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A wide range of blog articles published by Sustainable Wales.
SUSSED on James St., Porthcawl CF36 3BG
Sustainable Wales is holding a fairtrade bake off at the Green Room (above SUSSED) in Porthcawl. We're inviting bakers, schools and local groups to dust the fairtrade flour off their aprons and get to work baking for this flavoursome event.
So whether you're an enthusiastic baker or an even more enthusiastic cake connoisseur, make a date in your diary for the bake off... Saturday 12 November 10am-4pm
Find out all the details on the bake off page!
Journalist, film-maker and author Anthony Hontoir returned home after a week’s holiday in Devon during the summer of 2013 with an idea for a whodunit murder mystery, based around the tidal road in Aveton Gifford, which is renamed Watersford for the story. He decided that it should feature a new amateur detective in the form of Erwin Graham, a one-time Fleet Street crime reporter, assisted by his partner Belle, a gipsy. “The Tidal Road Mystery” is the first in a series of mystery tales, and it has been written along traditional whodunit lines, evoking the golden age of murder mysteries in which there are a number of suspects, each with a motive of their own, and they are all brought together at the end for Erwin Graham to explain how he has solved the crime and to reveal the culprit.
Information in our events listings Friday 21 Oct 8pm
Annual Report is available to read
The latest annual report for Sustainable Wales is now available following the recent AGM.
Download the PDF (2.2MB) - opens in a new window to read or download.
(Also available on our What we do pages)
Cover image for Annual Report
www.sussedwales.com
Are you looking to make new friends, to increase your confidence, or to advance your cv? SUSSED are looking for enthusiastic, friendly and reliable individuals, to work in our community cooperative shop, SUSSED, for a few hours a week. You would be helping customers purchase both Fairtrade and eco-friendly items, as well as locally sourced goods.
Welcoming customers.
Operating a till, and handling money.
Dealing with customers’ requests and queries, including taking orders for new stock.
Explaining the background and the significance of the items we stock to the customers.
Helping to reorganise and restock the shop when necessary.
Help at some events.
Good communication skills.
A welcoming and friendly nature.
A passion and understanding of the Fairtrade initiative and other ideas linked with the sustainable development movement.
The ability to work well with others, in small groups of volunteers.
Opening hours are from 9:30am-5:00pm, Monday-Saturday. Days and hours are flexible, depending on your preferences, and the availability of other volunteers, with volunteers usually electing to do a minimum of 4 hours a week (either in the morning or afternoon).
4-5 James Street (near the bandstand in John Street), Porthcawl, CF36 3BG.
Develop valuable skills, (useful for your CV), make new friends whilst supporting producers both in the developing world and in your locality.
As a volunteer, you will also become a member of the cooperative SUSSED, which will entitle you to a 10% discount (except on food, local and toiletries) as well as a say on how SUSSED operates and grows, at AGM’s plus volunteer meetings.
Training will be provided about shop procedures, as well as what it means to be a community cooperative that stocks Fairtrade, local and eco-friendly goods.
SUSSED is a unique project, with nothing like it between Cardiff and Swansea. Through promotion of such independent retailers, we believe it’s possible to reverse recent trends of declining town centres, instead creating busy, diverse high streets with distinct cultures – all of this possible without costing us the Earth.
Note: If you are not interested in the shop aspects, we have several other volunteer roles available, including admin, finance & events management. Please enquire for more details.
Here is the information as a PDF which you could use as a poster etc.
Check out the SUSSED website to find out more about what we do. SUSSED is on twitter as @sussedwales and instagram as @sussed_wales (links are on the main SUSSED website).
Sustainable Wales is organising an election Question Time to take place in the Y Centre, YMCA, 25, John St., Porthcawl, 7pm – 9.30pm, FRIDAY, APRIL 15. See our events section for more details.
Questions are to be sent beforehand to the charity.
A spokesperson explained: “Questions on urgent local issues like the regeneration of Porthcawl are particularly welcome. Others might include re-instatement of a rail link, climate change, fracking and fuel poverty.
“But we feel the coming referendum on EU membership is almost certain to arise.
“Questions about local car parking will not be asked on the night.
“Questions must be self-explanatory and straightforward. They should be e mailed to robert.minhinnick@sustainablewales.org.uk by WEDNESDAY, APRIL 13.
“They should include the questioner’s name and address. Chairman on the night, Richard Thomas, will consider their suitability.”
Invited to take part are all the candidates in the BRIDGEND constituency.
Chairman on the night will be Richard Thomas, Chair of Sustainable Wales.
Sustainable Wales 01656 783962 / 773627.
George Jabbour, Conservative candidate for Bridgend at the Senedd May 5 election, is the first electoral hopeful to visit Sustainable Wales’s ‘SUSSED’ shop in Porthcawl.
George Jabbour & Margaret Minhinnick discussing fairtrade SUSSED
Director, Margaret Minhinnick said: “All candidates, from Green to UKIP, Labour or other parties are urged to visit SUSSED, a community enterprise that specializes in local, organic and fairly traded goods.
