Environment Sunday

Today is Environment Sunday or will be - in an hour or so on June 7th.
Rowan Williams (Archbishop of Canterbury) made a press release about this on 3 June.
See http://www.archbishopofyork.org/2437 It says "World Environment Day marks the third anniversary of the Church of England's environmental campaign Shrinking the Footprint which is being marked by a national event at Lambeth Palace on June 11 where new toolkits and other resources will be unveiled to help churches, cathedrals and other buildings reduce their energy footprint. The next phase of the campaign focusing on water and biodiversity will also be unveiled."

I had also sent one out about Environment Church Services in the North of England.

Fri 5th June is World Environment Day, and
7 June is Environment Sunday and
June 8th is World Oceans Day.

With Species extinctions occurring at 1000 to 10,000 times the natural rate, fish stocks plummeting, climate change increasing and the world population still expanding, Care of the
Environment for future generations is vital. Churches in the north of England who are holding environment services at this period include::

Hurst Green (near Clitheroe, Lancs but Bradford Diocese):

6 June: Children's workshop making cakes to be sold for Children's Eternal Forest Costa Rica, and Painting a panel for church service next day. This service will recognise World Environment Day as part of Trinity Sunday. The text of the Rainforest sketch to be used by children and adults can be seen at http://rainforest-save.blogspot.com

Ambleside and area: Eight different churches running "Creation Praise and
Care" services over Weekend 6-7 June www.gogreenambleside.org.uk/June.html

Ingleton (Yorks Dales): - 14 June - 10.30am - Environmental Re-think service at St Mary's. There will be live music, and presentations as well as prayer.

Ben Rhydding, near Ilkley. - 21 June - Environment Service- at St John`s
Anglican Church Ben Rhydding, near Ilkley. Speaker: Norman Crowson of A Rocha. Special Creation Communion - written for environmental services. Anyone who would be interested in seeing the creation communion with a view to using it contact Sylvia Walker 01535-652915 or by email Sylvia Walker

Then there are two churchyard events: (both near Settle, North Yorkshire)

Giggleswick Churchyard - 14 June- With visitors and scientists from the Institute of Biology and lichen expert Prof Mark Seaward and members of the Yorkshire Wildlife Trust Living Churchyard project. plus Children's activities.

Langcliffe churchyard is open 27-28 June as part of Settle and District Open
Garden Weekend

People needing resources for an event this month could use the Christian
Ecology Link Prayer guide, with a meditation / interesting fact for each
day of the month www.christian-ecology.org.uk/p0906.htm

Children's Rainforest Meditation Script

Look what Clare Hyde of Hurst Green Church near Clitheroe, Lancashire sent me - A Meditation / Script that the young people will use on Sunday 7 June.

Points 1 to 9 are read by the children at the front, then the 7 or so paragraphs after are read by different adult members spread through the congregation

"Thought you'd like to see this...put together for our service on 7th....
mixture of Trinity Sunday and Environment Day!

We're also having a Rainforest Workshop on the Saturday 6 June for
children- to paint a mural and bake cakes to sell on the Sunday ..in aid
of the Children's Eternal Rainforest.

All the best, Clare"

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IMAGINE that you are sitting on a log in a rainforest in Central America. This is part of the largest private reserve in Costa Rica, purchased and protected by the fundraising of children all over the world and named El Bosque Eterno de los Ninos or the Childrens' Eternal Rainforest.
We are going to introduce you to some of the plants and animals of this richly biodiverse habitat.

1. I am a KAPOK TREE. Measuring 230 feet, I am one of the tallest trees in this forest - what is called an emergent, as I emerge above the canopy into the strong sunlight, exposed to the wind. I am home to a huge variety of wildlife, which feed from my flowerbuds, fruits and seeds. Parrots and eagles, colobus monkeys and lemurs live up here in my branches. Other plants live on my boughs like lichens, bromeliads and cacti, looking like a tree-top garden.

2. I am a LIANA. I don't have a trunk of my own but I need a lot of light, so my slender climbing stems use the trees for support to reach up to the canopy. Tree frogs, insects and small mammals like to live in the dense, damp vegetation of the canopy.

3. I am a TOADSTOOL, that takes nutrients from the litter of dead leaves and branches on the forest floor. Not much light can get down here, where it is very humid. Even so, birds, insects and reptiles live amongst the roots and leaf litter.

4. I am a JESUS CHRIST LIZARD. I use my tail to balance, and the flap of skin on my hind toes enables me to run on water to chase prey or escape danger.

5. I am an EPIPHYTE - an orchid. I am a plant which attaches itself ton the branches of trees, using them simply as a way to reach the light, but getting nutrients from rainwater and plant fragments.

