Now, when I first heard about 10:10 I wondered why this project was any different to other carbon cutting ideas. Politicians were already discussing this and had agreed, to some extent, that emissions needed to be cut with targets in mind. However, as the 10:10 folks say:
“…while politicians argue about targets for 2050 and 2020, the scientists say world emissions must peak and begin to fall within the next few years. That means we need deep cuts in the developed world as quickly as possible. The longer we leave it, the smaller our chance of avoiding disastrous warming. 10% is approximately the right amount for Britain to cut next year if we are to play our part in keeping global temperatures from soaring out of control…”

That’s good enough reason for me, so today our web design business, Make Hay, joined the project.

Make it a Global Project

As we all know though, this is a global problem – the term ‘global warming’ kind of gives it away. So I was wondering even if the UK do cut its emissions by 10% next year how will that help with the bigger picture? Then I found this question on the 10:10 website:

What’s the point of just getting people in the UK to sign up when the country accounts for only 2% of world emissions?

and the 10:10 team say:
“10:10 is being launched as a UK campaign but scientists say it is the right target for the whole developed world. The hope is that the campaign will spread to other countries, and we’ll be making it as easy as possible for that to happen.”

So, because Green Girls Global is all about sharing news, views and ideas worldwide I immediately felt a responsibility to talk about 10:10 here.

The 10:10 team really want this project to roll out in other countries too. So, if you’re outside the UK you can still get involved. Get in touch with the 10:10 team and they’ll be delighted to do what they can to help get things going in your country.

Check out the website at 1010uk.org

“A little less conversation, a little more action please”.

The world leaders talk and talk about tackling climate change, yet few seem to be taking positive action.

Across the world, there are hundreds probably thousands of Non Governmental Organisations (NGO’s) and charities which are encouraging people to live greener lives, yet a high number of the public still choose to ignore their messages as they feel they are ‘being dictated too’ by left-wing hippies.

In order to tackle climate chaos, I believe we must engage as many members of the public as possible at a grassroot level. We must work together as communities not solely as individuals or niche online tribes. It is important that we show people that their neighbours are being green and that they should too. Perhaps rather than keeping up with Mr and Mrs Jones for material possessions, we could encourage them to keep up with Mr and Mrs Green instead.

Changing attitudes and behaviour is the way forward and we can achieve this by leading by example through visible actions . However we must be careful not be classed as eco-fascists, a derogative term used in an attempt to insult those who verbally encourage others to be greener.

As an advocate of grassroots’ action, I am proud to be involved in a brand new campaign that is sweeping across the UK – ‘The Greening Campaign’. The campaign is an innovative idea to help motivate people to reduce their energy consumption and lower their personal and community carbon footprint.

The campaign is the brainchild of Terena Plowright, an environmentalist from Petersfield in Hampshire who saw the need for change and wanted to make a real difference. Her idea has been a great success and over 50 communities are now participating, including the town of Littlehampton where I live.

The campaigns success is down to it being inclusive and community focussed. Everyone is encouraged to get involved including individuals, groups, councils, schools, businesses, youth clubs, societies, religious groups – basically EVERYONE!

In Littlehampton, the campaign is still in its early stages, however I will write about its progress in the near future.

If you live in the UK, and would like to set up the campaign in your community, then please click here to contact the Greening team.

The other day my mum told me about a scheme which helps protect women and girls from sexual abuse by donating underwear.

This scheme was set up by Zimbabwe ex-pat Morag Roy who, on a return trip there, was told by a friend that sexual abuse and rape of young girls was rife. A local priest explained however that having underwear could help prevent this. He said that underwear is expensive and owning these items gives a woman prestige and shows they have money. Women with underwear are considered to be more independent and assertive, so men are less likely to assault them.

Morag and her colleague Corrie Peterson had previously set up a course for sexual assault victims and when she told Corrie what she’d learned they decided to ask women to donate their bras.

I’ve looked this scheme up online and found various references to it (some of which are listed at the bottom of this article). One article says that bras are needed primarily and preferably in dark colours for modesty reasons but another says that knickers and other underwear is wanted too.

I’ve also seen some disparaging comments online saying it is patronising and unhygienic to expect these women to take hand-me-down underwear. I personally feel strongly about the value of second-hand. Surely it is a positive thing if the underwear is clean and if the women are not offended and most importantly if this plays a role in helping them. Rather than throw away your perfectly good undies, recycle them and potentially keep a girl or woman safe from abuse.

