Sustainable(ish)

This is Part 2, or a 'double header' episode with the brilliant Sara Grimes from Bath and West Community Energy.
Part 1 is all about community energy, and takes a bit of a dive into solar and heat pumps, as well as things like the governments's Warm Homes Plan (it's honestly more fun than it sounds if you haven't already listened to it!)
And this is Part 2, where we talking about all things home retrofit, and looking at some of the less technical , perhaps more affordable options for making our homes more efficient, more comfortable, and cheaper to run.

Enjoy!

Sara Grimes



LISTEN...



USEFUL LINKS:

Sara Grimes
- Linked In
Bath and West Community Energy (BWCE)
- Website
- Community benefit
- BWCE home energy plans and surveys (for people in the Bath area)
- Green Heritage Homes
- Linked In
- Facebook
- Instagram
Community Energy England
Community Energy Scotland
Community Energy Wales
Community Energy Northern Ireland
[112] - Community Energy with Brighton Energy Co-op
[135 ] - The local electricity bill with Steve Shaw (lots of community energy chat in this episode!)
Green Open Homes network
Visit a Heat Pump
Warm Homes Plan
- On the UK government website
- Which explainer article
Find energy grants for your home (UK gov)
Energy grant helpline: 0800 0987950
Boiler upgrade scheme (for heat pumps)
Find an energy certificate (EPC)
Historic England - Energy efficiency and retrofit in historic buildings
Heat Geek
Energy Saving Trust
Centre for Sustainable Energy
Sustainable(ish) Clubhouse - doors opening again soon!
Carbon Literacy
- Carbon Literacy with me!

This week's episode is the first ever two parter!
This was supposed to be an episode on home retrofit, and I'm chatting to SaraG Grimes from Bath and West Community Energy about some of the brilliant work that they're doing, and what people can do in their own homes.

This first part is looking bigger picture and is quite a wide ranging chat! We cover community energy generally, as well as hearing about some of the specific projects that BWCE are working on; solar; heat pumps; the UK government's Warm Homes Plan; and support for renters amongst other things.
In the second part (available to listen to now!) we look more specifically at home retrofit and some of the lower cost retrofit measures available, like draught proofing and insulation.
I'm very aware that both of those potentially sound more than a little dull and dry as podcast episodes, but I really hope that they're interesting and useful! Do let me know!

There we go - I did warn you it was quite a wide ranging chat, but I really hope it was interesting and there were some nuggets there that you can take away.
Part 2 is much more focussed on home retrofit, and some of the lower tehc, more affordable options, and should be available to listen to now if you want to dive straight in, or save that particular treat for another day!
Thanks so much for listening - do let me know any thoughts, comments or questions from this episode, amd I'll catch up in Pt 2

Sara Grimes



LISTEN...



USEFUL LINKS:

Sara Grimes
- Linked In
Bath and West Community Energy (BWCE)
- Website
- Community benefit
- BWCE home energy plans and surveys (for people in the Bath area)
- Green Heritage Homes
- Linked In
- Facebook
- Instagram
Community Energy England
Community Energy Scotland
Community Energy Wales
Community Energy Northern Ireland
[112] - Community Energy with Brighton Energy Co-op
[135 ] - The local electricity bill with Steve Shaw (lots of community energy chat in this episode!)
Green Open Homes network
Visit a Heat Pump
Warm Homes Plan
- On the UK government website
- Which explainer article
Find energy grants for your home (UK gov)
Energy grant helpline: 0800 0987950
Boiler upgrade scheme (for heat pumps)
Find an energy certificate (EPC)
Historic England - Energy efficiency and retrofit in historic buildings
Heat Geek
Energy Saving Trust
Centre for Sustainable Energy
Sustainable(ish) Clubhouse - doors opening again soon!
Carbon Literacy
- Carbon Literacy with me!

If you were to google 'how to be more sustainable' you would get a slew of posts sharing 'ten top things to do to cut your carbon footprint' or similar.Very few (if any) mention the huge potential influence that we can all have, by sharing the things that we're doing, talking to other people, voting etc etc.

Which is why when I first came across a paper called 'Choices for climate action: a review of the multiple roles individuals play', and it included these very things, I was super excited, and promptly used it as a framework for diving into climate action in my Carbon Literacy courses.

I was delighted to be able to dive into this in more detail with one of the paper's authors, Dr Sam Hampton, who is an academic at not one, but two universities, Bath and Oxford! We discuss not only the paper I mention above, but a new paper that has just been published about the role of hairdressers as 'everyday influencers' - a phrase I absolutely love! We are ALL everyday influencers, and our choices matter and shape the decisions of those around us. I find this hugely empowering, and I hope you do too!

Sam Hampton



LISTEN...



