, BA1 2BE!! The last date for squares to be submitted is 26th August.....

See you soon

Janine

For those of you unable to make our cinema screening of We Are Together, it's being shown on Channel 4 this Sunday at 7.30pm!

We Are Together is the amazing story of Agape, an African Childrens Choir whose members are all aids orphans. Following their story over the course of a year, the film is a roller coaster of heart warming, heart breaking but overwhelmingly inspirational and is well worth watching.

And, if you like the music, we have discounted CD's of the film soundtrack for sale! At £10 + £1 PnP (or free PnP if you collect them from me in person!) it's a great present, as well as a good soundtrack to summer barbecues. All the profits are going to the RISE Foundation which supports aids orphanages across South Africa. Please email me on oxfambath@yahoo.co.uk if yo uwould like more information.

Janine

Dear All,

We have had to amend the date of the Stitch n Bitch and move it to Thursday August 14th (8pm, Green Park Brasserie). I hope to see lots of you there!! If you would like further information about how you can get involved in the Knit for Poverty, and have other ideas for how we can get more peopl ein Bath knitting for us, do please drop me an email to oxfambath@yahoo.co.uk

Thanks!

Janine

Hi All,

After the success of Saturday's stall, especially around the Knit for Poverty campaign, we're having a bit of a Stitch n Bitch as an opportunity to get together and get creative for the latest Oxfam Campaign!

On Thursday 24th July, from 8pm, join us at Green Park Brasserie to have a summer evening drink outside (or inside if the early part of the summer is anything to go by!) and to knit as many squares as we can for the World's Largest Baby Blanket! We'll have plenty of wool and needles, so don't worry about not having 'equipment' and there will be people who can teach you what to do - so even if you can't knit yet, don't let that stop you!

But why knit a blanket? For every mum, the day her child is born should
be the happiest of her life. Yet, in the world's poorest countries,
many mums don't survive to look after their babies.

In the next minute, lack of access to health care will claim the
life of another mum. In a year, half a million mums die because of
poorly equipped hospitals, or because they can't afford to pay health
care fees.

World leaders have promised to end this travesty by providing enough
aid to deliver the medical services needed, but as things stand they're
falling well short.

So, Oxfam are calling on all knitters, and non-knitters who want to give it a go!, to help create a patch for a giant baby blanket – a 'visual petition' we'll hand in to world leaders in September 2008. We're aiming for 250,000 patches - one for every mum who should have survived pregnancy in the last six months.

This will really show world leaders that we are watching & demanding action - so much so we're willing to really put effort into creating the world's biggest baby blanket!

So if you can, do join us. The campaign is running until the end of August, so even if you can't make this event, we will be meeting several more times. We're aiming for Bath to have it's own 'mini-blanket' to add to the petition, so why not try and add a square to the count!!

Hi All,

After the success of Saturday's stall, especially around the Knit for Poverty campaign, we're having a bit of a Stitch n Bitch as an opportunity to get together and get creative for the latest Oxfam Campaign!

On Thursday 14th August from 8pm, join us at Green Park Brasserie to have a summer evening drink outside (or inside if the early part of the summer is anything to go by!) and to knit as many squares as we can for the World's Largest Baby Blanket! We'll have plenty of wool and needles, so don't worry about not having 'equipment' and there will be people who can teach you what to do - so even if you can't knit yet, don't let that stop you!

But why knit a blanket? For every mum, the day her child is born should
be the happiest of her life. Yet, in the world's poorest countries,
many mums don't survive to look after their babies.

In the next minute, lack of access to health care will claim the
life of another mum. In a year, half a million mums die because of
poorly equipped hospitals, or because they can't afford to pay health
care fees.

World leaders have promised to end this travesty by providing enough
aid to deliver the medical services needed, but as things stand they're
falling well short.

So, Oxfam are calling on all knitters, and non-knitters who want to give it a go!, to help create a patch for a giant baby blanket – a 'visual petition' we'll hand in to world leaders in September 2008. We're aiming for 250,000 patches - one for every mum who should have survived pregnancy in the last six months.

This will really show world leaders that we are watching & demanding action - so much so we're willing to really put effort into creating the world's biggest baby blanket!