6. I am a SCARLET MACAW. my nest is 100 feet above the forest floor, and I can use my wings to glide through the trees.

7. I am a GOLDEN BEETLE. I am over one inch long. I can only be found in Costa Rica.

8. I am a TAPIR. I like to be active at night, swimming in the rivers of the rainforest, searching for leaves, fruit and seeds.

9. I am a JAGUAR. I am a big cat, with a spotted coat, which allows me to hide amongst the grasses, bushes and trees. Sadly, my coat was prized by humans and their hunting of us has nearly brought us to extinction. I spend much of my time on the floor of the rainforest, and hunt at night.


The rainforest may seem remote from the lives we lead, but we are as dependent on its survival as if it was a few miles away!

Every minute of the day, 100 acres of rainforest are destroyed. That's 100 football pitches! By the end of this service at least 6,000 acres will have gone!... and with it the animals that live there.

At this rate there could be no rainforests left in 30 years time - forests that have survived and thrived for millions of years.

The rainforest is home for valuable trees, like mahogany which bring in a good income for the native, and mostly poor , countries, The timber is sold to rich countries for furniture, doors, loo seats and coffins. Sadly, the huge machinery used to cut the trees down, damages the forest for miles around.

Some rainforests are rich in precious metals and gemstones - gold, silver and diamonds - and are laid waste by machines and pollution.

Rainforests are also cleared for farming, as the soil is rich in nutrients and yields are high for a few years. But the fertility of the soil, ironically, is dependent on the lush layers of vegetation which have been cleared. After 2 or 3 years, the goodness has been washes away and the farmers move on.

Cattle ranching and industrial farming , for example of soya beans and palm oil,are responsible for the loss of great swathes of rainforest, encouraged by the rich countries appetite for beefburgers and a vegetarian alternative.

DOES IT REALLY MATTER IF ALL THIS IS DESTROYED?
Apart from the myriad variety of life in the rainforest, many plants provide us with brazil nuts, chocolate, chewing gum, vanilla and the base for many medicines. But more importantly, the rainforests are the lungs of the earth. They regulate the world's atmosphere and climate.

TAKE A DEEP BREATH.....
now....
again .....

You are breathing in oxygen, vital for your survival.

These mighty trees provide YOU with that through THEIR respiration- absorbing the carbon dioxide that you exhale...not to mention the rest of the carbon dioxide we produce in our activity!
Now, more than ever in man's history on earth, we need these trees and the rich diversity of life that they support.

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This was written by Clare Hyde (clare.earthcare@hotmail.co.uk) of Hurst Green, Clitheroe. She is happy for other groups to use the text, provided she is credited.

Links: http://www.tropical-forests.com/
http://mclus.org/home/

The Prince's Rainforest Project

Cherry Blossom Time

Cherry Blossom Time at Harrogate Stray

The cherry blossom is at its best today on the Stray at Harrogate... and the grass below carpeted with petals.

I went to visit a friend in an old peoples' home next to the Valley Gardens, at Harrogate on 3 May. We went for a short walk in the Gardens, also lit up by cherry blossom. We watched people on a trampoline with bungie ropes turning somersaults in mid air.

Great.. This is the first "walk with and old person" I have achieved in 2009 - This is the activitiy I have put to be sponsored for when I ask people to sponsor me for the Rainforest.

Green Trees from hospital window

Please donate to one of the funds the blog supports. Please save the important habitats of our natural world.

Happy May Day.

I am still visiting my mother in Harrogate Hospital. She has been in hospital a month now and has been missing seeing all the trees come into leaf, and missing the spring flowers.

On Monday she was moved from the room for six that had no view at all except for two tiny high up windows which overlooked a brick wall, into a single room that has a relatively large window with a view onto young horse chestnut trees - and if you could see beyond these there is the Stray beyond (mown grassland with trees inside Harrogate). I was so pleased she has a view of green trees, and the sky and clouds and sun. (Even though she was only moved here because she now has hospital diarrhea). The nurses are nice.

Research has shown that people get better quicker if they can see green natural environments.

On Wednesday I also had the good news that her (now my) 15 year old car which I drive passed its MOT test. What a relief. I dreaded it failing. But it passed. So I can continue to use it to go and visit her. Not very good for the CO2 this driving though.

Settle's Answer to Oberammergau

The topic of our local Passion Play at Settle is stretching the topic of this blog a little but there are links:

1. We used as our robing room St John's Church Hall which house the Rainforest Fund display board (and someone did ask me how we did at the Coffee Morning)
2. People all over the world, including near rainforests, have special Good Friday events
3. Sean McDonagh has produced a powerful piece of writing and slide set Stations of the Forest based on Stations of the Cross. (If you live locally I can lend you the slides) - about loss of tropical forest.
   
4. There are other people who have lost their lives through working to try and save habitats.

Pictures:
1. Barabas asks why was Jesus crucified when he should have been.
2. Walking up Kirkgate
3. Jesus washes the disciples feet
4. The last supper - outside the Catholic church.

