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Footpaths Leicester is a way for people to meet and support each other to reduce their personal carbon footprints. It offers a structured, supportive and fun environment in which people can work out what they want to change in your life to reduce your carbon footprint - and a community of like minded people to do it with.  They provide a structure course of eight meetings with two facilitators and people to do it with. Beyond the course, Footpaths provide support to support people to continue on improving their personal carbon footprint, through one off events, workshops and get together. How did I get involved with Footpaths Leicester? I wanted to find out how grassroots organisation support people through change to facilitate the transition towards a sustainable system of consumption and production. It was after joining Transition Leicester and starting a Positive Money project to improve literacy about the money system that I eventually met with Zina Zelter, founder of Footpaths...

This is blog is for you if you are serving families, mother, father, children in Leicestershire to - To take care of what we have in common: The planet - To encourage them to be open and inclusive of others - To support them in sharing their gifts for the local economy to be more resilient. If you tick more than one of this boxes, i am inviting you - To Get inspired by the stories of people who are in Leicestershire trying to enact change and empowered people to direct their lives - To share those stories to people around you so they can get inspired - To submit your story. Why? Because the power of stories can change the world as long as they are shared widely. So get sharing! About me My name is Marie. I live in Leicestershire since 2012. In my first year of arrival, i engaged with Transition Leicester, Positive Money and Footpaths Leicester. I ran the positive money leicester group.  I organised events, a discussion group and the Money workshop to help people reflect ...

We will be holding our next Footpaths facilitation training on the 12th and 13th Jan, possibly in Leicester, maybe elsewhere. If you know anyone in some other part of the country who would be interested in finding the people for and facilitating a Footpaths group, please do give them my phone number (0116 2899074) or direct them to our website (  http://www.leicesterfootpaths. org.uk  ).

It may be time to create a blacklist of companies to avoid and definitely refuse to  work for: - Those which are more than 3 miles than my home - Those which does not allow me to work from home - Those which does not allow me to work fewer hours - Those which pollute with no sorry - Those with negative employee reviews - Those which do not design products that are repairable - Those which do not put the wellbeing of their staff first what else, add to the list

I went to the beach with approximately 500 people who were all part of the same community of church goers from the Mustard Seed Chapel International It was my first time witnessing how church communities organise themselves and I was well impressed by the community feel, the love and support they give to one another. I found myself with people coming from different corners of England to meet on Bridlington Beach in North Yorkshire. The beach was beautiful and calm as we arrived. Before we knew it, music was blasting, children were laughing, waste was everywhere to be found, barbecues were smoking. Pure process of destruction before my eyes. At the day drew to an end and the fellows left the beach. Their presence was still felt as we could find plastic bags, food, children toys everywhere. I was disappointed and groaned: ''How unthoughtful?'' I liaised back the information to my friend and her leader. I was met with the questions '' Are you an envi...

The Cosmic Blink It was in a blink of an eye that a cosmic change happened. Something changed. Something got broken. A water pipe in their neighbourhood burst, letting out a rainbow of colours. 1,2,3 blink, they wake up, walk like a zombie to the bathroom, no water. 1,2,3 blink, they change their mind, they change the way they see the world, the world has changed They are now faced with a cosmos of possibilities and uncertainties. A Rainbow of colours One by one asks: Do we have water in the cupboard? One by one walks to the corner shop: Do they still have water? Blood is boiling inside their vessel as one by one, transparent bottles are travelling out of the store. Questions spiral out of order in their black box: How long is it going to last for? Who would help me if things get worse! 1,2,3, blink,  they buy two bottles, they walk up to their neighbour, they stand in front of their door. 1,2,3, blink, they change their mind, they change the way th...

Having identified, the colourless, blue, deeper blue, red and green colours of water, let share another shade and tone. When there is no water to draw, one can see brown. The world turns upside down. It is exactly what happened when upon going to the toilet to do number two, she realises that there is no water. She thought that having a dried toilet outside would have been good to have right now. But when she talked about it in the past, he thought that this was too unconventional and people would think that they were weirdos. So it was never put in place. As for now, the conversation goes: W: ''I have a dilemma'' M: ''Which one?'' W: ''I need to go to the toilet to fulfil my needs but there is no water so the brown will not disappear'' M: ''You were right, we shall I built a toilet facility outside'' W: ''Thanks for recognising the value of my third eye for disaster'' M: ''What to do then?...

