More about me and BFB
It’s taken a lot longer to build the foundation to our blog than I thought and it’s not really happening in real time yet. It’s the beginning of August as I write this and we are just about to edit and publish lots more categories to the blog and give you some ideas about how our News From the front will keep you updated with information from these areas of environmental activism. So bare with us and read on.
#BeeTheChange
So how was #WorldBeeDay and #NoMowMay for you? I have seen signs that our local parks department and highway maintenance people here in Sunny Southend are following some kind of plan when it comes to leaving suitable habitat for pollinators. I will be finding out more about exactly what that plan is as the summer unfolds. What is your local plan?
Some brave souls that do believe we are in an ecological emergency are taking to protecting their little patch of green. That may be a garden or even a patch of green that is not technically theirs. I don’t mean your neighbours garden or the local football pitch.
Verging on the ridiculous
People have different views about verges. Some we see in our area rushing out to mow the small peace of council managed grass around the lamppost outside their house and then adding a harmless pesticide or two just in case that solution the council uses isn’t strong enough.
You know when people say Re Tweets are not an endorsement, well, that’s not true on BFB. Re Tweets are us saying “this looks good go check it out”. There are green spaces left but let’s be honest not many. Every inch/cm matters. Sorry guys but yes size matters!
This from Cllr James Abbott on Facebook:
We have been on standby to help exhausted Bees with our Beevive Bee Revival Kit an absolute must for your keychain or kitchen.
It wasn’t long into May when we got our first opportunity to put our BeeVive kit to good use. My neighbour and her young daughter let me know about this Bumblebee that was on the stairs. She had prepared a container and piece of card which is the basic insect or spider rescue kit to take the bee to the garden but was a little scared. So I took it to the garden and gave it a tiny drop of this magical elixir. Within a few minutes it had gone from lying on its back moving one leg to getting its buzz back. It flew around the garden a couple of times then came back for another round before going about its day. Absolutely amazing feeling and we all felt very proud to have helped.
#BugsMatter
This is the call to action from Buglife who need your help and are asking for Citizen Science volunteers to do vital research. We have been involved with things like #MothNight in the past which was a total washout the first year due to torrential rains and the second year all we attracted with our sugar cane solution was a swarm of Earwigs. This survey is slightly different in the rather sad fact that the data you’re collecting is from dead insects that get caught on the number plate of your vehicle. But vital data nonetheless.
Scientists are working very hard on finding out the true state of the global insect population decline but they need our help so why not check out their website and get involved. It’s a great project for the kids.
Another bug related citizen science project is the Big Meadow Search. It started on 1st June and runs through to 31st August.
We would love to see lots more red dots on this map so please sign up and share this with your friends family and followers. It’s another fantastic opportunity for children to learn more about the importance of nature.
The Big Butterfly Count begins on Friday 14th July 2023 and will run until Sunday 6th August.
You may be even able to combine your efforts and while you are out in the fresh air count a few butterflies along the way. All the info you need to help you is available from their website and they have a cool app for your phone too. Then just point the kids in the right direction and let them get on with it while you layout the picnic blanket.
#WhenTheLastTreeIsCut
Bad PR month for the HS2 construction or in this case destruction as a huge sinkhole appears in the Chillterns. Local TV are reporting it as a major concern for local people and campaigners against the HS2 project. Not sure if this is a major problem compared to the overall expenditure and destruction of wildlife, old growth forests and the future of biodiversity in the affected areas. But it’s certainly not a feather in their cap.
Supporters of Yew Tree Farms bid to fight off developers gathering along the precious hedgerows designated for destruction. The protesters were joined by Councillors from all four political parties.
The new council bosses made it some of their first business to overturn development plans but is this just political Greenwashing ?The campaigners at STRAW seem to think so. They are asking for renewed help in convincing the council to scrap the plans altogether and save the last remaining trees. So if you are from the Plymouth area please lend your support and if your not then maybe you can help in some other way.
I am sure that this situation is being repeated across the country as politicians are reshuffling and making bold statements to the handful of people who bothered to vote them in.
If you still believe in homemade placard waving and the power of petition signatures
Citizens taking back the power
I am currently working on a new category for BFB News From The Front which will focus on the growing movement of local people taking back the power by setting up #CommunityEnergy projects. Below is a petition from CPRE asking for more help rather than hindering from 👑GOV.UK in that area.
Brave people VS Braverman
Now, is this an indication that the protests themselves are working? Or is it a pathway to more violent forms of protest and from whom? The protesters or maybe the people from the public protesting the protesters? The recent moves by government to give police more powers in breaking up demonstrations are seen by many as a great way to counteract the protests themselves. Locking up as many criminal Crusties as possible is sending out an obvious but ominous threat to others to behave themselves. However, are these protests going to go away and leave the general population alone to carry on with their oblivious suicidal over consumption of the few remaining Earths resources? I think not!
All the protests about climate change and the Biodiversity mass die-offs over the past few years many of which my family and I have attended have been totally peaceful. More recently, the only violence is being perpetrated by angry members of the public taking it upon themselves to assault lawful protesters.
Home Secretary BRAVERMAN (I’m sure they make these names up) said the changes “provide the police with the powers to impose conditions on harmful protests” and “provide further clarity on when they can act to shut down demonstrations”.
“Harmful” to whom exactly? If they mean members of the public or the government purse then the irony is almost overwhelming. It’s a tried and tested method to distract from the very issues bringing rise to the protests in the first place. The government is seen as clamping down on the protesters rather than doing the job they are supposed to do which is to represent the needs of their constituents not the interests of their own pockets.
The more the government fails its people on climate change and the harder they try to resist implementing solutions the more the protests will escalate. The numbers of people joining the protests may not increase as the organisers of the peaceful protests so far would like to see. However, the intensity of the protests will surely increase inevitably.
“The higher you build your barriers
The taller I become
The further you take my rights away
The faster I will run
The more that you refuse to hear my voice
The louder I will sing.”
From “(Something Inside) So Strong” – a song written and recorded by British singer-songwriter Labi Siffre.
More to follow 🌎🌍🌎🌍🌎