“We are delighted that George Jabbour has called in, and urge the others to do so by May 5. (See photo attached)
“George is supportive of Fair Trade, and was pleased to help celebrate 'Fair Trade Fortnight’, which ends on March 13. Mr Jabbour also purchased another pair of the shop’s unique bamboo socks, already an E Bay bestseller across the UK”
George Jabbour, who is facing First Minister Carwyn Jones in the election this May, commented “I also attended the Fairtrade Breakfast at Trinity Church in Porthcawl. The breakfast was organised by Porthcawl Fairtrade Town Partnership. The event which took place last Saturday (5th March) morning was very successful with many local people participating”.
“As a community, it is important we support local enterprises and champion fair trading as this will bring more prosperity to everyone: the producers, the retailers and the consumers.”
Margaret Minhinnick added: “Community enterprise creates local jobs and enhances distinctiveness. Thus I challenge all the other candidates to pop in, share a cup of fair trade tea or coffee and convince our volunteers why we should vote for their party.”
More information: Margaret Minhinnick 01656 783962 / 773627
Wanted Additional Trustees and Advisors
Sustainable Wales is looking for additional trustees and also advisors. The roles are voluntary and hands-on offering opportunities to use knowledge, experience and skills to progress the charity’s sustainable development aims.
We are seeking creative input and are looking for people with a scientific, business, arts, fundraising, voluntary or government background. All offers to help are welcome, but we’re keen to gain competence in any of the following areas:
The group are concerned about climate change and over consumption and believe that there is a need to diversify, ‘green’ and strengthen local economies.
Current activities include local renewable energy development and energy efficiency, ethical and fairly traded goods, support for local culture and diversity, waste and fast fashion, sustainable development policies and practices, community participation and having a voice. We are part of a network encouraging sustainable development.
A strong interest in sustainable development, the environment, and social justice will be important.
Please contact Margaret Minhinnick with a short letter outlining how you might help and your cv. mm@sustainablewales.org.uk
We've just released three short films profiling the importance of local renewable energy schemes.
The charity believes such local schemes are an answer to climate change(**) and the chronic fuel poverty now encountered in Wales.
(Latest figures from the Welsh government indicate 30% of the Welsh population experiences fuel poverty - defined as spending over 10% of income on fuel).
“The films, made by innovative Park6 Productions, are a means to broadcast the community energy message and to encourage the public, local authority staff and politicians to learn more”, said Sustainable Wales Director, Margaret Minhinnick.
“The three short community-based films aim to highlight the challenges groups face in Wales to develop local renewable energy. Their content supports the idea of democratising our energy supply, bringing ownership and profit back into communities whilst reducing climate change”.
The films show community groups Bro Gwaun near Fishguard, which now has a wind turbine; Awel Aman Tawe in the Swansea Valley with planning for 2 turbines, and Friends of Taff Bargoed Country Park developing a hydro power scheme in Treharris near Merthyr.
The three films were launched at the ‘Renew Wales’ conference, at the Centre for Alternative Technology, Machynlleth, on January 20. The response was overwhelmingly supportive.
Margaret Minhinnick explained “Local energy schemes are massively important in Germany and other EU countries, creating local jobs and supporting the local economy, but the UK has been extremely slow to catch on.”
“The three films are based around local groups which have fought against the odds. They are run by real local heroes in Wales striving to make this happen in spite of all the challenges they face and hard work it entails.’ said Robert Proctor, Renew Wales Director.
“We will be producing further films which will profile the energy ideas of political thinkers like Dr Calvin Jones of Cardiff University and former MP Alan Simpson. Also, we hope to profile the green energy ‘cluster’ at Parc Stormy (Stormy Down), where exciting developments are underway continued Margaret “Sustainable Wales believes that local community energy schemes are the way ahead.”
Further information: 01656 783962
Robert Proctor. Tel: 02920 190260
The three films, produced by Sustainable Wales were funded by the Big Lottery ‘Awards For All’ programme with support from Renew Wales. and Community Energy Wales www.communityenergywales.org.uk
Park6Productions (who support the charity by offering reduced fees)
**Welsh Local Government Association climate change projections suggest that if we don’t plan ahead extreme weather events will become more prevalent. The conditions outlined below are likely:
· essential infrastructure (transport, IT energy, waste) may be compromised;
· water and food supply may be disrupted;
· risks to communities increase, especially among the elderly and other vulnerable groups;
· economic productivity may be reduced due to flooding, high temperatures and transport impacts;
· agriculture may suffer due to loss of soils, lack of water;
· ecosystems services (flood retention, food production) may be degraded.
Absence of the availability of Fairtrade products at Carnegie House
Read MoreOur mission is to seek solutions for the unsustainable way we live. This involves cultural change and has implications for future generations.
Sustainable Wales’s aim is to help revitalise the local economy. We promote social and environmental progress and are enterprising, creative and internationally aware.
We are committed to society, artistic creativity and the natural world. We work with communities, voluntary groups and government.
We believe in this way we can foster an exciting future that doesn’t cost us the earth.
Sustainable Wales | 5 James Street, Porthcawl, CF36 3BG, UK