So if you can, do join us. If you would like to attend, please email to let me know. If you could
say whether you will be able to bring your own needles & wool, or
whether you'd like some, that would also be great! We're aiming for Bath to have it's own 'mini-blanket' to add to the petition, so why not try and add a square to the count!!

Back in June Oxfam Bath hosted a film showing at the Little Theatre. The film, We Are
Together, is the moving story of a children's choir from an Aids orphanage in South Africa. Not only was the film funny, heart-wrenching & uplifting (an impressive mix!), it also had fantastic music, and I am pleased to say we now have copies of the CD so you can listen to the music even if you couldn't make it to the film!

We are able to offer them at the discount price of £10 each - a bargain if ever there was one, and a saving on the online price of £14!

All proceeds from the film are going towards the RISE Foundation, which is working with the Agape orphanage and others like it to improve the lives of AIDS orphans across Africa. If you would like to add a donation on to the cost of the CD, please feel free.

If you would like a copy of the CD, please contact me on oxfambath@yahoo.co.uk so that I can arrange payment/delivery options with you.

I have actually got 50 CD's to sell, hoping to raise £500 for the
Foundation, so if you know anyone else who might be interested in the
CD, please pass on my details - you can also listen to excerpts on the
Zavvi site - http://www.zavvi.co.uk/music-12.5+to+14.99-Pop-Children-Of-Agape-We-Are-Together/844349/cr33c.r10.1/p.jsf.

All the best


Janine

Hi All,

You may have seen my post last weekabout the launch of the Bath Green Companion on Saturday, and the opportunity have to run a stall (11-2pm, St Michaels Without - near the Podium). This will be a really great opportunity to get out more informtiton about Oxfam's latest campaigns to Bat-folk, but at the minute we only have 2 volunteers to man the stall!! We really do need just one or two more people to give us a bit of a hand to make it manageable. If any of you could spare even half an hour, it would be really great if you could drop me a line to oxfambath@yahoo.co.uk. You really don't need to know much about Oxfam or the campaigns beforehand - all the literature will be provided and is in an easy to understand format. All you need is enthusiasm and a desire to get more people informed on issues of global justice!

Hopefully see some of you there on Saturday!

Janine

Dear All,

On July 12th, the Green Companion will be launched in Bath, accompanied by a Sustainability Fair with stalls from a wide variety of local campaign groups in the area (http://greenbath.org/green-companion-launch-2008). Oxfam Bath have been offered a stall, and it would be great if we could be there to highlight Oxfam's latest campaigns, and see if we can get more people involved in campaigning within the Bath area!

The event runs from 11am - 2pm, and we need a few volunteers for an hour each to help man the stall. If you think you could give some time to help with this, do please email me on oxfambath@yahoo.co.uk - and I look forward to seeing some of you next Saturday!

Janine

Hi All -

I know this is short notice, but the Oxfam Bookshop have agreed to let us have a stall to collect signatures for the G8 petition in the bookshop on Saturday morning! This is a great opportunity to link with the shop and see if this sort of campaign works - it could form the basis of more campaigning throughout the year (and means we can campaign inside rather than outside which is good!).

Thee idea is that we will provide a table & postcards for people to sign to send a Wish to the G8 in Japan. The wishes will then be hung on a Japanese bamboo tree that will go in the window of the shop for the day.

I have the postcards, a tablecloth, the bamboo tree and string. I may be able to get a table, but it's a bit heavy, so if anyone has a light plastic table they can bring that'd be great!

We'll set up around 10 and then man the stall between 10 - 2 (depending on volunteer numbers). If you can help even for half an hour during this time that woudl be great. We only need 1 or 2 people onthe stall at any one time due to the size of the shop, but the more who can do it, the longer we can do it for and the more signatures we'll get!

Once we collect the signatures, we'll be sending a picture of the tree and a message to Beppu, Bath's partner city in Japan about the G8....

Hope to see some of you on Saturday!

Janine

Hi All,

One of Oxfam's current campaign is around pressuring the G8 leaders, who meet in Japan at the beginning of July.