Maternity lingerie company HOTmilk and their regular freight company Express Logistics are participating in the scheme and have taken thousands of pairs of underwear to Zimbabwe. If you’d like to join HOTmilk and help too then you can see a list of outlets in various countries who will pass on your underwear donation to the next “Knickers for Africa” shipment.

I shall be dropping off my mum’s, my sisters’ and my donations to the Nottingham outlet next week.

References & Resources:
HOTmilk – ‘Knickers for Africa‘
Hotmilk – Find participating Knickers for Africa outlets near you
Yahoo Lifestyle – ‘Your Bra can Make a Difference‘
Townsville Bulletin – ‘Black Bra Day helps women‘

Over to you Katie….

On Sunday 15th March at the premiere of the Age of Stupid Pete Postlethwaite pledged to return his OBE to the queen if the government fail take serious action on climate change regarding Kingsnorth and at the G20 summit in Copenhagen. He also pledged to go to the queen as a citizen and ask her to dissolve the government, and he said he would never ever vote labour again.

So I made a People’s OBE for Pete P, which stands for Outstanding Bravery for the Earth. Made out of 98% recycled materials!

We are asking any other OBE, MBE, GBE,GBE, KBE, DBE and CBE holders to join Pete in his pledge.

Support Pete

You can show your support by joining the virtual event on Facebook – Awarding Pete Postlethwaite “The People’s OBE” for ‘Outstanding Bravery for the Earth’

Here’s a video of Katie presenting Pete with his award

Find out more about the environmental film ‘Age of Stupid’ at www.ageofstupid.net

That’s right, whilst the rest of us (well me) are moaning and complaining about a bit of frost and ice here in the UK this February Gareth will be surviving in temperatures which could dip as low as -50c.

“Why on earth would someone do this by choice?” You may ask. Well Gareth truly believes in the mantra ‘Be the change you want to see in the world’ and that everyone should have safe water. That’s why he’s taking on this challenge to raise money for Water Aid, a charity which works in many countries to provide water, sanitation and hygiene education to some of the world’s poorest people.

Gareth has been undertaking survival training to make sure he knows how to cope in the extreme weather but it’s going to be no mean feat. I think the training alone would have been bad enough for me. Check it out on Gareth’s Travel Blog

So, whilst you’re sat in the warm glow of your computer screen how about showing your support for Gareth? By making a donation on his fundraising page you can help him change the lives of a couple of hundred people and you won’t even have to step outside!

Donate to the Arctic Survival Challenge at www.justgiving.com/ChangeTheWorldNow

“A Beginner’s Guide To Changing The World” (formerly called “For Tibet, With Love”) is about just that.

[Published by Harper One: ISBN 0060834528]

It describes the incredible journey of Isabel Losada as she discovers the truth about what is going on in Tibet, since the Chinese occupation 59 years ago. She put all her energies behind a campaign to raise global awareness of the situation and achieved mass media coverage, with a combination of inspired publicity stunts and dogged, patient determination. At the same time, she shares with us the emotional and spiritual journey, which led her to gain an audience with the Dalai Lama in Dharamsala.

It is touching, enlightening and amusing. I found myself literally rationing it, to make the experience of reading it last for as long as possible.

If you want to find out about the human rights issues in Tibet, then this book is a must-read because Isabel explores all angles – covering both sides of every argument, allowing you to come to your own conclusions.

The thing is that this book didn’t just inform me about the Tibet situation, it also helped me look inside myself to uncover the blocks that were holding me back from speaking my truth and believing that I could make a difference.

So if you’ve got a cause that’s close to your heart and you want someone to help inspire you to believe that you really can make a difference, I invite you to read “A Beginner’s Guide To Changing The World” and do something about it today!

Love,
Clare x

P.S. If you want to help make a difference and bring a peaceful resolution to the suffering in Tibet, please consider signing the www.avaaz.org campaign – it got over 1 million signatures, worldwide, in the first few days and they’re looking for a second million this week!

The aim of the sponsored bike ride was to help raise some funds and create public awareness for the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust’s ‘Operation Seahorse’ campaign. We raised over £200 in the end, which is not bad as it was a rather last minute idea. However the Hampshire and IOW Wildlife Trust still require a significant amount of funding so that they can carry out important surveys of the marine environment. If you would like to help then please purchase a limited edition Operation Seahorse T-shirt or make a donation.