Hospital chaplains and Prayer Rooms

Tue 7 April

In the early evening I went to Harrogate Hospital to visit my Mother who is there because of her broken hip. She broke it a fortnight ago.

Whilst I was there Graham Sturdy came to visit her - the Minister from her church in Ripon. It really perked her up.

If Mum was to be in hospital over Easter I wondered if she would be able to go to a service on Easter Sunday. He suggested I leave a message for the hospital chaplain. (I had seen a palm cross and a card on her table so presumably the chaplain had been to visit her )

Later that evening I asked where the prayer room was and wandered down there.
It was a peaceful place, and a sat there a short while, and appreciated it. It was a different place to go within the hospital.

I value the hospital chaplains. I am just saying this here, because this morning I heard on Radio 4 a man saying that the hospitals should not pay for chaplains. Well I am pleased the chaplains are there.

Greenery at the hospital.

My mother has a bed next to the window which is nice because it gets lots of sun. However it just looks on to another anonymous wing of the hospital so she cannot see "green hills" or even green trees. However if you go to the window and look straight down there is an area planted with bushes below... and as it is still only April they are not green yet.. The bunch of daffodils from my neghbour's garden and from Settle market, and other flowers on the windowsill make a difference.

First Aid Course

Must dash. I I have the privilege of attending a day First Aid Course up at Malham Tarn Field Centre - I will be teaching some courses there later this year.

Tuesday 8 April

Last year in February we raised £80-00 at the Church Coffee Morning for the Rainforest. This year we raised £172!! - Double! - Plus a friend came and donated an extra £50 for his own acre -

Left shows a dog's eye view of the coffee morning. And right, a hopeful hound.

A big thanks to all who came. The total of £172 included £34 from sale of my cards including £20 to one person, and a £20 donation.
Hilary Briggs and C. who served the teas both had a display of the cards they make, including Easter Cards, and apple pies that Hilary made with the last of her store of 2008 apples.

We were lucky - the Craven Herald had managed an article last Thursday on our event.

I went round Settle at 9.30am and gave leaflets to people I knew and asked several shops and market stalls to display the leaflets. - "Where is the church?" asked someone in Age Concern- That was a good point - if we want toursits/daytrippers to come we need to make it easier for them - "It's the church under the railway bridge past the petrol station just north of the market" - I shall have to put that on posters in the future. the picture on the left shows two ladies in the foreground looking at the greeting cards.

Speakers Club Rainforest Certificate

Monday 6 April

Craven Speakers Club had raised £120 last year to buy two acres of forest through World Land Trust. I used my turn to give a speech this evening to show everyone the certificate for Two acres of Brazilian forest

Settle Spinners

Settle Spinners at the Church Hall invited me to go and open the bottle of "loose cash" they had been collecting over the year.

It came to £26 87p.

A big "Thank you".

One of them kindly posed in the grounds at the back of the hall.




Here is some weaving that one of them had done.

Settle Spinning and Sewing Club to donate

Settle Spinning/Sewing Club that meet on Tuesday afternoons at the Church Hall have been collecting "coppers and change" in a bottle over the past year for the fund. This afternoon they are going to open the bottle and I will give a little talk at coffee time. I am looking forward to that. - To opening the bottle - and to seeing all the interesting craftwork that they make.

Also today we have arranged to have a Coffee Morning at St John's Church on Tuesday 7th April 10am to midday. I have just sent an email to the Craven Herald.

The Prince and the Rainforest

I arranged to be at watching ITV on Sun 22 March 6.30pm to see "The Prince and the Rainforest" - featuring Prince Charles, first in the Amazon Rainforest and later at the Galapagos.

He had visited this area in 1982 and was now back again. He visited some sustainablity projects and permaculture - to show positive projects.

The interviewer said "Six/eight years ago most scientists agreed that climate change was taking place.. (as opposed to disputing that it was taking place) Now the scientists are saying it is taking place much faster than they thought six/eight years ago. Things are moving on much more rapitly than we expected.
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Later that evening I heard the Radio 4 Appeal - for Rainforest Foundation UK. It was given by Stephen Fry (of Twitter fame) I hope that raises lots of money.

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Prince Charles in the Yorkshire Dales and examples of how he likes nature ...

I have seen him in real life four times -
When he opened the National Nature Reserve of Ingleborough, above the Hill Inn
When he opened a room at the Edinburgh Botanic Gardens, two weeks after the above event.
When he opened a "Post Office in the Pub" at Stainforth
When he went on a ride on the Settle Carlisle Railway
(And I know he came up to Malham Tarn Field Centre to open a new wing there)

He recently commissioned a book of botanical illustrations of the plants that grow at Highgrove House - a Florilegium .

Prince Charles is doing his best to protect nature -
What are you doing?


