Reducing distances. promoting local materials.     The ‘slow movement’ has been around for some time now, starting with food: Futures Forum: Slow Food: “Pleasure, hedonism,… Read More »Zero km architecture

“Most developers tend to be slightly smarter than sending in the bulldozers; they say to the council, ‘This is a derelict site that needs to… Read More »“Planning officers need to be wise to these tricks.”

“What Can We Do To Solve the Problem of Ocean Trash” . Following on from this posting on doing things with plastic pollution: Turning plastic… Read More »A guide on trash in our oceans

“Any help to attract people back will no doubt be welcome.” . There are quite a few links on the VGS website to government initiatives… Read More »Helping high streets reopen

… with a push for more by the town and county councils. Charge points appear in the Sid Valley Neighbourhood Plan. . The District Council… Read More »District Council votes for charging points in its car parks: part two

… the case for a more nuanced and balanced approach. Join the consultation on the Draft National Action Plan on the Sustainable Use of Pesticides… Read More »Pesticides: “banning is not always best”

“Rural economies are distinctive. They are characterised by higher levels of employment and home-working.” . Promises have been made to ‘level up’ – but it… Read More »Levelling up rural: the untapped potential

The “green approach” in architecture and design. . The Arch Daily features a lot on these pages as it regularly has great ideas on urban… Read More »Green infrastructure

“Emerging diseases are a symptom of disrupted ecologies and new animal-human exposure…” “… of degraded ecosystems leading to intimate contact with animals we don’t normally… Read More »Covid, the environment and the spread of zoonotic diseases

“Bitcoiners may not like it. But ‘greener’ bitcoin may be the price of admission to mainstream markets. This isn’t 2015 anymore.” . Is the cryptocurrency… Read More »Bitcoin and energy consumption

Every minute of the day we throw away 3 million face masks. . In the early days, these pages looked at how to get hold… Read More »Face masks and plastic pollution

Reimagining an unloved space and turning it into a sea-themed garden . Last summer, an idea for an ‘unloved space’ bore fruit: Creating a Coral… Read More »Creating a Coral Reef Community Garden at the Ham underway

Devon Maritime Forum News Bulletin – March 2021 Hello and welcome to March’s DMF News Bulletin.  In this month’s edition we signpost you to a number… Read More »Devon Maritime Forum: March newsletter

What are the issues and options for a new local plan? . The District Council has been asking people to look at the ‘issues and… Read More »East Devon Local Plan consultation: VGS submission

“People should be able to live within a 15-minute walk of all the services they need on a daily basis.” . Today was the last… Read More »Creating neighbourhoods: celebrating Jane Jacobs