Selah https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZSPkcpGmflE

While relatively small quantities of water appear to be colourless, pure water has a slight blue colour that becomes a deeper blue as the thickness of the observed sample increases. The blue hue  of water is an intrinsic property and is caused by selective absorption and scattering of white  light. When there is no water to draw, one can see blood.  The world turns upside down. It is exactly what happened when upon getting into the shower, he realises that there is no water. He goes down to the kitchen, no water. He goes up to the sink tap, no water. M: ''I love my water'' W: ''Do you?'' M:''Yes, I like the feel on my skin, I like my big shower, It is like being in Africa right now.'' W: ''We have a bottle of water downstairs, you can brush your teeth with'' M: ''Thanks. Did I take a shower last night? Yes I did!'' W: ''Moving forward, let's buy some water bottles, so we are ok wh...

Movement of zero waste bloggers, forums of discussion is everywhere to be found.  They probably multiply faster than the waste in your home. Why? Because it is time to take responsibilities for the plastic, fabric and other material resources in our home. If you do not need those stuff, why have it in the first place? Bin your bin instead. You cannot yet. Start easy and follow the 5 Rs. In order: Refuse what you do not need. Reduce what you do not need Reuse by using reusable Recycle what you cannot refuse, reduce or reuse Rot (compost the rest) and if it is too hard to do it on your own, join others on a journey of self-discovery. My own journey started with Footpaths, a carbon reduction programme, which allowed me to meet people and get support to reduce my personal footprint. Waste was part of the course and well did I change indeed. Have a look.

Most families around the world live in communities.  In the western world, this concept has been replaced by a single-family household. Yet, the latter struggle to meet their needs through the ages. With a young family, parents are overstretched with family and work commitment. The olds struggle with illnesses and social isolation.  What can possibly be done? Well, let's live together.  Look up co-housing and specifically retrofit co-housing so we can start where we are to build the community that we dream of.

There are many benefits to start growing your own fruits and vegetables. For you and your family, the benefits are as follow:  Fresh and nutritious fruits and vegetables. Fruits and vegetables from your own garden are higher in nutrients than the ones that have travelled several thousand miles to get to your grocery store. Having your children assist you in the garden can increase the chance that they will eat more of the fruits and vegetables they have helped to grow Growing your own fruits and vegetables can offer you the opportunity to reduce the amount of pesticides that you use in your garden, making them healthier. Growing your own fruits and vegetables will save your money at the grocery store. Gardening increases physical activity. It is a great way to engage the whole family in physical activity and lets them help to take responsibility for the garden. The fruits and vegetables grown in your garden will promote health because they are rich in nutrients, especiall...

Published on Footpaths Leicester The room was full of people ready to witness images of people across the world fighting to live in a world where the land from which they sustain themselves from can be protected and cared for. This Changes Everything documentary is a snapshot of the battle between capitalism and climate, between capitalism and people as described in more details in the book 'This Changes Everything' by Naomi Klein.

Would any sane person think dumpster diving would have stopped Hitler, or that composting would have ended slavery or brought about the eight-hour workday; or that chopping wood and carrying water would have gotten people out of Tsarist prisons; or that dancing around a fire would have helped put in place the Voting Rights Act of 1957 or the Civil Rights Act of 1964? Then why now, with all the world at stake, do so many people retreat into these entirely personal “solutions”? Why are these “solutions” not sufficient? But most importantly, what can be done instead to actually stop the murder of the planet? The description of the video 'Forget Short Showers' just reminded me how insane I am and how a lot of people are too ( Inside Voice: just look around you for a minute, they are all craaayyy, they don't want to admit it, what abt you?) The insanity can be summarised into keeping ourselves busy with personal endeavour to tackle climate change (embracing simple eco-living...