.

E-peace, Students and Wildlife Conservation - Practical and Campaigning

Sat 7th March

It is a whole year since I acted as a resource person for Leeds University for their First Year Field Course in the Dales in their role play session.

To help them were a quarryman, a farmer, a walker , a local, several others - and myself as an environmental activist.

I was pleased to be asked back again, and this time they held their day at Grassington.

As I understood it my group of 12 students would be representing an environment campaigning group (with a made up name E-Peace) in a role play situation. I, as a member of our local wildlife group "Craven Conservation Group" had been invited to answer their questions in preparation for their task.

They showed me their excellent poster. - I thought the aims on the poster were good.

They had visited this website, to last year's page .. through a web search for E-Peace. (Brilliant - all hits welcome -Thanks!

I belong to so many environment groups and wanted to get so much information across - I had produced some photocopied material - that I talked (in response to questions) rapidly for about five minutes till I could see it was getting rather much for some of them (igo - eys glazed over) - So I asked questions instead -

"Do you belong to any conservation organisations?" I asked.

One girl did. She did practical world with a voluntary group at the university - cutting down trees etc. I had a really goood chat with her and it was good to see the other students interested in what she did.

"Are you interested in conservation or did you just get put in this group?" I asked.

"The latter."

"Are you members of the Yorkshire Wildlife Trust?" I asked - After all Leeds in in Yorkshire. Zero uptake. "Well you should all go away and join". (Was that too bossy? - and let's face it, I only started joioning such organisations quite a few years after university..

They asked about otters, they asked "What would you do if you could improve the Dales for conservation... Hmmm...

Yorkshire Dales Snow Scenes

Friday 6th Feb was sunny and the snow left from Monday was beautiful. Bill Mitchell and I went for a drive following the River Ribble up from Settle.

A chance to appreciate how we fitted in to the land.

This area was glaciated during the last ice age. Just the tips of the peaks of Pen y hent (left) and Ingleborough and Whernside may have stood up above the ices sheets and glaciers 18,000 years ago.

Some rare arctic-alpine flowers and mosses grow near the summits on the crags.

The natural vegetation in this area from summit to valley bottom should be trees. It is sheep and rabbits that stop them growing now...( and peat in the boggy areas - but there is evidence of trees under some of the peat)

Here is a picture of Horton in Ribblesdale Church, with Pen y Ghent in the background. I once used this view of the church to design a t-shirt for the Pen y ghent Fell race organised by Settle Harriers. Bill showed me an old stained glass window above the brown door - of the severed head of Thomas Becket, the Archbishop of Canterbury who was murdered in 1170. You learn something new every day. The window may have been brought from Jervaux Abbey

The oldest rock is Silurian rock, sometimes (wrongly I am told) called slate, whereas it should be called greywacke, or locally "Horton flags". The big slabs of "slate" are used for the floor in many houses, for rooves, for cattle troughs, for grave stones, and many other uses. It had been used for Horton church roof at onetime but now it is covered with lead.

Above the slate is the Yoredale Series - sandstone, shale and limestone beds repeating the pattern. Near the summit of Pen y Ghent are some thick beds of limestone, then at the top there is hard millstone grit.

Thus:
The geology affects the landscape.
The glaciers have affected the landscape.
The mangement - sheep and rabbits affect the landscape (No trees).
And Bill alerted me to a fourth factor: - The quarry men.

Land has been quarried since people came here.

For stone walls
For lime for "burning" in the kilns to make the ground "sweeter"
For building up the Settle Carlisle Railway banks and viaduct
For "slate" for rooves
And more recently for roadstone and for the chemical industry

Finally we visited St Leonard's church in Chapel le Dale, two miles from the viaduct.

Britain's Rare Animals and Plants - How they came here

In this blog yesterday I said

"If the whole of Britain sank under the sea the world as a whole would only have lost a few species.

"There are comparatively few species under threat of global extinction in Britain.

In today's entry I will think about the British vegetation and fauna - why it is so limited, how it has come to be here at all - and alert you to some threatened species.


What - Few British Species under threat of global extinction?

A good number of plants, insects, etc are threatened nationally, and within each county, over the past 100 years, on average one native species of wildflower becomes extinct every two years. (I'll write about that later, with examples of species lost in West Yorkshire)

78 UK higher plant species are now designated as threatened with extinction within Britain.

Only a few species in the UK are under threat of world extinction - and of these we should take especial care.

I'll have to look some of these up!! -

Oh I have just learned about the Lundy Cabbage. The Lundy Cabbage Coincya wrightii only grows on the cliffs on the East side of Lundy Island It is endemic to Lundy. (Endemic means Native to or confined to a certain region). - And it has two endemic beetles living on it!..

