…on a grey and rainy morning, here’s a bit of a livener to perk you up before the weekend and bring cheer in the face of all the gloomy news.

Next week Montpelier folks are planning, connecting and celebrating a bunch of lively and positive community actions, all of which are open, welcoming, free, run by volunteers, and looking for help.

So turn the TV off, get your bum of the couch, leave the pub out for a moment, and join in in any one of next week’s events outlined below.

Or forward this to a mate, neighbour, dog or dinosaur – and subscribe for our newsletter.

Sunday 20th March: all day in various people’s homes
Insulation Celebration – visit homes to learn more about insulation from the horses’ mouth
View Insulation Celebration page on website

Wednesday 23rd March: 6:30pm, Arts House, Stokes Croft
Beanfeast planning meeting: if you want this fantastic free party again, join in and help make it happen – they need the help
View Beanfeast planning event page on website

Thursday 24th March: 7 – 9pm, Fairfield Resource Centre, Montpelier
Big Open Meeting: Worrying about all the grizzly cuts? Get together with neighbours to work out how to take the edges off
View Big Open Meeting page on website

Saturday 26th March: 12-2pm: Montpelier Park
Picnic in the park: Celebrate the fantastic work of the Montpelier Park Group in the new and amazing Montpelier Park with BBQ, planting, boules, picnics and more
View picnic page on website

Other stimulating stuff while you’re here:

• Transition Heathrow celebrates its first birthday: inspiring stuff
• What are we for? George Monbiot knows what we’re against.. but not what for…
• Transition Montpelier drop in evening: 5th May, after work, location to come
• 10 reaons why nuclear was a mistake: stirring thoughts from Transition Culture
• Turning banks into Libraries: 19th March: fun (serious) from UK Uncut
• On being shortlisted for Climate Week Awards: more stirring thoughts from Transition chairman and local chap

Some quick notes on the Streets discussions for reference:

• We *think* we know what the situation is, but do we? Lots of talk about ‘too many cars’ but we don’t really know how many, owned by who, why, etc. etc.
• Get knowledge of area and situation through a survey – door to door, online, in the shops
• Leads to meetings and discussions to explore the topic and frame the situation in a reasonable way (ie not just ‘give up cars’, but ‘we all want to use our streets’)
• Start practically mapping the streets to get an idea of what can and can’t be done
• Need community buy-in to get formal council support (which will be vital to any significant change)
• There are alternatives to car ownership – city car clubs, neighbourhood hire schemes
• Need to find benefits for individuals to give up their cars, not just demonise them

The ‘Streets’ ‘group’ has struggled to find a path to finding its feet, and this may be a way to mix small actions with getting the neighbourhood’s input while finding out more about Montpelier. In a parallel group, the ‘energy’ group were interested in doing an energy survey to find out how much energy the neighbourhood is using – maybe we do a big survey in 2011?

Here is Pete’s presentation:

Autumn is now officially with us, we’re moving back into gear after summer’s growing, camping, walking, and generally not being indoors-ing.

The Urban Greening group are having their next meeting soon, we’re holding a big open event in November to catch up on the projects’ work and find more things to do, we’re giving hundreds of trees away to Montpelier households, Bristol Green Doors have written up their amazing event, we’re doing a showing of ‘The Yes Men Save the World’ and more… read on…

Urban Greening Meeting: 14/10/10
Get your diaries out for the Urban Greening’s Autumn meeting on October 14th, 20:00 – 22:00
The Autumn meeting will be Thursday October 14, 8-10pm in the old Fairfield School.  Hope you can come!  At the moment, this will be discussing group progress and how to keep momentum going.
Read more about the Urban Greening meeting

Free Tree Giveaway: advance notice
The Urban Greening group are delighted to have joined forces with a local tree planting fund and will shortly be distributing FREE TREES to Montpelier households. A mix of fruit and native trees will be available to chose from.
Read more about the Free Tree Giveaway

Film showing: The Yes Men Fix the World
In order to lighten the load on the day all the government cuts are announced (20th October) and the fascinating Big Society saga takes another twist in its tail, we’re going to show a great film about two keen inspired young activists, who are busy hacking corporations’ tidy varnished facias.Yes that’s right – we’re showing
Read more about The Yes Men Fix The World film showing

Bristol Green Doors event write up
It is now two weeks since the first Bristol Green Doors open homes event and after a lot of very, very hard work Kate and I have both had a chance to relax and reflect. So how was it? Well basically it was great and we want to do another one next year! Here are a few thoughts and an update so you appreciate where we are at.
Read more about the Bristol Green Doors event

Well done you Beanfeast-ers!
On behalf of the organising group I just wanted to say a huge thank you for giving up your time on Saturday to help the Bean Feast run smoothly and keep the happy vibes going.  It was a really lovely day and that is in no small measure down to you.  We certainly couldn’t have done it without your generosity!
Read more about the Beanfeast-ers thank you

Make your home an eco-home course
Following Bristol Green Doors is a timely 6 week course entitled: ‘Make your home an eco home.’ This aims to demystify what it takes to start living more sustainably in your house.
Where Green Doors inspires, we hope to get people on the journey themselves! Book now – it starts on October 5th.
Read more about the Make your home and eco-home course

Wood buying in bulk, anyone?
Do you have a (efficient and clean) wood burning stove? Would you be interested in being part of a group bulk-buying wood in Montpelier? Jo has kindly offered to co-ordinate a bulk wood purchase from a recommended wood provider (approx price £85 per metric cubic tonne), but only if there is significant interest.
Read more about buying wood in bulk

Can you help research Bristol’s Sustainability history?
Our friends over at The Schumacher Institute have got some cash to document Bristol’s history of Sustainability. They are looking for some volunteers to help out. Can you get involved?
Read more about the Sustainability research

Admin meeting minutes
The TT Montpelier admin group meet every month to discuss exciting things like when to hold events, what the website does and doesn’t do, who owes who want money, etc. etc.
Read the admin group’s meeting notes from October 2010

We will send out a special announcement email to the main Transition Montpelier mailing list with more details in the next few weeks, inviting applications for trees.

