A new climate and nature café is to be launched by Extinction Rebellion (XR) Wimborne for people suffering from eco-anxiety over the climate and nature crises. The pop-up café is at the Cafe @ The Allendale in Wimborne on Thursday 15 February from 4pm to 6pm. XR Wimborne say it is an opportunity for people […]
Global average temperatures in 2023 exceeded 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels, conditions never before experienced by human civilisation. Though crossing this iconic milestone for one year doesn’t mean that average warming has yet reached that point, it was only in 2018 that UN climate experts, the IPCC, predicted that we wouldn’t reach 1.5°C until around 2040. […]
Each new year brings hopes and fears – hope for good changes, fear that bad ones might arise. Mostly, we hope things will improve for family and friends who are struggling but worry about how events outside their control will prevent progress. All our personal futures are bound up with the wider world, so here […]
We spotted this on Twitter and thought that it sounded horribly accurate; it really sets out just what we are up against… Romain, who describes himself as a grumpy Parisian, campaigns with Oil Change International to accelerate the end of the fossil fuel era. Sitting in tonight’s Global Stock Take (GST) negotiations on fossil fuel […]
Dear Journalists, Please challenge ministers when they brag that UK has cut emissions by nearly 50 per cent. That’s only part of the story and highly misleading – because we’ve offshored so much manufacturing. The UK has in fact barely cut emissions at all outside of the power sector since 2010. An abject failure. What’s […]
Here’s the evidence that the UK Gov is now overtly blocking the action needed to avoid climate catastrophe. What have I missed? Despite crystal clear science that the world already has enough fossil fuels to last until 2050, and to surge well past 1.5°C leading to catastrophic damage… …the UK gives huge tax rebates to fossil […]
In the run-up to COP28, where governments will discuss urgent measures to mitigate the worst effects of climate breakdown, a new online poll has revealed that British adults have, in Bristol Energy Cooperative’s opinion, shockingly low awareness of a climate solution that’s potentially right on their doorstep: community energy. The new Ipsos poll commissioned by Bristol Energy Cooperative (BEC), a community-owned energy coop, shows, when […]
Rishi Sunak is going to step up his efforts to weaponise climate action for political gain, pretending that he is the champion of the motorist and the homeowner facing hideous bills for energy (thanks to profiteering). Using the famously environmentally-minded King as the mouthpiece for his ‘plan’, Sunak will no doubt claim that new oil […]
The lawn is a terribly British thing: Wimbledon, picnics, making daisy chains. For me summer starts when I’m hit by the scent of cut grass and then it’s that bit of green that remains into the winter months after the trees have lost their leaves. So why are so many gardens in the UK being […]
Stopping what he called the ‘war on motorists’ seems to be Rishi Sunak’s latest electoral wheeze. He, or his advisors, have worked out that there are lot of people who not only drive, but who love cars and the roar of engines, the smell of petrol, the sound of revs and the thrust of rapid […]
In the UK, it is estimated that we will spend a total of £777m on Halloween this year, up 13 per cent from an estimated £687m in 2022. Not to mention that of the 17 million pumpkins we buy, 14.5 million go to waste after October 31. A terrifying quantity of costumes are purchased each […]
Local activists from Cycling Rebellion have launched the LOVE 20 campaign at Winton Banks in Bournemouth, calling for a 20mph speed limit on Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole (BCP) roads where citizens live, work, shop and play. Heart shaped spoof 20 miles per hour (mph) speed limit signs were displayed along the road, chalk art brought […]
The colourful campaigners of Extinction Rebellion Wimborne (XR-Wimborne) joined the crowds gathered for the Inside Out Dorset performances in September 2023. “We sang fossil fuels themed songs, processed and unfurled banners before the Inside Out performances started, and in parts of Wimborne where performances weren’t taking place. Our message was simple, there’s still time to […]
“First, we need to change the debate. This debate needs more clarity, not more emotion. The test should be: do we have the fairest credible path to reach Net Zero by 2050, in a way that brings people with us?” Rishi Sunak, Sept 20, 2023 Shhhhhhh! Don’t blow the choreography. Sunak’s speech on Wednesday September […]
The day before Rishi Sunak’s outstandingly dishonest Downing Street press conference on Wednesday, at which the Prime Minister announced his decision to junk key parts of the UK’s emission reduction efforts, a meeting of a very different kind took place in Cornwall Council’s main chamber in Truro. Convened by Climate & Ecological Emergency Cornwall, a […]
