The Rainbow Warriors from the Women’s Institute
Jerome Taylor, The Independent
First it was nude calendars, then it was a sex guide for elderly members which contained titbits such as what intimate position to take up after your husband has had a heart attack. Now, in its latest attempt to appeal to a wider and more modern audience, the Women’s Institute is turning to eco-activism.
Today, members of the 93-year-old organisation will embark on one of the environmental movements most iconic vehicles to deliver, by speedboat, a message to the front door of the controversial Kingsnorth power station in Kent calling on the Government to do more to provide Britain with clean, renewable energy. The WI’s presence on Greenpeace’s Rainbow Warrior II, the three-masted, globe-trotting flagship of the veteran environmental group, may appear to be an unusual addition to a ship with renowned eco-warrior credentials, but those who will be on board say environmentalism is all the rage at the WI…
(27 October 2008)
Does this mean we can expect to see WI Ecowarrier the movie with Helen Mirren standing at the brow of the Rainbow Warrior exhorting the women of Britain to action?
Genteel custodian of grand houses turns eco-warrior to save green spaces
Valerie Elliott, The Times
The National Trust is to take up an aggressive eco-stance to protect green spaces and prevent desecration of the countryside.
The trust, one of the country’s biggest landowners, has decided to shift its focus to become the leading champion for the protection of green fields – a move that puts it on a collision course with the Government over housebuilding, development of eco-towns and the proposed expansions of Heathrow and Stansted airports.
The tough new position announced today by the trust, which is the biggest voluntary organisation in Europe with 3.5 million members, follows a year-long consultation of its membership and polling of the public. It signals a dramatic shift from the trust as genteel custodian of grand historic houses to warrior-like defender of green spaces that improve the lives of most citizens.
The approach is part of the legacy envisaged by Sir William Proby, chairman of the trust, who steps down at the annual general meeting next weekend. The vision also has the backing of Sir Simon Jenkins, a former Editor of The Times, who is to take over as chairman…
(27 October 2008)
Waste watchers: Save cash and the environment
Rachel Shields, The Independent
Milly d’Escrivan has shed 4.5kg (9.9lbs) this week, making her the biggest “loser” in her Cambridgeshire group. Ms d’Escrivan and nine other young mothers have lost more than 40kg (6.3 stone) between them over the past four months. Like thousands of others around the country who are trying to shed the pounds, they meet regularly to offer each other moral support and to swap recipes and tips. Unlike many other women, however, they are watching their waste, not their weight.
They are part of an innovative scheme helping women to cut their food waste and shopping bills in half – using simple, old-fashioned home economics. If their success were repeated nationwide, the scheme could save the UK 2 million tons of wasted food a year – and £5bn.
The Waste & Resources Action Programme (Wrap), the Government’s packaging waste agency, has teamed up with the National Federation of Women’s Institutes to create 10 “Love Food” groups, teaching women how to waste less, be more efficient cooks and to cut shopping bills – with the aim of reducing the 6.7 million tons of food the UK wastes every year…
(26 October 2008)