Actually that reminds me that near to us in Settle, the Rock Whitebeam Sorbus rupicola which grows in the Malham Cove area is another endemic.. It is slightly different to the Lancastrian Whitebeam which grows across the border in Lancashire Sorbus lancastriensis: the Sorbus rupicola grows near Malham Cove so that my guess is that the whitebeam on the vertical part of the Cove face is also Rock Whitebeam,

but without ropes, I cannot prove it...


Why does Britain have such a relatively poor flora and fauna?

Look at the numbers of native wild flowers found in these three countries:

Native wild flowers in UK:1550 (1,756); France: 4,500; South Africa 23,000.,

Doesn't make you very proud to be British, does it!
Source: Earthtrends website using data from World Conservation Monitoring Centre, Cambridge.

It is all to do with the ice.

Britain was covered by ice in the last Ice Age, 18,000 years ago, Plants and animal could not survive then.. Land not covered in ice in the south of England had very cold conditions.

Since then, temperate animals and plants have come back into Britain in the last 12,000 years from the continent. If we lose some of these species - and it would be sad if we did - most still exist in other countries. -

One such example of a very rare plant is the Large Yellow Sedge Carex flava. It only grows in two places in the UK, one of them being at Malham Tarn, seven miles from our church. It is a highlight of the Sedges courses I sometimes run. But it does also grow in Scandinavia.


More interesting facts: How did the animals and plants get back to Britain after the ice age.?

Many walked across the Land Bridge from the continent. During the Ice age 20,000 years ago the sea level dropped 120m (400ft) below its present level because water was locked up in ice, and also the sea was colder and so had contracted. There was a land bridge stretching across from eastern England to Denmark and the Netherlands . - Fisher men have found flints, remains of conifer forests and on

Why has the land bridge gone? - after all it is only say 9000(?) years ago - 360 generations ago since it went. (The land bridge to Ireland was lost 12,000 years ago).. The ice melted, the cold water expanded. Also the ice on the North west of UK, especially Scotland weighed Scotland down so the south east of England stuck up like a seesaw - Now the Scottish ice is gone Scotland and Western Ireland are Rising, the south east of England is sinking. If the sea level has risen this much already - think what global warming will do..)

Ten Reasons Why Saving the Rainforest is More Vital than Collecting Litter, Changing to Low Energy Light Bulbs or ..... than Protecting Most UK Nature

Saving the rainforest and other habitats of global biodiversity importance is vital.

Vital.

Much more vital than clearing up litter - or even than replacing high energy light bulbs.

"If the whole of Britain sank under the sea the world as a whole would only have lost a few species."

This sounds a drastic statement - but let's look at ten reasons why saving the rainforest is so vital:

By "Rainforest" I include other threatened habitats of high biodiversity world importance - from montane forest to coral reefs, from Galapagos islands to swamp. - "Rainforest" is shorter and more colourful than "sites of high international biodiversity importance".

1. In Danger of Extinction:
Over 1/4 the world's mammals and
Over 1/8 of the world's higher plants (many now say over 1/4) Source : IUCN

There are very few species under threat of global extinction in Britain.
Therefore - as I see it - it is more important (with time, money and resources limiting) to find ways of saving animals and plants threatened with extinction throughout the world, than to protect blackbirds in one's hedge or spend effort on litter picking.

It makes me so sad when I see church environment policies (and school and village ones) that concentrate only on picking up litter, changing light bulbs and maintaining a wild life area in the church yard - good though these activities are on changing peoples attitudes.

What do you think?

I will deal with the British Flora and Fauna tomorrow, and say why our wildlife is so limited - a little about how it developed and some species that are under threat today.

2. Extinction rates are proceeding at 1000 (maybe 10,000) times as fast as when there were no human beings.
Surely we - Christians and others -ought to be doing more to save species for future generations.
Many of us like to think we are leaving the world a better place. We give money to support big beautiful cathedrals. Think what good causes you have supported. Yet during my lifetime about 1% of the world's species will have disappeared.

3. Species are beautiful and interesting in their own right.
We are no longer able to see the Dodo, the Carrier Pigeon, the Woolly Mammoth - species which have disappeared due to human activity. Is it fair that future generations may not be able to see the Orang Utan, Mountain Gorillas, the Chinese River Dolphin - because we have taken all their habitat. (The world population has doubled in the last 40 years and is set to double again in the next 60 years- so will then be four times as great as 40 years ago)

In the UK butterflies are the group that has experienced the greatest net losses in recent decades, disappearing on average from 13% of their previously occupied 10-kilometer squares.

I have a friend who carries out work on Pyralid Moths of Borneo, photographing and sorting collected museum specimens - yet he wonders if some of these specimens may be already extinct.

4. Species could have uses we do not yet know about

My interest in tropical plants is strongly influenced by a visit I made to a friend in Cameroon. He was paid to collect samples of plants and trees to be pressed and sent back for testing for drugs that could be useful for cancer or aids treatment. More about that in a future entry.