The first day of the meeting falls during a Japanese festival where people tie written wishes to bamboo trees. Oxfam are asking people to send their wish demanding Action Now on Aid, Healthcare and Climate Change (for more
info see http://www.oxfam.org.uk/get_involved/campaign/g8/index.html).

If you've been to any festivals/local events you may have seen Oxfam's bamboo trees with bright pink pieces of paper tied to them - these are the hundreds of wishes we are collecting to send to Gordon Brown!

The Oxfam Bookshop wondered if we'd like to join with them to organise an action around this - we could help them decorate a shop window / collect wishes from customers, or maybe on a stall near the shop...... Would anyone be interested in helping with this? I think it would be the weekend of 21st June, though it could be the 4th/5th July. If you'd like to organise something, drop me an email to oxfambath@yahoo.co.uk!

Janine

Hi All,

Just wanted to drop you a quick reminder about the 2 events
we are hosting next week which sound like they'll be really good! It would be
great to see lots of you (and your friends!) there, and if you can spare half
an hour at either event to assist us with a campaign stall/serving refreshments
etc, please do get in touch on oxfambath@yahoo.co.uk......

FILM SCREENING OF WE ARE TOGETHER, June 2nd

Oxfam Bath and The Little Theatre Cinema have teamed up to
present We Are Together: the incredible true story of a children's orphanage in
South Africa where hope comes in the shape of a choir. A percentage of the
ticket price will go to Oxfam and be used in the global fight against poverty
and climate change. With speaker Jonnie Currie on Medsins, who will be speaking
about their work with Aids victims around the world. CD's of the choir will be
on sale afterwards.

Venue: The Little Theatre Cinema
Doors: 7.00
Time: 7.30
Price: £7.50/£6.50 concs/£5.50 Members of the Little
Info & booking: Please call 08717 042061

LAUNCH OF SISTERS ON THE PLANET, June 5th

An inspirational evening marking World Environment Day telling the stories, via film, talks and a new exhibition, of women striving to fight climate change. It would be great if you were able to come along!

Venue: The Bath Royal Literary and Scientific Institution,
16-18 Queens Square, Bath.
Entry: 7.30pm.
Price: Free Entry
http://www.brlsi.org Staged by Oxfam Bath as part of the Bath Festival
Fringe. www.bathfringe.co.uk,

Hi All!

On 18^th May there will be a celebration
of the 10^th anniversary of the founding of the ‘Make Poverty History’
campaign in Birmingham. If you can get to Birmingham on May the 18^th
please support this event!

Details: Journey to Justice at the ICC
in Birmingham city Centre from 2.30-4.30pm SUNDAY
18 MAY 2008. Tickets are £10 (£5 concessions) and
can be booked online at www.journeytojustice.org or
by post: for details call 0560 150 7359.

Janine

Oxfam Bath and The Little Theatre Cinema have teamed up to present We Are Together: the incredible true story of a children's orphanage in South Africa where hope comes in the shape of a choir. A percentage of the ticket price will go to Oxfam and be used in the global fight against poverty and climate change. With speaker (name tbc). CD's of the choir will be on sale afterwards.

Venue: The Little Theatre Cinema
Doors: 7.00
Time: 7.30
Price: £7.50/£6.50 concs/£5.50 Members of the Little
Info & booking: Please call 08717 042061

Links: http://www.oxfam.org.uk/
wearetogether.org
http://www.picturehouses.co.uk/
Wheelchair users will require assistance

Dear All,

As part of the National Week of Action on Climate Change, Bath Oxfam and Bath Friends of the Earth are joining forces to run a stall in Green Park Station asking Bath residents to pledge for a Climate Bill with Bite.

And we need YOU to help us run the stall! If you have half an hour to spare on the morning of Saturday 5th April, we'd love you to help us out!

We'll be handing out literature informing people about the bill & the amendments which are necessary to make it work, as well as asking them to sign a4 pledges which we'll be handing to Don Foster to take to Parliament.

You don't need to know a lot about climate change - everything will be provided for you - and you may find you learn something new along the way as well as getting the chance to grab some goodies at the Farmers Market!

