'The meeting place for sustainability activity in Calderdale'

Calderdale Climate Challenge - launches this week!  Website live Wednesday 22nd November - noon

After a 3 month preparation process the latest CSF sustainability partnership and campaign launches to the public this week.  Calderdale Climate Challenge www.calderdaleclimatechallenge.org.uk/ will inform us about what climate change will mean for Calderdale and how, by acting together, we can tackle it.  The new website will be live at noon on Wednesday 23rd November, followed by a 'carbon free' email launch on Thursday and a 'climate clever' competition in Saturday's Courier .

Have your say on our future Waste Strategy

The draft Calderdale Council waste strategy is now out for consultation; it covers collection and disposal options, recycling rates, and the need for the Council to take action in order to avoid impending and substantial Government penalties!

Download the Strategy.

We won! Calderdale success in national Climate Challenge awareness competition

It was announced on Friday 16th June that the CSF bid - also prepared with lead partners Calderdale Council and the Environment Agency, and a long list of other local and regional partners - has been awarded nearly £100,000 grant by DEFRA to promote awareness about climate change. The Calderdale bid was one of five regional winners in the national competition; the awareness campaign will launch this autumn, running through to Spring 2008.

For further details please follow the links below:

CSF press release

DEFRA Climate Challenge website and more details about the Climate Challenge national fund

In further good news for Calderdale, Zoheb Khalil (aged 10) is the region's Youth Climate Change Champion and lives in Halifax. See his winning video

To find more details about the successful Calderdale bid to DEFRA, please click here.

If you would like to find out more about climate change, the forthcoming campaign; or would you like to take part? Just contact us

What is Calderdale's 'Ecological Footprint'?

The world average Ecological Footprint is 2.2 global hectares per person. In contrast, dividing the total biologically productive surface area of the planet by the current population gives us our budget for sustainable living: 1.8 hectares per person (some of which we may want to share with other species).   By contrast Calderdale's Ecological Footprint is 5.22 global hectares per person ( UK: 5.4); this is more than 60% higher than our ecological budget.  The UK has an Ecological Footprint among the highest 15 countries on a per person basis. Find out more.

More Climate Change news

A lot has happened since CSF established its Climate Change (CC) partnership in October 2004. Nationally, public concern about CC grows every month; regionally, the Y&H CC Action Plan has been launched ; locally, the Council is completing the preparation of its own CC strategy, whilst Treesponsibility has pioneered CO2mmitment for climate-aware businesses organisations in the Upper Calder Valley, and its own tree planting holidays 'in the beautiful South Pennines'.

CSF: back in business

2005 was a 'quiet year' for CSF - we have had to change location, staffing arrangements, and funding sources - so apologies for our absence. But, as you'll see from this newsletter, the good work from our existing Action Partnerships, and other Calderdale sustainability organisations, just kept on coming -and we're planning more. CSF is now safely housed with GBN (many thanks), and with money in the bank. To find out more, and ask any questions, come to the CSF AGM and Open Forum.

The CSF AGM and Open Forum took place on Tuesday 14th March 2006. To see an agenda and powerpoint presentaion from the evening, please see below.

Agenda for the Open Forum (Word document).

Presentation from the Open Forum (Powerpoint document - 1.4Mb).

Calder Future: Employing new volunteer coordinator

Calder Future goes from strength to strength. And now - because of core funding provided by Calderdale Council, Environment Agency, and British Waterways, the partnership has employed a second (part-time) worker to increase volunteer participation. To take part in river/ canalside improvement works across Calderdale throughout the year, and to join our annual river Calder Day in June, contact Emma on 01422 316661.

Alternative Technology Centre: sustainable pasts and futures  

The ATC 'Power in the Landscape' project is auditing all the historic water powered mills in the Upper Calder valley, and the lives of the people around them. Looking forward, SUSchool - which exists to help schools teach and implement sustainable development, is enjoying unprecedented activity with the recent publicity by the DfES and Jonathan Porrit - "it is the ideal tool for implementing ESD", he says. SUSchool, having recently developed Waste and Energy education packs for Calderdale schools, are now working on SD packs for the YHA's Green Shoots project, and for the Confederation of British Teachers.

Calderdale Waste Partnership: major recycling promotion

Calderdale has taken a real step forward in recycling: with district-wide kerbside collections, sustained promotion under the new Recycle for Calderdale brand, including an 'incentive' scheme for primary schools, and lots of additional resources. And use the 'postcode look-up' to find your next collection date. Coming in 2006: an important consultation on Calderdale's new waste strategy - CSF will be playing its part.

Calderdale Foward: keeping the green flag flying

CSF chair Anthony Rae has a seat on the Board of our 'local strategic partnership' Calderdale Forward, which is now revising its 'futures plan'. at a lot of progress has been made towards genuine sustainable development under the existing plan but it has been a bit of a struggle, says Anthony, to make sure environmental issues keep an equal place in the new plan. "I've had to speak out quite forcefully, but I think we're getting there".  

Calderdale Council launches travel plan 

In January 2006 Calderdale launched their 'Corporate Travel Plan' - to join those already operated by HBOS and the NHS Trust - when over 4000 leaflets were distributed to staff.  The Plan's based on the 2005 Staff Travel Survey, which provides some very interesting reading about staff travel habits - both for commuting to/from work and for travel on Council business. It includes discounted public transport for staff; a carsharing scheme; cycle storage and showering facilities; and its aim is to help the Council to manage its transport impact on the environment and widen travel choices for staff.

Green Business Network: 10th birthday celebrations

In October 2005 the Green Business Network celebrated 10 years of providing environmental advice to local businesses, assisting community groups and establishing major recycling projects. Since 1995 GBN has given advice and assistance to over 1,500 businesses to help improve their environmental performance; it operates a number of distinct but related environmental and social enterprise activities, for which funding of over £7 million has been secured.  

Sustainable Region?

What happens in Calderdale over the next 15 years will be very substantially determined - in advance - by the new Regional Spatial Strategy - now out for consultation. It will have a tremendous impact on the future sustainability of Calderdale, and will automatically become part of our new Local Development Framework (the replacement UDP). But ... you won't be able, at our local level, to challenge anything it says - and that includes even more housing, probably cutting into greenfield sites - so you better have your say now!