5. CO2 from burning forests causes 1/5 of the global warming.

CO2 produced by burning the world's forest makes up 1/5 of the human made CO2 going into the air each year and causing global warming. This is another reason to keep the forest standing as forest. CO2 and methane from man drained peatbogs adds to the global warming effect effect.

6. Collecting litter is good - not dropping it is better - refusing to buy over-packed goods at the supermarket is Best .-

• Whales starve to death because their stomachs fill up with plastic so their is no room for other food.
• Plastic litter looks unsightly and takes tens or hundreds of years to decompose.
• Plastic bags hold water, waters allows mosquito larvae to breed; the adult mosquitos carry malaria.
• If a bird gets a plastic beer can holder over its beak (young birds are very nosey) it starves to death.

IT is fantastic how over the last two months most supermarkets have stopped giving customers plastic bags unless they ask for one - and I am the worst culprit for forgetting my shopping bag.

So litter, especially plastic litter is bad -
But loss of species is worse.

If I had £20 to spare I would donate it to a "Save the rainforest fund" rather than a "Keep Britain tidy fund." What would you do?

7. We cannot rely on Zoos to keep our rare species

Look what happened to the zoo in Iraq when the Americans invaded. Or what happened to the botanical gardens during the siege of Leningrad - and the heroic efforts made to save the seeds.

8. It is necessary to have a decent sized gene pool to keep the species going -
Otherwise there can be inbreeding. There may be a hint of this in the bible. If you read Genesis carefully you will see that God asks Noah not just to take pairs of birds and certain animals but seven pairs of each species (Ch7 v 2) Actually a lot more than seven pairs would be needed to stop inbreeding.

9. Why is saving habitats and species more important than changing light bulbs?
After all, using tungston bulbs uses four times as much energy as flourescent bulbs - and can thus be responsible for the formation of four times as much CO2 - global warming gas.

Answer: Because all sensible, thinking, people have already have changed to energy efficient bulbs several years ago

So changing bulbs should be a non-issue.

- Roll on the LEDs.. but they are not bright enough yet - hand powered torches and lanterns must be a boon in villages without an electricity supply.

- Apologies to anyone reading this who cannot tolerate the mercury bulbs.


10. Ah that leaves one more reason - I invite you to suggest one!


Comments welcome.
"

Happy New Year

Best wishes for the New Year to all readers of this blog.

Improve Your Speaking Skills

"Twenty Top Tips for Improving Your Speaking Skills" - The booklet to buy! - and so give money to the rainforest fund. I have collected vital tips from members of Craven Speakers Club at Skipton. (The booklets will also double up as Christmas Cards for some of my friends)
To practise improving your speaking skills, why not see if there is a Speakers' club near you by visiting www.the-asc.org.uk - and then start in the new year!

Tip 2: (by Jan Millar:)
Practise reading a passage or poem aloud each day. As you practise, remember “The seven 'Ps' for effective vocal delivery” - pitch, pace, pause, power, practise, practise, practise.

Tip 8: (Sylvia Walker.)
Look at your audience. Maintaining lots of eye-contact is crucial for engaging your audience’s interest.


I sold ten copies at the meeting in early November (at 50p each).. Lets see how many we can sell at the meeting in mid December.

Making Christmas Cards for the fund

Here is a display of cards and calendars I made today to sell for the Rainforest Fund.

And look - in Yorkshire we have snowy weather today!!

Some are from photos of a collection of nativity scenes that were on display at St John's Church last year.

Some are from flowers from our area including Purple Saxifrage, Mountain Pansy and Bloody Cranesbill.

Orders taken! £1-50 per card including postage.

Computer lessons

A new way of raising money for the fund arose last week - A couple in our congregation asked me to go and help them with their computing, so that they can more easily send emails and attachments to their relatives, and have promised to donate each session I go and help.

Daphne Wallis did appear on Songs of Praise on Sunday - and I could see the rainforest poster briefly displayed behind the choir conductor!.

Langcliffe Singers sing the Messiah

Click here to see my post about Tuesday 14 Oct when BBC (songs of Praise) recorded Langcliffe singers practising. Songs of Praise will be broadcast on 23 November. This evening I came back and recorded them myself.
They will be performing Handel's Messiah on Sunday 7 December at 7.30pm on Settle Parish Church. Book your tickets now!!


Langcliffe Singers practise in the Hall on Tuesdays and are making a collection for the Rainforest Fund. Listen to them sing "Glory" above.

