Caring about the future of our community
in Thornbury and the surrounding villages

ST Bulletin

EcoFair - Saturday 22 May

We are holding the EcoFair on Saturday 22nd May 2010, in The Chantry in Thornbury. The EcoFair web pages now include lots of details about the stalls, entertainment, activities and information.

There is a competition to make a greetings card from recycled materials. There are prizes for children in various age groups and for adults. The entry form (PDF 49KB) and a poster (PDF 119KB) are on the website. Paper copies of the entry form are also available from Thornbury library and the Town Hall.

The success of the EcoFair depends on good publicity. We now have a poster (PDF 242KB) and leaflets (PDF 710KB) for the EcoFair. Please forward them on to anyone you think might be interested. Leaflets are available in Thornbury library and the Town Hall.

This is a major event for Sustainable Thornbury to put on, and we need the help of as many members as possible, both beforehand and on the day. We would be grateful if you would give some time to help. If you haven't yet responded to the request for help, please let us know one way or the other by emailing the secretary or ringing 01454-416778.

The main briefing for helpers on the day will be at 8pm on Wed 19th May, following the AGM. See below.

Annual General Meeting - Wed 19 May

Our AGM this year will be on 19th May at The Chantry, starting at 7:30pm. There will be about 30 minutes of formal business followed by a briefing fo EcoFair helpers.

This year the Secretary and the Chairman are retiring. If you would be interested in standing for either of these posts please email the secretary or ring 01454-416778.

Give-It-Away Take-It-Away Day - Sunday 13 June

This year will be our third Give-It-Away Take-It-Away Day on Sunday June 13th. It will be an opportunity for the people of the Thornbury area to pass on their unwanted but usable goods, and a chance to pick up some goodies for free. It will be in Thornbury's Rock St car park.

Now that we have run the day twice, it is fairly straightforward to set up. We are looking for an individual, a team or an organisation to join with us to take on the arrangements this year. We shall also need lots of volunteers to help with stewarding on the day. If you could help, or know someone else who might help, please email the secretary or ring 01454-416778.

Thornbury CSA local food scheme

Thornbury CSA, our local food scheme, is now up and running. We have held our Inaugural Meeting, approved the new constitution and have members. We do not have vegetables yet, but we should have by July. CSA stands for Community Supported Agriculture, the term used for consumers working with farmers and growers to produce local food.

This is an exciting chance to be in at the beginning of a new sustainable project. The plan now is for members to collect and weigh their share of the vegetables each week. The vegetables will cost £10 each week for a normal share, but different sizes will be available. The annual membership subscription is £10, and you can join without buying vegetables if you wish to support the scheme or keep in touch with it. We still need a few more people, so please pass this message on if you know someone local who may be interested.

We will soon be contacting all those who expressed an interest with more news. If you did not respond before and want to buy good local food and support local growers please email or ring 01454 416778.

Community Orchard

Apple trees received their spring trim on Sun 28 March ready for a bumper harvest. Many thanks to the eight members who pitched in. We now have three walnut trees ready for planting. Watch this spot.

Meetings

ST general meetings are on the third Wednesday of every month at 7:30pm at The Chantry. The next three meetings are Wed 21 April, Wed 19 May and Wed 16 June. Wed 19 May is the Annual General Meeting. All are welcome to all our meetings.

The Grow Your Own Food group has a meeting most months. The next meeting is potting up for the EcoFair at Maypole Farm on Sat 10 April at 2pm. Bring seeds, seedlings and pots and ideas. Click here for details or ring 01454-412165.

Dates

Visit to smallholding

There will be a visit to Jules Moore's smallholding near Alveston on Friday 18th June starting at 10:30am. The cost will be £4 each, including refreshments. All are welcome, but we need to know names in advance. There are limited places, so please email names to the secretary or ring 01454-416778 to book places.

Tip of the Month - Reuse cardboard tubes

Save your toilet roll cardboard tubes for sowing sweet peas, peas and beans. When the shoots appear, plant the whole tube in the ground and it will rot down. Thanks to Cilla for this tip.

Notices

Proposed wind farm at Hill

A Bristol-based company Wind Prospect wants to build a wind farm on our doorstep near Hill, to the north-west of Thornbury. The project is called Stoneyard Lane Wind Farm. They are proposing 7 wind turbines, each 130 metres high, together generating up to 23.1 megawatts, enough to supply about 13,000 households. The project has its own website giving details of the proposals and an opportunity to comment. Otherwise you can ring 0117 3017 151.

Bottled water 10 minute film

Following our 'tip of the month' last month, there is now a 10 minute film about bottled water by the makers of The Story of Stuff. If you haven't seen the original, you can find it on the same website - it is well worth a look.

Something to think about

"We encourage others to change only if we honour who they are now"

Margaret Wheatley & Myron Kellner-Rogers, "A Simpler Way"

This email was sent by info@sustainablethornbury.org, telephone 01454-416778