We'll even have our own personal Gordon Brown - blindfolded of course as his government seems to want to hide from the strong action it needs to take. Thankfully, Don is far more supportive and will be pushing the government to step up to the mark when the Bill is voted on - nice one Don!

If you can give some time, do please get back to me on oxfambath@yahoo.co.uk. The more the merrier!

See you soon

Janine

Hi All!

I thought you'd be interested to hear about an 'OxJam'
event which is happening this Friday at The Invention (art) Studios,
Lower Borough Walls, 7.30 - 12pm.

Called Audioprose,
the night will be a mix of poetry and music (with bands such as The
Blow Hards and The Mandibles) giving a chance for people to have a
night of great entertainment & raise money for Oxfam (the last
event raised nearly £600!)!

Tickets are £4 (before 7.30) £5 after, so why not come down and join us for a perfect start to the weekend.

Audioprose

14th March, 7.30 - 12 midnight
Invention (Art) Studios, Lower Borough Walls (near Marks n Spencers / Oxfam bookshop / Pigeon Park)
£4 / £5 entry

Please email me or ring Ross (07733257235) for further details / info on how to get there,

See you Friday!

Janine

St Michael's Without, Broad Street Bath 

John Everitt, Chief Executive of B&NES Council will be
explaining the background to growth targets and the Council’s plans for
reaching decisions on how best to achieve them. Mike Grist, Director of
Development from Somer Community Housing, will give a brief outline of
affordable housing needs, and Robert Hellard from South Stoke Parish
Council will describe the reaction of the parishes to the proposal for
an urban extension of some 1500 new dwellings on the southern edge of
the city.

Zimbabwe: Using the power of love to overcome the love of power
Celebrating the courage of the Women of Zimbabwe Arise’ NGO
With
speakers Franco Henwood (AI UK Zimbabwe Co-ordinator) & Stella Maravanyika
(Zimbabwean Civil Society Activist)

Date: Sunday 9th March
Time: 3 - 5pm
Venue: Manvers Street Baptist Church, Manvers Street

Refreshments will be available.

For more information contact info@bathamnesty.co.uk

Organised by Carfree UK and the University of the West of England, the conference will focus on Ecotowns, urban regeneration, and healthy cities. Carfree neighbourhoods have been appearing across several European countries in recent years, but ‘carfree housing’ in the UK has all been small in scale, so far. Rosie Winterton, Minister of State for Transport and Markus Heller, a German architect with experience of carfree
communities in Germany, will be speaking and answering such questions as: What are carfree neighbourhoods? How do they work in other countries? What advantages and problems do they bring? Is the UK market ready for such innovations?
 
Contact: info@carfree.org.uk
Location: Bristol Marriott Royal Hotel, College Green
More info: Carfree UK

30 March - 05 April - Stop Climate Chaos: Week of Action

Bath Oxfam Group and other environmental groups in Bath are planning events to mark this national week of action on climate change.

To get involved with planning and organising, contact Janine.woodward@gmail.com

More information to come.

Five eminent speakers with different backgrounds and experience have agreed to be on the panel for a debate on Climate Change, in Bath Abbey on Tuesday, 29th April, with the title: 'CLIMATE CHANGE: What is happening? What can we do? Can Bath become an eco city?'
The evening has been organised by Churches Together in Bath to give people of the city a chance to hear authoritative views on this, the most urgent issue of our lifetime. The speakers will summarise the present state of the climate change debate, and give their views about what organisations and individuals need to do to respond. In particular there will be discussion about how Bath can move towards being an ‘eco city’ following the example of ‘Transition Towns’ Bristol and Totnes, amongst many others.
Speakers will include Professor Anil Markandya of Bath University; Martin Palmer, Director of the Alliance of Religions and Conservation; ecological campaigner Andrew Pendleton, Climate Change Adviser, Christian Aid; and Sarah Pugh, working with ‘Transition Bristol’. The chairman will be Rev Roger Nunn, Executive Secretary of Churches Together in Bath.
The debate will be at 7.30pm, in Bath Abbey; entrance will be free, but there will be a retiring collection to meet expenses.
People from all walks of life and outlooks will be welcome, but particularly members of churches, and it is confidently hoped to fill the Abbey, as for the long-remembered debate on ‘Should we invade Iraq?’ in 2002.