Teddy Bears Picnic Dancing at Hall

Scottish Country Dancing this Thursday evening at the Church Hall provided an opportunity to
1) Support Children in Need - the dancing teacher, Robert this week is making a collection at all his classes for Children in Need and having a special dance to "The Teddy Bears Picnic Tune"
2) By contributing, to say "Thank you" to our teachers Robert and Alan - we are SO lucky and privileged to have them come to Settle.
3) To have a good evening - It's good music, it's exercise, it's fun.
4) To find some friends who will proof read a booklet I am making to sell/give at Christmas for Craven Speakers Club in aid of the Rainforest Fund.

Watch us dancing - Why not come and join us? - 7.30pm on Thursdays.



Above: Dancing to "The Teddy Bears Picnic"




Above: "The Highland Rambler"

How to set up the Owl meter electricity monitor

The Owl Energy Monitor, or smart meter, consists of a (1) magnet sensor which fits round a wire in coming out of your main electricity meter, (2) transmitter which is attached to the magnetic sensor;
And (3) a completely separate little meter which you carry round the house and note the change in reading as you turn individual items.

(Note added in Jan 2009: These smartmeters in January 2008 have been made available for loan free at York library)

Normally the magnet sensor clips onto one of the leads coming out below your electricity meter in the fusebox cupboard.

However a friend, Arthur Lupton, has made a gadget allowing the Owl to be used on individual appliances. This useful for demonstration purposes. The gadget consists of plug, socket and two thick insulated separate wires connecting them. You can see this gadget in detail in the picture which is below the video. Watch!






Here is Mr Lupton's extra plug and socket. Note the two wires go separately from the plug to the socket.



















The sensor clips round one of the wires.














Here you see the sensor attached in my electricity meter and fuse box.
































Dave Tayler used the Owl for his house - and was amazed by the electric power shower result - especially as members of his household enjoy long sessions in the shower!

Thanks for letting me print your data, Dave!

Appliance	pence / hr	kw / hr	kg CO2 / hr
Electric shower !!	154.80	9.60	0.67
Immersion	43.80	2.72	0.19
Tumble dyer	39.70	2.46	0.17
Main oven	38.60	2.39	0.17
Washing machine	36.00	2.23	0.16
Kettle	34.20	2.12	0.15
Big cooker ring	26.20	1.62	0.11
Top oven	21.70	1.35	0.09
Microwave oven	20.00	1.24	0.09
Small cooker ring	19.00	1.18	0.08
Hair dryer	17.60	1.09	0.08
Toaster	17.30	1.07	0.08
Hoover	16.00	0.99	0.07
Central heating pump	4.80	0.30	0.02
Computer	4.10	0.25	0.02
Shower room light and fan	3.10	0.19	0.01
Garage strip light	2.40	0.15	0.01
LCD TV	2.10	0.13	0.01
Goldfish tank light	1.40	0.09	0.01
11w low energy light	1.00	0.06	0.00
Small TV	1.00	0.06	0.00

Coffee - Rainforest Alliance - Fair-Trade - Bird Friendly - Shade grown - Utz Kapeh

Coffee - It's not just a matter of is it fair trade or not - O,... no, no, no, no, no. There are several certification schemes, and other decisions to be made.

Rainforest Alliance Certification (McDonalds now use this, provided by Kenco)
[[Rainforest Alliance, I have been told, does not count as "Fair Trade" when becoming a Fair Trade Church, I have been told - even though they do have to have good conditions for the workers..]]

Fair Trade

Shade Grown/Bird Friendly

Utz Kapeh (has some sustainable features)

Then there are two types of coffee:
Arabica - usually grown in shade and so more wildlife friendly
Robusta- usually grown in the open so bad for wildlife. It needs more fertilizer and pesticides.

Shade-grown Coffee: Environmental conservation: Birding Fair Trade and much more

See Ethical corp for a good comparison

Trehugger for good info.

Bird Friendly Coffee

More
Is global business hijacking the Fairtrade bandwagon? Guardian article
-----------------------------

Songs of Praise Settle Church Hall

On going to set up the Fairtrade talk last night I discover that Langcliffe Singers who meet in the main room in the hall are to have a singer in their group to be filmed for Songs of Praise in November...

Our church hall used for a Songs of Praise Scene -- will they feature our Rainforest Fund Display in the background??? (Judith's one track mind).

They are going to be making a themed Songs of Praise programme on older people - and concentrate on the activities in one day of this one lady - which just happens to include Langclffe Singers this evening. I film the filmers filming the Langcliffe Singers leader introducing the session- which includes doing stretching exercises, then retreat to our Fairtrade meeting.

Afterwards, as the Langcliffe Singers are disbanding, I pick up nerve and ask the lady if I can take her photo...

to be continued....

--continued
The lady's name is Daphne Wallace - - in fact I later discover, Dr Daphne Wallace. She explains they have already today filmed her playing golf and playing the cello and the other things she has being doing. I ask "How did they chose you?"

She explains that she used to be a psychiatrist, helping people with dementia and, she has recognised that she now she has dementia herself.