USEFUL LINKS:

Sam Hampton
- Website
- Linked In
Choices for climate action: a review of the multiple roles individuals play
[188] - Money, money, money with Lisa Stanley-Mann
Household contributions to global greenhouse gas emissions
- This paper says 60%
- This paper says 72%
Katharine Hayhoe
- Saving Us (book)
- Katharine on the Sustainababble podcast
- TED talk
Globally representative evidence on the actual and perceived support for climate action
Experimental evidence for tipping points in social convention
[118] - A beginners guide to COP26 (I reference this episode with Laura on the podcast)
Hairdressers as 'everyday influencers' on climate change and sustainability
Green Salon Collective
[154] - Leading by example, does it work? With Steve Westlake
Green and Healthy Frome
[185] - Is it all b*llocks?
Outrage and Optimism podcast episode with Lorraine Whitmarsh
Ipsos Perils of perception study
Oxford University Climate Leadership Research Centre
Larger Us - Lets Talk Climate project
Sustainable(ish) Clubhouse - doors opening again soon!
Carbon Literacy
- Carbon Literacy with me!

Pie chart showing the six domains for individual action on climate change



I'd love to hear your thoughts on 'everyday influencers' , and if this episode has helped you to think more broadly about the impact we can all have.
Let me know!

If you were to google 'how to be more sustainable' you would get a slew of posts sharing 'ten top things to do to cut your carbon footprint' or similar.Very few (if any) mention the huge potential influence that we can all have, by sharing the things that we're doing, talking to other people, voting etc etc.

Which is why when I first came across a paper called 'Choices for climate action: a review of the multiple roles individuals play', and it included these very things, I was super excited, and promptly used it as a framework for diving into climate action in my Carbon Literacy courses.

I was delighted to be able to dive into this in more detail with one of the paper's authors, Dr Sam Hampton, who is an academic at not one, but two universities, Bath and Oxford! We discuss not only the paper I mention above, but a new paper that has just been published about the role of hairdressers as 'everyday influencers' - a phrase I absolutely love! We are ALL everyday influencers, and our choices matter and shape the decisions of those around us. I find this hugely empowering, and I hope you do too!

Sam Hampton



LISTEN...



USEFUL LINKS:

Sam Hampton
- Website
- Linked In
Choices for climate action: a review of the multiple roles individuals play
[188] - Money, money, money with Lisa Stanley-Mann
Household contributions to global greenhouse gas emissions
- This paper says 60%
- This paper says 72%
Katharine Hayhoe
- Saving Us (book)
- Katharine on the Sustainababble podcast
- TED talk
Globally representative evidence on the actual and perceived support for climate action
Experimental evidence for tipping points in social convention
[118] - A beginners guide to COP26 (I reference this episode with Laura on the podcast)
Hairdressers as 'everyday influencers' on climate change and sustainability
Green Salon Collective
[154] - Leading by example, does it work? With Steve Westlake
Green and Healthy Frome
[185] - Is it all b*llocks?
Outrage and Optimism podcast episode with Lorraine Whitmarsh
Ipsos Perils of perception study
Oxford University Climate Leadership Research Centre
Larger Us - Lets Talk Climate project
Sustainable(ish) Clubhouse - doors opening again soon!
Carbon Literacy
- Carbon Literacy with me!

Pie chart showing the six domains for individual action on climate change



I'd love to hear your thoughts on 'everyday influencers' , and if this episode has helped you to think more broadly about the impact we can all have.
Let me know!

Football and sport don't perhaps at first glance seem like a natural 'in' for climate action. But did you know..?
- Over 100,000 grassroots football matches are cancelled every year due to bad weather such as flooding
- Over 80% of football fans want are concerned about climate change
- 65% of football fans want their clubs to take more climate action

It was such a joy to get the opportunity to chat to Katie Cross all about Pledgeball - an award winning sports sustainability charity who do an amazing job of empowering sports fans to take action for climate and nature, often framing it around the idea of 'protecting where we play'.
I wouldn't count myself as a football fan, but I took so much inspiration away from this episode and from Katie. So many clever ways of taking something that people are passionate about and using it as a way in to talk about climate and how it's impacting on that thing that they love, and then harnessing the power of the community that they are already involved in to take action, and to see how their one action contributes to a much greater impact.

Even if you're not a football fan, I think there will be lots to take away from this episode - some way to take a little bit of the work that Plegdeball are doing with football, and in sport more widely, and apply it to the communities that you're already a part of.

Katie Cross



LISTEN...



USEFUL LINKS:

Katie Cross
- Linked In
Pledgeball
- Website
- Instagram
- Linked In
- Facebook
- You Tube
- The Pledgeball podcast
- Add your club (or school, or workplace etc)
- Sustainable Travel Charter
Ep 154 - Leading by example - does it matter? With Steve Westlake (podcast ep)
David Wheeler
Climate Outreach
- Britain Talks Climate and Nature
EFL Green Clubs
Carbon Literacy
- Carbon Literacy with me!
Ep 175 - Climate Play (including Lego Serious Play) - podcast with Lisa Hawthorne
Ep 193 - The power of swapping with Sam Drury Shore

Reading FC's kit with the warming stripes on the sleeve



I'd love to hear if you get your local club signed up, or get your kids school involved, or start something at work around this - do let me know!