Fairtrade Market – all day, Green Park Station. With all sorts of fairtrade goods to buy, and events tbc. Fairtrade takes over Green Park Station

Further details: Claire Morgan 07786302930, claire@faragherjones.com

Fairtrade Fiesta – all day, Abbey Courtyard

A fun-packed event with free samplings of fairtrade goodies, the chance
to make a fairtrade pledge, and fairtrade toiletries, crafts and other
goods available all day.

Further details: Claire Morgan 07786302930, claire@faragherjones.com

Fairtrade Fiesta – all day, Abbey Courtyard

A fun-packed event with free samplings of fairtrade goodies, the chance to make a fairtrade pledge, and fairtrade toiletries, crafts and other goods available all day.

Further details: Claire Morgan 07786302930, claire@faragherjones.com

Martha Gonzalez, a coffee grower from the Soppexcca Fairtrade coffee co-op in Nicaragua, will visit St Mark's in Larkhall to talk to two classes about life as a farmer in the developing world.

Further details: Steve Faragher 01225319799, steve@faragher jones.com

Bath Literature Festival on Environment Issues: Sir David King

Sun 02 March

14.30-15.30, Guildhall

Respected scientist and recent Government Chief Scientist Sir David King, whose impressive record includes promoting an international dialogue to act on climate change, will speak on what needs to happen to decrease our footprint.

Tickets, £7 (£5) 

Bath Literature Festival on Environment Issues: Tony Juniper and Mark Lynas

Fri 29 February

18.00-19.00, Guildhall

Author and Friends of the Earth director Tony Juniper (How Many Lightbulbs Does it Take to Change a Lightbulb?) and author Mark Lynas (Six Degrees: Our Future on a Hotter Planet) will discuss 95 Ways to Change a Planet with Tony McLaughlin.

Tickets, £8 (£6) 

Bath Literature Festival Keynote Speech: Tariq Ali

Sat 23 February

13.00-14.00, Guildhall

Bath Literature Festival starts this year's program with an opening speech by Tariq Ali, a historian, novelist, political campaigner, and an editor of the New Left Review. His speech will open the festival's theme of Origin and Identity.

Tickets, £9 (£7)

Welcome to the second Green Bath news digest. You may still find you're recieiving it more than once if you're subscribed to several groups, apologies for this - the way to stop it happening is to visit greenbath.org
and subscribe to the Bath Green News group. email steve@greenbath.org if you need any help doing this. If you don't you won't see this weekly newsletter again!

St Saviour's Church Larkhall.

Every Friday a bunch of happy fair-traders get together and offer a
fantastic range of foodstuffs, household and luxury goods for sale at
St Saviour's. There's refreshments on offer and even a well-stocked toy
corner for the kids to play in while you shop. It's the easiest way to
go fairtrade.

Further details: Lyndsey Wright 01225 331402, simon_wright@btinternet.com

St Saviour's Church Larkhall.

Every Friday a bunch of happy fair-traders get together and offer a
fantastic range of foodstuffs, household and luxury goods for sale at
St Saviour's. There's refreshments on offer and even a well-stocked toy
corner for the kids to play in while you shop. It's the easiest way to
go fairtrade.

Further details: Lyndsey Wright 01225 331402, simon_wright@btinternet.com

St Saviour's Church Larkhall.

Every Friday a bunch of happy fair-traders get together and offer a
fantastic range of foodstuffs, household and luxury goods for sale at
St Saviour's. There's refreshments on offer and even a well-stocked toy
corner for the kids to play in while you shop. It's the easiest way to
go fairtrade.

Further details: Lyndsey Wright 01225 331402, simon_wright@btinternet.com

St Saviour's Church Larkhall.

Every Friday a bunch of happy fair-traders get together and offer a
fantastic range of foodstuffs, household and luxury goods for sale at
St Saviour's. There's refreshments on offer and even a well-stocked toy
corner for the kids to play in while you shop. It's the easiest way to
go fairtrade.

Further details: Lyndsey Wright 01225 331402, simon_wright@btinternet.com

St Saviour's Church Larkhall.