I prick up my ears. I have a relative with "memory" problems.

"How do you know?" I ask - Daphne certainly is leading an active life..
"I can't do arithmetic like I used to, and forget words." she says.
"As well as arithmetic and words I have lost much of a previously exceptionally good visual memory, also multitasking (such as used in participating in a discussion) is much more difficult."

Later I discover she has been interviewed on women's hour about this., and she gave a lecture in Harrogate in November 2007 on the topic.

"The programme is titled 'Third Age Spirituality' - The interviews with me will not be the only one and the activities will, I presume, form a background to parts of the interview. There will be hymns and a soloist (Willard White) and much of the usual format but the theme is on faith as it affects the life of older people - I am one of those to illustrate the theme by giving an outline of how faith affects my life and its challenges. There will be other contributors so my bit will be drastically reduced from the interview I recorded over nearly 1 & half hours!

Well roll on November 23rd for the Songs of Praise programme.

And if you would like to see and hear Langcliffe Singers They will be performing Handel's Messiah on Sunday 7 December at 7.30pm on Settle Parish Church. Book your tickets now!!

Below you see the group before they started singing.

Fair Trade: becoming a Fair Trade Community

A special speaker had asked me to arrange a meeting at the Church Hall this evening - John Anderson, formerly chair of Fairtrade Bradford - to talk on "Becoming a Fair Trade Community." I circulate emails to people to tell them about the meeting. I come down early. Perhaps while here I can invite one or two of the other groups using the hall to contribute to the Rainforest Fund. I discover that "Langcliffe Singers" who meet in the main room in the hall are to have a singer in their group to be filmed for Songs of Praise in November... but more of that in my next blog. Our meeting takes place to the accompaniment of their magnificent singing in the background. Fairtrade: Producers of "Fairtrade" goods get a guaranteed price and a better deal. Often they get a good price because middle dealers are cut out. Settle Methodist Church is not a Fair Trade Church. The West Yorkshire Methodist District, of which Settle church is part would like to become a "Fairtrade District" - just as it is possible to become a "Fairtrade School" or other Fairtrade community.. So John has arranged to come and give a talk at our church hall this evening 14th October. He explains that to become a Fairtrade District we would have to get half the churches in the District to be Fairtrade churches and also do some other things to promote Fairtrade- such as have an event in Fairtrade fortnight. All the churches in his circuit at Shipley are Fairtrade churches. But in the Settle and Bentham Circuit none of them are. He wonders why. We have representatives from High Bentham and Settle. The High Bentham people tell us they are going to have a meeting about Fairtrade in Bentham, and does John have a video? He recommends the Fairtrade website. We try samples of the Divine chocolate. The cocoa is grown in Ghana and a cooperative was set up for this, but the chocolate is made in Europe as it would melt in Ghana.. He explains that Anita Roddick had had shares in the company that made the chocolate. When she sold her firm the Body Shop, she gave the shares in Divine chocolate to the African Cooperative. He explains how at Bradford they had been able to get funds from the Cooperative Society (the Coop) for some of their Fairtrade Activities, including producing a book showing where Fairtrade goods can be bought, and he recommends doing the same. He starts commending "Shared Interest" - a scheme where you can invest money, which is then used to loan to small producers, and that had been useful for some Fairtrade cooperatives. Then he finds that four out the five of us already have invested some money in this. (Now seen to be a better option than shares...). He leaves us leaflets and samples. We put the box of coffee and tea samples in the kitchen next door with some of the leaflets, for kitchen users to take or try.

World Species Loss hits the news

The BBC website at says the global economy is
losing much more money from the disappearance of forests than through the
current banking crisis, according to an EU-commissioned study.

Also see BBC - "Brown's plan to save rainforests"
which will be announced on Tuesday. Mr Elias who wrote the plan, is the Founder of
Cool Earth one of the charities we are supporting.

Five points that made our visit to Thorpe Perrow Arboretum a Success

Digressing slightly from tropical forests - today I visited Thorpe Perrow Arboretum near Bedale in North Yorkshire. Five top points were:

1. The electric buggy. My Mother currently has a bandage on her leg and cannot walk far.. but with this vehicle she was able to steam off at 4 mph with me running after to keep up. Normally one has to book these. .. If you have an elderly relative or someone with bad legs -book one. Great fun.

2. It's autumn and the colours are just beginning to change.. and they have special Acers (maples) that are just starting to turn lovely colours.

3. They have a falconry centre and also few animals there including meercats - The meercats are like some I saw on TV once. there is a family - One male, two females and four young (born in July). One of the adults stands on the log to keep watch..

4. We hit lucky in that on the 12th there was a fungus foray. We arrived back at the same time as the fungi foray people were spreading out their finds - including earthstars (see right), fly agaric, honey fungus, wood mushrooms,

5. Its nice walking amongst the trees and glades.