An Ideas Café in Hackbridge has boosted new thinking about how to improve the quality of life in Sutton and make the borough greener.
The café, held in the BedZED eco-village on 18 April, is part of a competition to develop new initiatives to benefit the borough’s neighbourhoods and communities. The Sutton Community Challenge was launched by BioRegional back in January, and closes for entries on Monday 29 April.
It challenges any Sutton neighbourhood or school to create a project that will improve their environment and reduce our ecological footprint. Speaking at January’s launch, Carshalton and Wallington MP Tom Brake said: “Sutton’s residents are bristling with ideas – this is their chance to put them into practice. It’s a fantastic opportunity to get the support and advice needed to implement them.”
The ideas explored at the café included a tool-share scheme in which people borrow tools rather than buy their own and a green gym to get people more active outdoors. An Ideas library was available for local people to submit extra ideas that need someone to develop them, or to exchange their idea for a different one.
At the end of the café, the library still had some grea
t ideas that needed someone to own and enter them into the competition. These included a transport app for smart phones to make public transport in Sutton more convenient to use, a bike hire scheme and a swap shop for people to exchange unwanted but reusable items.
Ten silver award winners will travel around Sutton in a summer roadshow, giving residents an opportunity to vote for their favourite idea. The three most popular projects will then benefit from free support and coaching to take their projects off the drawing board and into reality.
Entries need to improve Sutton’s environment and green spaces, help residents reduce their ecological footprint and contribute to at least one of BioRegional’s ten principles of One Planet Living. Together, these principles aim to secure a sustainable future that people find attractive, affordable and achievable within the planet’s environmental limits.
Applications are welcomed before noon on Monday, April 29, either via this website or using a print application form obtainable from BioRegional. Further information can be obtained from Stephen Edwards on 020 8404 4896.
Good luck!
