Changing places
How do you go about changing things where you live? Plus trams, bikes, compost and culture.
Today’s newsletter is a bit of an eclectic mix - reflecting my current search for what to focus on next in my work.
Changing things where you live isn’t easy
I reflected in this LinkedIn post earlier this week about my many years of campaigning for public transport, walking and cycling in the city where I live.
Being part of the awkward squad - and let’s be honest that’s often how you’re seen as a campaigner by people with power - isn’t always comfortable. But that’s OK.
Around a fifth of global carbon emissions come from transport - and it’s one sector where things aren’t getting better at the pace that’s needed.
So alternatives to getting around by car have always been something I’m really interested in.
And living in Leeds - the largest city in Europe without a mass transit system - makes this problem feel very real.
Learning - or maybe not learning - lessons from other cities
I visited Nottingham on Saturday - and reflected here on how I can never quite believe my eyes when I turn up in other UK cities with a decent public transport system.
I explored how Nottingham has managed to find the money to invest in a decent public transport system - through a Workplace Parking Levy. This, in a week when Leeds councillors decided to all come together and rule out, in principle, introducing a ULEZ at some stage in the future.
Maybe they’ll now consider a Workplace Parking Levy instead?
Bikes are brilliant. E-bikes are even better
In better transport news, you can now get around Leeds on a hired electric bike. You can download the app here. I’ve written more here, and here. Comments on that second post focus on the pricing - which does seem a little steep to me.
I wrote recently about the long road we’ve been on to get a shared bike scheme in Leeds - but how this is hopefully a story of how the best things come to those who wait.
Other stuff I’ve come across this week
I like the look of this new project to really shake up the world of composting, from ex Hubbub CEO Trewin Restorick’s new organisation Sizzle. As an evangelical composter - and gardener who recognises that peat-free composts aren’t always as good as you’d like them to be - I think the involvement of the horticultural industry in particular is welcome.
I enjoyed a walk and talk exploring Leeds’ rich textile history - focusing in particular on the perspective of people with a disability (often caused by their work environment) in the textiles industry. There’s an exhibition too at Leeds Industrial Museum. I explored Leeds’ rich textile history in my previous role at Zero Waste Leeds - as part of our Leeds Fashion Futures project.
I visited the beautiful RSPB St Aidan’s Nature Reserve on Friday for Nest - a piece of outdoor theatre that was part of Leeds 2023. Its focus was the climate crisis - looking forward to how things might be in 2050. I’ve got to be honest - whilst I enjoyed the setting, I didn’t particularly enjoy the performance itself. I’m very interested in the power of good climate storytelling - and the role of culture in helping us to create a different future. But this didn’t do it for me. Hopefully others felt differently. I noticed too that Mother Nature had the final word.
And finally…..
I enjoyed this episode of the Food Programme looking at innovators in the world of food (including food waste app Too Good To Go). This episode of Reasons To Be Cheerful about the wonderful YHA was good too. Whilst this bit of climate storytelling from Apple certainly captured my attention.
Great topical article.