Every Friday a bunch of happy fair-traders get together and offer a
fantastic range of foodstuffs, household and luxury goods for sale at
St Saviour's. There's refreshments on offer and even a well-stocked toy
corner for the kids to play in while you shop. It's the easiest way to
go fairtrade.

Further details: Lyndsey Wright 01225 331402, simon_wright@btinternet.com

St Saviour's Church Larkhall.

Every Friday a bunch of happy fair-traders get together and offer a fantastic range of foodstuffs, household and luxury goods for sale at St Saviour's. There's refreshments on offer and even a well-stocked toy corner for the kids to play in while you shop. It's the easiest way to go fairtrade.

Further details: Lyndsey Wright 01225 331402, simon_wright@btinternet.com

St Saviours Church, Larkhall. £3.50.

Only one in four people in the world get to eat a proper lunch. To highlight this, Lyndsey Wright has organised this unusual event. Turn up on the day and pay £3.50 for lunch, but only one person in four will actually get the cooked, three course lunch, the rest will get some bread and cheese. And the opportunity to top-up their lunch by buying more.

Book your ticket from Lyndsey
Further details: Lyndsey Wright 01225 331402, simon_wright@btinternet.com
 

Guildhall

As part of the Bath Literature Festival Harriet Lamb, the founder and president of the Fairtrade Foundation will be talking about her book in the Guildhall.

The Bath Literature Festival runs from 23 February until 2 March 2008. Full details can be found online at www.bathlitfest.org.uk and tickets are available from the box office on 01225 463362.

Tickets, £6 (£4)

St Michaels Church Without, Broad Street

All are welcome to the launch of the 2008 Bath & North East Somerset Fairtrade Directory. Come and meet Harriet Lamb CBE, founder and president of the Fairtrade Foundation and Martha Gonzalez, a Nicaraguan Coffee producer and enjoy a free cup of Fairtrade tea or coffee and a slice of cake. There will be a collection for the church.

Further details: Steve Faragher 01225319799, steve@greenbath.org

Upstairs at The Rummer

Hello - this is the very first Bath Green Digest which is being sent out to all subscribers to all groups on greenbath.org. This may mean you get it more than once if you're subscribed to several groups. If you want to recieve it in the future you'll need to go to greenbath.org and subscribe to the Bath Green News group. email steve@greenbath.org if you need any help doing this. If you don't you won't see this weekly newsletter again!

By Gideon Kibblewhite

LATE GREAT WESTERN
Commuters along First Great Western’s major train lines have decided to hold Britain’s second fare strike today in protest against the train company’s high fares and poor service. You know what to do – don't pay… More on the campaign at www.moretrainlessstrain.co.uk

SEEDY
Bath Organic Group's annual Seed Swap & Cake Fest will be held on Sunday 2nd February 2005 from 3–5 pm at Envolve in Green Park Station. Bring those seeds from last year to swap…

IN TRANSITION
Bath has began the exciting journey to becoming a 'Transition City'. Started by a bunch of students in Kinsale, West Cork, the Transition Towns movement is all about empowering everyone to prepare for the twin challenges of climate change and post-'Peak Oil', when oil is scarce and expensive. The movement now has a rapidly growing network of villages, towns and cities where local communities are now leading the move to post-'Peak Oil' adjustment from below with integrated practical and imaginative activities and campaigns.
Transition Bath started in the autumn of last year and now local action groups are springing up across the city. Activists in Larkhall, for instance, have already set up a "Larkhall Save the World" group. If you want to set up a group or get involved, visit transitionbath.co.uk and follow the link. For more inspiration, visit Transition Bristol to see what Transition groups there are up to. We'll be back with lots more on Transition Bath soon.

LIES UNFOLD
Japanese paper giants Nippon and Oji are in hot water for misleading customers about the amount of recycled material in their products. Nippon paper claiming to be 100 per cent recycled has turned out to contain only 60 per cent recycled stock, while Oji envelopes billed as containing 50 per cent recycled materials have been revealed to contain as little as five per cent. Oops. Nippon president Masatomo Nakamura is now set to resign over the issue. And it's fair enough that Nakamura should go – he clearly isn't cut out for the job.