We will also be designing some posters to put up around the neighbourhood, and trying to let as many people as possible know about the scheme. We would greatly appreciate any help you could offer – please leave a comment here.

Hi Everyone,

On behalf of the organising group I just wanted to say a huge thank you for giving up your time on Saturday to help the Bean Feast run smoothly and keep the happy vibes going.  It was a really lovely day and that is in no small measure down to you.  We certainly couldn’t have done it without your generosity!

If you have any comments, either things you thought went well or things that could be done better, please let us know.  If you’ve heard anyone else raving or ranting about it, please pass on what they’re saying.  It’s always a learning process and feedback is really important.  We have a debrief meeting tomorrow (Thurs) at 7pm in the Old England – if you’d like to come along you’d be most welcome.

Also, any great photos you’ve got, send them on over!

We hope you enjoyed the day and many thanks again,
Sally and the Bean Feast Team
xx

Beanfeast in local news

Download Evening Post Article 21sept2010

There are brilliant shops in Montpelier many of whom are supporting the work we do and who are already intrinsically part of our community. Our aim is to support them, other businesses and residents in Montpelier’s Transition to a lower-carbon neighbourhood within a more sustainable Bristol. Within this context it is difficult to see how a Tescos on the Cheltenham Road can be a positive addition to what we are doing such as supporting locally produced food and encouraging people to use less cars (imagine delivery vehicles and cars parked on the bus lane and bike lane outside). Sure, they may have a cashpoint, but wouldn’t it be great if Gallifords one was free? Part of our response is to help Jimahl look into this.

Please take some time to think about this.There have been numerous objections to Tescos and other supermarkets opening up locally before and much brilliant work has already started on a campaign against Tescos at the old Jesters site. Take a look at the links below where you can see a very informative piece on the PRSC blog, read a piece in the Mirror, join a Facebook group, check the Hijack blog or simply vote against the idea in a poll. An additional petition can be signed at Radford Mill Farm shop.

There is also a meeting this Monday 8th Feb’ at 7.00pm at Hamilton House, 80 Stokes Croft to develop a community response to the proposals. The quality of the response can obviously be influenced by attendance.

Look forward to seeing some of you there and will feedback the progress of this meeting to everyone at the Trans Mont meeting on the 10th.

PRSC blog which includes Poll

Mirror Story

Facebook Check the discussions

PollDaddy

HiJack Bristol

Tescopoly

Click on this link to download the minutes:
Transition Montpelier core meeting Minutes 20-1-10

Agenda:

Transition Montpelier core team agenda January 2010

Actions and Agreements:

1. Actions from last meeting
   1. Ciaran only one still to complete.
2. Report back from Events meeting
   1. Clearer roles, project manager, realistic ambition, community fund all needed at future events
   2. Sally to compile a lessons learnt document, summarising this.
   3. Simon to go and ask Peter Watts for support with project management of events
   4. Sally, Richard and Ed to go through budget spreadsheets
   5. Book keepers for every event
   6. Both Bean Feast and Winter Fayre to be repeated in 2010.
   7. Sally only willing to be major player in Bean Feast and Simon happy to help
   8. By June to have group together for Bean F; Winter F by October
3. Accounts
   1. Richard to look at clear and standardised accounting structure, possible treasurer and ask council for advice
   2. Bron. to find out the person in the council who supports community events
   3. All to find out who from the community can help with accounts (at Open Meeting/with newsletter)
   4. All -Money needs raising for group fund
   5. Dan and Bron to look at community fund from council and finalising constitution so TM can have bank account
   6. Shona to look at accounting software (like her school)
   7. Sally to send all articles mentioning TM’s events to Ed who will put on web
4. Announcements
   1. Open Meeting 10^th February
   2. Dan to advertise for more people for energy training
   3. Dan to organise Climate Change investment slot at Open Meeting
   4. Dan to organise printing TM-related subjects at one of events & Ed to find out more
   5. Bron to find out how to support Severn Beach Railway
   6. Shona (&others?)-24^th February Neighbourhoods Partnership Meeting at Police station-funding from Ashley Ward and another route for working with Council
   7. Dan to organise F Resource Centre painting on 6/7 March
   8. Montpelier Art Trail 24/25^th April
   9. Bron had news of Bristol University to support community energy project research. Dan and Jess to look at help from Totnes who got funding for similar project
5. Open Meeting 10^th Feb
   1. To focus on proper discussion, commitment, action points and real action
   2. Doors 7.15, ‘start 7.30’, Park AGM 7.30, start 8pm
   3. Dan to look at energy
   4. Sally to look at food
   5. Simon to look at livable streetscapes
   6. Shona and Jane to put Park Group and Albany Green in touch
   7. Ciaran organising Miquel to do keynote speech on grants for domestic PV in SW
6. Group Dynamics
   1. Meeting at Ed’s house, 92 Richmond Rd,7pm, 25^th Jan
7. AOB
   1. Jess to put together notes from Low Carbon Communities Conference
   2. ? to link with Facebook Bristol Energy Network- Paul Adams
   3. All-Organise more informal core group meetings
   4. TM to link/support Richard’s (wind?) energy co-op at Radford Mill

It goes in a sequence – 1 publishes, 2 responds to 1, 3 responds to 2 and 1, etc…

1. John Michael Greer (Arch Druid): The costs of community
2. Sharon Astyk (Science blogs): On the problem of community
3. Rob Hopkins (Transition Culture): Why community might not need organising