With some thorough planning and lots of enthusiasm it’s easy to create a beautiful look in your home. Knowing where most home interior decorators go wrong can help you to make sure you don’t repeat their mistakes! Measure Up Before you dash along to your local DIY store to gather [...]
However well intentioned you are, going green costs money – which means that the availability of grants and other funds can often make the difference to whether you can go ahead with your project. The good news is that all the talk about energy, climate change and all things environmental [...]
When it comes to getting a new project off the ground, sooner or later you’re going to need some help – however committed and supportive your local community might be. Fortunately, with energy and green issues so high on just about everyone’s agenda these days, there are plenty of places [...]
A community project needs community support to succeed, so getting the green message across is always going to be important. Fortunately, these days, everyone’s aware of the issues – but how do you turn awareness into action? The answer may be easier than you might think. Target Your Message It’s [...]
Whatever sort of energy project you’re planning, sooner or later you’re bound to need to get in touch with your local council. Although local authorities come in for a fair amount of criticism and planning regulations are often thought of as another example of British bureaucratic meddling, the reality is [...]
Whatever stage your project is at, holding a local green awareness event can be a good way of getting more publicity, attracting new members, reaching wider sections of the community and raising general eco consciousness. The key to running a successful session lies in careful planning – and not underestimating [...]
If your community project is going to work, it’s essential to get people involved and setting up a group – or even a series of groups – can often be the best way to turn interest into active participation. Groups often form quite naturally and informally during the early stages [...]
Proper planning is essential for any community project – and it should start at the very beginning, as soon as the idea of doing anything first begins to unfold. For most people trying to set up a community-based energy saving scheme, the task can often seem almost overwhelming, but the [...]
Ensuring that there’s plenty of information available is one of the best ways to keep the momentum of a project going. Amassing a collection of resources for your community can be enormously useful – and there’s plenty of good material around – but the key to getting the best out [...]
Any community project needs good liaison between the various different individuals, organisations and groups which are typically involved – and community-based energy schemes are certainly no different. One of the key factors in their success lies in keeping all the interested parties informed, involved and focused on the same issues. [...]
When Tony Blair famously exclaimed “education, education, education” in his campaign speech in 1997, he wasn’t actually talking about energy saving – but he could well have been. For community energy projects, few aspects are as important as education and training; it’s always a good idea to know what you’re [...]
With the price of oil, gas and electricity rocketing and climate change the issue of the moment, of course we’re all interested in energy saving – aren’t we? However, it’s one thing to bemoan the rising costs, but quite another to be prepared to sign up to joining a community-based [...]