When Russell Brand issued his pre-emptive denial in an attempt to get ahead of the horrendous allegations of rape and sexual assault aired by The Times and Channel 4’s Dispatches on Saturday, he addressed his 6.6 million YouTube subscribers with the words: “Hello there, you awakening wonders.” It’s Brand’s standard greeting to his followers and […]
The Global Fight to End Fossil Fuels has registered over 400 actions, marches, rallies, and events around the world. These mobilisations against fossil fuels are coordinated by more than 780 endorsing organisations. They are expected to draw millions of participants between September 15 and 17, 2023. This includes a Pier-to-Pier march and rally in Bournemouth […]
Local community organisation, Exeter Community Alliance, is highlighting Devon County Council’s (DCC) current climate-messaging inconsistency. On the one hand, DCC’s own website tells local concerned citizens to be ethical and green in their choice of bank saying: “Finding banks with a strong ethical investment policy is an amazing way to make sure that your money […]
Madam, While Dr Richard Lawson is right to call for a voluntary movement to cut speeds on our roads, the 50/60 Campaign, might I ask why there isn’t a campaign to get government to cut UK speed limits as this is without a doubt one of the simplest actions that could be taken both to […]
This year’s intensely hot weather across the world, with its consequent rash of wildfires from Hawaii to Canada and around the northern hemisphere, presents humanity with an urgent and challenging call for effective action on climate. Sadly, our millionaire prime minister has met this challenge with a firm commitment to add as many tonnes of […]
Dear Editor, As a campaigner who has been arrested eight times for obstructing roads, gluing myself to paintings, blocking Rupert Murdoch’s printing press and smashing his headquarters’ windows, I can’t throw the people protesting at the Heavitree & Whipton Active Travel trial under the bus. Their bold actions – ripping out bollards, blocking the bus […]
On Sunday 13 August, Extinction Rebellion held a ‘Dirty Water’ protest at Dawlish seafront in Devon. [What follows is an edited version of their press release.] This is part of ‘Wave Four’ of an ongoing Extinction Rebellion campaign running throughout 2023. Through a combination of theatrics and public engagement, protestors yet again peacefully highlighted the fact […]
Dear Editor Thank you for your great article on gaslighting. It made me wonder if there’s a ‘how to spot a climate change denier’ type exercise or set of questions anywhere? There seem to be various myths which are trotted out in meetings or conversations as excuses for inaction – not just fear of change […]
It’s amazing how, as a country, we seem to let Sunak and this government do things which are bad for us, bad for our kids, bad for the planet and then suck it up while they tell us it’s all good or use their actions to create more division and anger in society. It’s pretty […]
We all have at least one neighbour who has become despairing about the state and trajectory of the UK. And despair is not a basis for change. This article suggests three simple and powerful messages that you can share with anyone open-minded enough to listen and which, once they are aware, might give them cause […]
Trainers. Comfortable, ageless and fashionable, whether you’re a committed runner or a sofa-based Olympics’ fan! We probably all own at least one pair, and for some people they’re an obsession, but the facts around their production and its effect on the environment are pretty stark. Approximately 25 billion pairs are made every year, most from […]
Dear Editor, ‘Culture wars’: the phrase seems to have originated in 1990s America but is now bandied about in many contexts. Events of this summer – 2023 – have opened a clear new front in today’s culture wars in the UK, by actually engaging Joe Public in the question of whether there is a climate […]
Listen up! Pay attention! This affects us all! There can hardly be a politician anywhere in the world who does not yearn for economic growth. It was the mantra that won Liz Truss the key to number 10, and now economic growth is central to Kier Starmer’s vision for the future: he wants to achieve […]
Dear Keir Starmer, I heard you may be thinking of further watering down environmental pledges in light of the narrow loss in Boris Johnson’s old seat. I certainly hope this isn’t true in light of the raging fires in Greece and the absolute necessity to tackle climate change and reach net zero even faster than […]
Bournemouth residents today joined Extinction Rebellion Bournemouth, Christchurch & Poole (XR BCP), who gathered at Horseshoe Common while chanting and ringing bells. The group cycled around Bournemouth in a mass bike ride, in support of better sustainable transport infrastructure. Cars were slowed by the procession cycling around Bournemouth centre, while protesters carried placards and flags […]