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We are prophets but we are also agents of change

By Mary Chabrel, Green Party member.

Thirty years ago this month, I finished my GCSEs, Geography being one of them. I was already a conservation volunteer in the Colne Valley and in the lower sixth I founded ‘Help Earth Live Peacefully’, a still applicable maxim I think! The group collected cans in separate bins, squashed them in the woodwork rooms and sold them to an aluminium merchant. These days schools don’t have can machines, and the recycling is provided through identified commercial waste bins installed by the contractors. However, I am still the person who distributes labels for in-class recycling bins at the beginning of each academic year. The thing about being an environmental campaigner is that the problems are so vast and the chance to do things differently seems so ‘effortful’, that it can be hard to carve out a role in which you can sense that you are making a meaningful difference.

As a teacher, I am used to the idea that “We plant the seeds that one day will grow. We water the seeds already planted, knowing that they hold future promise.” But – 30 years!!?? And, of course, when I joined Friends of the Earth in the 1990s, they were 20 years old already..... The ‘environmental movement’ had started with organisations that we recognise today as being the ‘movement’ in the 1970s. So, how is it that the awareness has been raised over these years but society has not embraced longer-term solutions and systemic change? Partly because (to quote a 14 year old I taught once), “oh, but that’s effortttttt”! The limits we put upon ourselves: to limit our own imagination to do things differently, to valuing resources differently, to appreciating people differently; but also the environmental movement contains an ‘inconvenient truth’. As Al Gore’s documentary was entitled, based on the scientific message that he spread about climate change, near and far in 2006. We live ON a finite world, we live IN a finite world. Al Gore was so concerned that the world didn’t realise this, he produced another film, ‘An inconvenient sequel: truth to power’! The day the Paris Agreement was signed, he looked so relieved and joyous, yet of course, the work continues.

So, yes, we are prophets, speaking truth unto power, but we are now also agents of change as the scientific reality becomes part of wider vocabulary. For example, Terminal 5 was built at Heathrow Airport, but the decision to build the third runway was ruled unlawful by the Court of Appeal, on 27th February this year, because ‘it did not take climate commitments into account’. What joy, what victory, what reward for the hard work of campaigners across West London, some of whom I know have been campaigning on this issue, across those 30 years.

Of course, we still have work to do. The environmental crisis is also a crisis of power and oppression and will impact those the most who have contributed the least to the cause of climate change, and this encompasses different races, ethnic backgrounds and levels of food security to varying degrees. Until we address issues on inequality across the globe we cannot truly tackle environmental breakdown. As a teacher, I am frequently in awe of my students' ability to imagine a better future, understanding that we are all connected and must work together to achieve our common goals.

 

Sycamore Road appeal dismissed!

By Co-Chair | 13th March 2022

Great news! The Sycamore Road development appeal has been dismissed. I congratulate all the residents for putting in so many objections. The Chair of the Management Association for the flats worked really hard as we did on the Parish Council. Overall this made the TRDC planning committee take notice. The Neighbourhood Plan was very important […]

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New trees planted with better design, thanks to Green Party

By Co-Chair | 15th February 2022

Back in 2019 members of the Green Party met with a highways officer to draw attention to the neglect of newly planted trees. Tree ties, which are used to secure young trees to their support stakes, have not been removed and are constricting tree trunks. This can sometimes result in tree death. Following pressure from […]

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Woodland saved for Croxley Green!

By Co-Chair | 15th February 2022

Chris Mitchell persuaded the Parish Council to buy the woodland for resident’s use Local residents approached councillors about the future of five acres of Long Valley Wood adjoining Woodland Chase estate, south of Harvey Road. The land had been sold by developers to a demolition and waste clearance company that later went into liquidation. Residents […]

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Killingdown Farm planning appeal upheld

By Co-Chair | 8th February 2022

The Killingdown Farm planning application for 160 dwellings adjacent to The Green Conservation Area has been upheld at appeal and therefore the development will go ahead. This is a disappointing decision and we commend residents for their hard work in opposing the plan from the start. Let’s be clear – the Lib Dem run Council […]

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Are you eligible for the Green Homes Grant?

By Co-Chair | 11th November 2021

The Green Homes Grant is a fund of more than £1million available to Three Rivers residents until March 2022. The scheme is administered by Three Rivers District Council. Find out more It is targeting households who would like a warmer home but cannot afford to make energy-saving home improvements, with fully funded measures worth up […]

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Our response to the Local Plan consultation

By Co-Chair | 4th August 2021

Three Rivers District Council (TRDC) is consulting on a new Local Plan which will deliver 8,973 new homes. 80% are allocated to sites in the Green Belt. Please see our full response to Part 1: Preferred Policy Options here and to Part 2: Sites for Potential Allocation here. These are a collection of comments made […]

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Which sites have been put forward for development near you?

By Co-Chair | 18th June 2021

Three Rivers District Council (TRDC) is consulting on a new Local Plan. You can view the consultation here. Part 2: Sites for Potential Allocation 80% of the additional dwellings set out in the potential sites allocation document are allocated to sites previously in the Green Belt. There are many sites of serious concern including: CFS10 […]

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Support Croxley Green Parish Council to stop the development of the Red Cross Centre

By Co-Chair | 25th May 2021

Three Rivers District Council has designated the Red Cross Centre as a site for future development with 6 dwellings to be built on the land. This decision will remove a vital, well-used community space, which was built using funds raised directly from Croxley Green residents. Three Rivers District Council own the land where the Centre […]

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Chris celebrates a strong election result in Dickinsons Ward

By Co-Chair | 13th May 2021

In the Three Rivers District Council elections in 2021 Chris Mitchell increased the vote for the Green Party in Dickinsons Ward, Croxley Green, eightfold from 119 to 961, and the vote share sixfold from 6% to over 38%.  He was narrowly beaten by the Liberal Democrats whose vote share fell by a third from 66% […]

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Greens fight for better housing at Killingdown Farm

By Co-Chair | 3rd May 2021

Chris Mitchell, Green Party candidate for Dickinsons Ward, has succeeded in persuading the developers of Killingdown Farm in Croxley Green to improve energy saving in 160 proposed new homes. Installing heat pumps instead of mains gas connection will result in an energy saving of 43%, a vast improvement on current minimum building standards. Chris has […]

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