The Operation Seahorse campaign is part of a network of campaigns being conducted by the Wildlife Trust movement and other members of the Wildlife & Countryside Link. The aim of these campaigns is to raise awareness about the UK’s diverse marine life and to lobby the government to designate sites as Highly Protected Marine Reserves.

If you are a UK citizen and would like to help protect our seas then please sign the Wildlife Trusts online petition fish.

But hurry because signatures collected via the online petition and the 200 petition fish which have been on display at Wildlife Trusts’ events throughout the UK will be taken to Westminister on Wednesday 10^th October for an event with MPs. Then the following week, the petition will be delivered to Downing Street, in a final bid to keep the Marine Bill afloat. I will hopefully be attending the event on the 10^th October as a representative of Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust, thus I will keep you posted about the progress of this campaign.

Anyone who gives up a potentially lazy long weekend to raise awareness about the devastating effect we’re all having on our marine life has to be given a voice on GGG.

I asked Anna-Lisa, who works for Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust, to tell us about her trip, the issues that are affecting the British coastline today and what we can all do about it…

1. Hi Anna-Lisa, first of all can you tell us what the Wildlife Trusts’ Operation Seahorse Campaign is?

The Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust launched the ‘Operation Seahorse’ campaign in conjunction with the Wildlife Trusts national campaign ‘Save our Seas’. Both campaigns aim to raise awareness about the importance of protecting our seas and its diverse marine life. The UK’s seas are extraordinarily rich in wildlife, home to more than 44,000 animal and plant species – around 50% of the UK’s biodiversity.

However our seas are poorly protected compared to terrestrial habitats and are under increasing pressure as offshore activities proliferate and climate change alters marine ecosystems. Every level of marine life is under threat, from the charismatic bottlenose dolphin, harbour porpoise and basking shark, to the critically endangered leatherback turtle. Even cod, our most popular fish, is now commercially extinct in the North Sea.

Through the ‘Operation Seahorse’ and the ‘Save our Seas’ campaigns the Wildlife Trust movement (and other members of Wildlife & Countryside Link) are petitioning and lobbying the UK government to ensure that the Marine Bill delivers robust nature conservation laws including designating sites as Highly Protected Marine Reserves (sanctuaries for marine life from where NO natural resources can be extracted – i.e. gravel) At the moment there is only one UK site – Lundy which has been designated as a Highly Protected Marine Reserve and is fully protected from all fishing, dredging and other damaging use. However at just 3.3km2 this sanctuary only represents less than 0.001% of the UK’s seas.

2. What are the issues around the Marine Bill?

Through previous campaigning conducted by the Wildlife Trusts (and other members of Wildlife & Countryside Link), the UK Government issued a White Paper on the Marine Bill on March 15th 2007. The White Paper revealed for the first time the Government’s detailed plans for reforming the way that our seas are managed. The Wildlife Trust felt that overall, the White Paper was very encouraging as it includes many important measures that they have been pushing for – but there is still a long way to go before we have strong, effective new laws in place.

Although a White Paper was issued, the Marine Bill has suffered severe delays, & Gordon Brown recently (July 07) failed to include it in his list of priority Bills for 2007-8. We need to lobby the government to ensure that the Marine Bill comes to Parliament during the 2007-8 session, if we don’t show the government NOW how important it is to designate sites as Highly Protected Marine Reserves then they will fail to commit or deliver the Marine Act in the time frame that is needed to protect our dying seas.

3. What motivated you to do the bike ride?

As an employee of landlocked Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust I was already fully aware about the Wildlife Trusts ‘Save our Seas’ campaign and had signed the Marine Reserves Petition. However whilst looking on the Wildlife Trusts main website I read about Hampshire and the IOW Wildlife Trusts ‘Operation Seahorse’ campaign and decided to support the cause by purchasing one of their ‘Operation Seahorse T-shirts’.

Whilst communicating with the ‘Operation Seahorse’ Team I discovered that they needed urgent funding in order to undertake underwater biological surveying thus as a keen cyclist and wildlife enthusiast who wanted to visit the Isle of Wight I thought that a sponsored bike ride would be a great way of raising funds and also a great way to promote the campaign.