Since September 2014, My main project focus has been on repair. I have been working with Zina, founder of Footpaths, a carbon reduction project in Leicester to organise the Green Festival of Making & Mending on the 31st October 2015 and a serie of events throughout 2015. Our main aim was to introduce people to ingenious ideas to repair and upcycle items in an environmentally friendly way. The event idea stemmed the recognition of our own vulnerabilities. Zina and I were not really the creative/diy type. For me, personally, my hands were only used as so far for typing and some random drawing but never to make something tangible. Maybe they were but I never appreciated their magnificence. Is gold in our hands? A year working on festival and following up to that, I mended all my clothes, darned socks and gloves, repaired a mobile phone, made a rag rug and a banner, painted signs, made sculptures out of papers and christmas decorations, repaired pieces of furnitures, shortened cu...

After having written a piece on how my relationship with capitalism affects my carbon footprint?   and receiving feedback indicating that my individualistic goals to want to purchase solar panels were not good enough to facilitate the transition towards a sustainable system of production and consumption, because it encourages me to serve a system that exploit resources and labour and not supporting others in changing their behaviour. I started to wonder. It is true unfortunately as long as there are no other alternatives of production and consumption that is fairer, more caring towards the environment and the people that inhabit the earth, we will be stuck in an endless and vicious circle of guilt and blame. There is no way that we can move towards an ideal world of fairness without having to dance with the devil, hence working for corporations that pollute, exploit and influence for us to extract value which can be re-invested into a greener future To change the deal, I ha...

Published on Footpaths Leicester Capitalism is an economic and political system in which a country's trade and industry are controlled by private owners for profit, rather than by the state. My carbon footprint is the amount of carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere as a result of my activities. My activities serve capitalism. They serve private owners for profit at the expense of natural resources and human beings. I am trapped and enslaved by capitalism, this is my relationship with it and it impacts dearly on my carbon footprint but also on my wellbeing and sense of belonginess. I am striving to strip myself away from capitalism. I refused to work for large corporate organisations. I refuse to consume excessively. I shop in charity shops, buy in bulk from the Wholefood Coop in Leicester, cycle to work, do not travel by plane. I try to save for some solar panels and an electric car, I try to repair what I own and try to engage others in changing behaviour through campaigning...

I browsed my Facebook Feed. Mo posted the following video ' Everything wrong with environmentalism in 11 minutes'. . I watched the whole 11 minutes. I asked myself why animal agriculture and its impacts on the environment is not further talked about in environmental campaigning. Later that day, I went to a peer to peer support group on reducing our carbon footprint supported by Footpaths . The session focused on home energy, the food session is to come later. I'll reserve my conclusions by then and maybe also talk about methane and other dangerous gases. I am still not clear on my position on 'what is wrong with environmentalism?' The video keeps playing in my mind. I am a meat-eater. I reduced my meat intake in the past but I have been slacking recently as families and some peers are not really supportive on the vegan/vegetarian lifestyles. I do like the taste of meat, I cannot lie. In the evening, I watched the video a second time with my partner, I r...

Published on Footpaths Leicester The Green Festival of Making and Mending is 5 weeks away and last week I finally had my making moment. Zina and I have been working relentlessly in the organisation of the festival and its pre-festival events to enthuse people to make and mend in an ingeneous, creative and more environmentally friendly way. The experience has taught me many skills, from communication to project management. I kept unfortunately my spirit away from engaging with the craft of making and mending.

For this week letter, I have decided to change my direction quite profoundly and share with you all some of my feelings about change for sustainability. I am doing currently my Ph.D around Design for Sustainable Behaviour. It is already agreed that products, services and systems strive to influence people's behaviour. But to do it consciously is another matter. Design for sustainable behaviour attempts to change people behaviour as they are interacting with product. The designer become the person responsible in this endeavour. There are a number of ethical issues surrounding such topic which is completely understandable. Giving control to technology to change our behaviour is quite dramatic, yet it is what is happening on the daily basis. We battle our way against technologies in our life.