POWERLESS TO PREVENT IT
Work at Bath's recycling depot in Keynsham was temporarily disrupted this week after thieves broke in and stole vehicle keys and a number of mobile phones. Well it's recycling of a sort.

HEROES DO ZERO
Which brings us a reminder that B&NES Council's second Zero Waste Week, during which you're challenged to recycle everything you possibly can, starts on February 26. To register and get your information pack, call Council Connect on 01225 39 40 41 or email councilconnect@bathnes.gov.uk…

FIT OR BUS
The Bristol end of the Bristol to Bath Railway Path, the hugely popular thirteen-mile, fume-free "liner park" for walkers and cyclists, is being threatened by plans for a 'rapid transit bus route'. The idea has been mooted before, but this time councillors seem really up for developing Emersons Green to Ashton Vale section – despite the fact that national cycle path builders Sustrans recently won £50million in lottery funding to **improve** the network. Concerned folk are invited to a public meeting about the matter on Tuesday 5th February at 7.30 at the Cornubia public house, Temple Street, Bristol. On a happier note, the Bath end of the path is set to be extended into the city centre as part of a £50 million investment plan by the Department of Transport to improve bus services. If all goes well, we will soon be seeing flash new bus shelters with "real-time" London Underground-style information displays. Hurrah! We think…

BARRAGE BALLOONS
The Government has just launched a two-year feasibility study of a Severn Barrage. The headline issues surrounding a barrage remain the same after years of argument. The £15 billion project could generate up to five per cent of Britain's electricity needs, yet it would destroy an estuary that supports some 65,000 birds in winter. However, the emergence of new "tidal lagoon" systems could mean that the whole idea of a barrage has become something of a red herring (or salmon, rather, in the case of the Severn). Supporters of tidal lagoons – which feasibility study will indeed also look at – argue that they are cheaper than barrages, cause less local environmental disruption and can actually generate more energy. For an introduction to the technology, try this article and these interesting letters in the **Guardian**. Click here to find out how the South Koreans are already way ahead of the game…

UP IN SMOKE
B&Q are to discontinue patio heaters, the gas guzzling contraptions former energy minister Malcolm Wickes branded "environmental obscenities". Good news for the planet; bad news for smokers if the campaign against the things reaches pubs. The way forward is clear: some kind of coat should be sold with tobacco.

DEBT AND TAXES
If you feel angered every time you hear someone from the Western world lecture developing countries about climate change, well, next time your ire will be fuelled by a devastatingly powerful statistic. It turns out that that the environmental damage caused to developing nations by the world's richest countries amounts to $1.8 trillion – more than the entire third world debt. Would you believe it, we owe **them**! Click here for the full and actually very sobering story.

NOT PROPER CHARLIE
No one could accuse Prince Charles of double standards this week when he decided not to jet to the recent World Future Energy Summit in Abu Dhabi. He put in an appearance all right, and even made a speech – via hologram… Delegates, at sustainability city in Abu Dhabi to hear about the world's first in the desert, were addressed by a life-sized moving image of His Royal Highness that was recorded at Clarence House last November and transferred into a 3D image. When he was done he simply said he his goodbyes and disappeared. He probably wishes his mother would perform a similar vanishing act…

GREEN BATH?
According to a glorious understatement in the Bath Chronicle, the city's pollution troubles apparently "stem from the build up of noxious traffic emissions caused by the steady stream of slow-moving vehicles along its major routes". Really? Bath environmentalist Karl Jaeger, co-founder of Our Future Planet, reckoned that a great deal of noxious fumes emanated from the Guildhall when councillors met to discuss the problem. Mr Jaeger said: "I think they have failed to address the issue. They are shifting the responsibility on to waiting for money from the Government." Meanwhile, BBC1's Politic's Show recently sent Future Publishing's Biker Radar editor Tony Farrelly out on an hour's trip through Bath's pollution blackspots on his bicycle. When he got back he was found to have inhaled a fag's worth of lung-bashing nitrogen dioxide. At least **he** has coughed up then.