In order to raise funds I will be undertaking an 80 mile bike ride with my fiancée who lives on the Sussex coast and is also a keen cyclist and wildlife enthusiast. During the three day cycle tour we will be wearing Wildlife Trust ‘Operation Seahorse’ and ‘Save our Seas’ T-Shirts, promoting the campaign and encouraging people to sign the Marine Reserves Petition.

4. What will be your route and when does it begin and end?

The plan is that on the morning of Saturday 23rd August we will cycle from Rustington in West Sussex (where my fiancée lives) to Portsmouth in Hampshire (this journey is approximately 34 miles). At Portsmouth we will catch the Wightlink Ferry to Ryde on the Isle of Wight. Saturday evening we will set up camp and then on Sunday we will be doing the Ryde and Bembridge 15 miles coastal circular route on the island. On Monday we will catch the ferry back to Portsmouth and cycle back to Rustington. Phew! It might not sound much to some of the more ‘experienced’ cyclists however it will be rather exhausting for us.

5. How can GGG readers support you on your bike ride?

If after reading this article any GGG readers are enthused to help protect our UK seas then I would be really grateful if they could support my bike ride by sponsoring me for a few pound, my fundraising page is:
http://www.justgiving.com/operation_seahorse

In addition to sponsoring me, I urge GGG readers to take positive action towards protecting the UK’s seas by:

• Signing the Wildlife Trusts Marine Reserves Petition, calling for the Bill to introduce areas that are fully protected from all damaging activities.
• Email friends and family asking them to sign up too, or print out the paper version of the petition to collect further signatures.
• Join the Wildlife Trusts Save our Seas team – a free online campaign group.
• Write to your local MP and explain to them why you’re supporting the campaign and what you want the Marine Bill to achieve for wildlife. Here are some hints and tips on lobbying MPs.

6. What will the sponsorship funds be used for?

All money raised through the sponsored bike ride will provide the Hampshire and the Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust with essential funds that will help them to be able to undertake urgent survey work. The survey work will provide them with facts about what needs protecting under the sea and where. Unfortunately biological surveying underwater is much more difficult and expensive than surveying on land.

• For £500 they can run a training course for divers to carry out underwater surveys so that they know what needs protecting and where.
• £600 charters a boat for a day.
• With £1,000 they can buy an underwater camera to help them record and identify the marine life around the shores.
• £2,000 would buy an underwater video camera.

If you would also like to undertake some fundraising to help the ‘Operation Seahorse’ campaign or make a donation please visit my Operation Seahorse donate page.

7. What can GGG readers do to find out about protecting the British coastline?

GGG readers can help protect our seas by:

Using environmentally friendly detergents and avoid toxic chemicals in your home and garden, as such chemicals can get into our water system and affect marine wildlife.

Using canvas bags instead of plastic. 150 million plastic bags are discarded each year and a percentage of these end up in our seas, turtles mistake these for jellyfish (their favorite food) and when digested the plastic bags can kill the turtles.

If you do include fish in your diet ensure that you buy seasonal and locally caught fish. For further details about sustainably sourced fish please go to http://www.fishonline.org/

Don’t buy ornaments or jewellery made from marine creatures.

If you do want fish as pets, please make sure that any creatures you buy are bred in captivity as opposed to being taken from the ocean.

GGG readers can get more information about they can protect the British coastline from The Wildlife Trust and the Marine Conservation Society

Thank you – together we can really make a difference.

Hopefully this will be a first for this type of event and as the triathlon is the fastest growing sport in the U.K could be a great example of how to plan other eco friendly sporting events and races.
If you would like to know more about their plans or could help with sponsorship of the event please get in touch.

Kate

Well it turns out one of my favorite websites is trying to get everybody to walk. Lime has launched Live The Change. The goal is to have people walk 24,900 miles which is the equivalent of one lap around the world! If they reach this goal they will have: Reduced 20,772 lbs of CO2 emissions from car use, burned 2,490,000 calories, and walked 498,000 minutes.

Besides the health benefits to walking they want to let people know about the environmental benefits as well: Reducing just 10 miles of driving every week would eliminate 500 pounds of carbon dioxide emissions a year. The cost of operating a car for one year is approximately $5,170. The cost of operating a bicycle for a year is only $120. Walking is free!

As of this posting 2,420 miles have been walked! They encourage you to post your photos, videos, blogs, and any comments on Lime about your daily “Live The Change” routines.

Many of us walk to work, home, the gym and the grocery store. Here’s a chance to make each step count! Don’t forget your energy snacks and Kleen Kanteen!