WHEN IRISH EYES ARE STINGING
Warnings of the threat of rising sea levels to Ireland's Giant's Causeway have come just as the latest edition of **Lonely Planet** travel guide paints a picture of an Emerald Isle that is not so very emerald at all. Claiming that “everyone has a car” and that the country’s carbon footprint is “more than double the global average”, the recently published 8th edition says: “Ireland’s forty shades of green don’t, it seems, include the all-important eco-green”. More positively, the guide does also include a "Greendex", an index of attractions, tours, restaurants and accommodation run along sustainable lines.

BEFRIEND A LAMB
The tremendous Bath City Farm is appealing to people to join their Friends of the Farm membership scheme. The farm relies completely on donations and grants to keep it going, so get you hands in your pockets for this great facility. Membership for a year costs a mere £8 for individuals and a bargain basement £12 for groups or families. Click bathcityfarm.org.uk for more details.

ELEMENTARY
Well done to Batheaston C of E Primary School for winning a £5,000 grant from the National College for School Leadership for its "SPACE" sustainability project. One of only 56 winners in a countrywide competition, the school not only had to submit details of its current eco projects but also come up with ideas for sharing its experiences with other schools. Among other things the kids there have been growing their own vegetables and looking after animals.

UTTER KITE
The ultra-efficient Germans have pulled off the environmentally friendly leap of the new millennium! Of have they? Check out the BBC's footage
of the revolutionary 'revolutionary' new 'kite' cargo ship, MS Beluga SkySails. It could be us, but isn't that a sail?

TA TA
If you’ve got any news that you think should appear in the Green Digest, just let us know. Email gideon@faragherjones.com

The Green Digest would not be possible without the financial support of Bath & North East Somerset and Faragher Jones publishers. So cheers to them

Hi All!

Happy New Year! I hope you all had a restful holiday break, and are ready to hit 2008 with a bang! And with that in mind, I hope to see as many of you as possible at our next meeting to look at what we might do as a group in 2008:

Monday 28th January
7.30pm
The Rummer, Pulteney Bridge

The next Oxfam Bath
event will be a film night showing Al Gore's An Inconvenient Truth. Oxfam GB is
aiming to raise awareness of the impact of climate change on the poorest in
society, and are asking Oxfam supporters across the country to all hosting a
film party on the same day - 7pm on Sunday November 25th. So why not join the
Bath film party! It's an event for Oxfam Bath members only, and will be a
relaxed evening allowing you to find out more about other members of the local

“DR. STRANGELOVE”
STARRING PETER SELLERS
ON
TUES 27TH NOVEMBER AT 8.15 pm
AT
THE LITTLE THEATRE, BATH
INTRODUCED BY KATE HUDSON, NATIONAL CHAIR OF CND

http://www.picturehouses.co.uk/cinema_home_date.aspx?venueId=bath 

Bath Spa SU presents the biggest band night of the year, showcasing some of the finest musical talent. Make sure you get your pointy little heads to the SU to help raise money for oxfam.
All proceeds from the night go directly to the charity and will help support some of their global projects. For more information, please visit:
http://www.oxfam.org.uk/oxfam_in_action/

Door entry is £2
Please Note: Entry is with an NUS Card only. Guests must carry ID and
be signed in by a Bath Spa NUS Cardholder.

At Moles Club till late. Awesome mix of bold beats, chilled tunes, groovy dancing, and banging tunes! Come along, have fun + raise money!

At the Assembly Inn

 An evening of music and poetry: bringing together all forms of verbal
expression from free-verse to freestyle, progressing through to
acoustic, folk and jazz performances - an array of artists ready to
share their creations - Audioprose.
FIRST PERFORMANCE STARTS AT 8:00pm
PLEASE SUPPORT US & DONATE NOW AT:
http://www.justgiving.com/audioprose

The envolve annual report has been published and we've been given permission to put it on the website. You'll find it below.

The report's design was done by Bath-based ethical publishers Faragher Jones, who also support this website. www.faragherjones.com

Good Energy have made 4 short films that show how homes, businesses and communities can generate their own energy.

Every day people contact Good Energy to ask how they can install their own renewable energy systems at home and start producing energy. We provide information through our website and through Good Energy's Home Generation scheme which supports individuals already making their own electricity by paying them for every unit they generate.