Monthly challenge: water we to do?

4th May 2012 by

Splish splash!

We’ve just seen ourselves through the rainiest April in 100 years and still there’s a drought on. Over at Otesha, we’re all sploshing around in our wellies and try to wrap our heads around just how the soil can still be parched) when there’s so much wet stuff falling from the sky.

Here in the UK, we use a lot of water. Especially when you consider how little of the world’s water is available for drinking.

So this month we’re challenging you to dry out – cut your water footprint.

Your personal water footprint is made up of everything you use directly for washing, bathing, doing laundry and drinking, but more importantly it also includes all the water that’s needed to grow & process your food, manufacture your clothes and create all the other goods you consume. In sustainability jargon, this stuff is called virtual water.

By far, the biggest virtual water culprit is agriculture. So if you want to get serious about reducing your water footprint, check out this list ranking the water intensity of certain foods and see where you can tweak your habits.

You can also calculate your personal water footprint, though you’ll need to figure out how many kilos of different foods you eat each week to fill it out.

Or if you’ve got a smartphone, this app will help you calculate the virtual water embedded in all sorts of products.

Thirsty for more? Download the water chapter of the Otesha Handbook or read some tips on reducing water use at home.

Posted in food glorious food, monthly challenge, water | No Comments »

One year on from San Francisco – are green jobs gaining traction in the UK?

4th May 2012 by

I can’t believe that it’s been over a year since I was in San Francisco cycling over the Golden Gate Bridge, eating ice cream in the grounds of UC Berkeley, and strolling down Haight-Ashbury.

Oh yes, AND learning and being inspired by tons of California green jobs projects, as part of the IPPR West Coast Green Alliances learning exchange. Many of you read and responded to my blog posts from California, and I thought that now would be a great time to take stock of what has happened in the UK since then. I want to ask whether we have managed to implement any of the lessons that we learned in California; what more needs to be done; and are we any closer to making that transition to a just, green economy?

What have we been doing?

In answer to that first question, there is a ton of exciting green jobs stuff that’s happened and got off the ground in the past year. Here is a run down of some of the projects that have been initiated and managed by those on the learning exchange. 

- IPPR released a report in July 2011, Green Expectations: Lessons from the U.S. green jobs Market. More recently, they have turned their attentions to the potential economic and social impact that might arise from the Green Deal.

- The Greener Jobs Alliance, led by UCU, has launched the Green Skills Manifesto (if you’d like to endorse it, emailGPetersen@ucu.org.uk) and been busy working with South Thames College and Sustainable Merton to provide training in green skills. Watch their video on Community Approaches to the Green Deal.

- Capacity Global convened the London Greener Jobs Hub in the months after the learning exchange, with a view to create leadership in London on green jobs and provide an information hub. Keep your eyes peeled for a launch event in September, as well as a green jobs fair! Their Skin project is also up and running, working with the hair and beauty industry to demonstrate that we can create green and decent jobs within non-traditional green industries.

- The Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation have continued to be an exciting and progressive funder, supporting the work of The Otesha Project UK and their Greener Jobs Pipeline project, the London Greener Jobs Hub, the Transition Network’s ReEconomy project, and the Finance Innovation Lab, among many others!

- Friends of the Earth took the government to court over the cuts to the feed-in tariff, and won! Our Solar Future estimate that the FIT cuts threaten 25,000 jobs in the UK.

- Oxfam Scotland have been doing amazing stuff setting up social enterprises that plant trees as a means to regenerate marginal land for community benefit. On the employability front, they are developing a programme on community improvement and sustainable development in secondary schools with a view to increasing awareness and employability skills for the green economy, and a programme for young unemployed people is currently underway. 

- Claverhouse have been able to sustain 5 full-time equivalent jobs in their construction materials reclaim/recycling enterprise and are now producing a tonne of wood fuel briquettes per week from recycled timber!

- The Climate Alliance renamed itself the Alliance for Jobs, Climate and Communities and is currently planning a big campaign…

And I have been really busy at The Otesha Project UK, moving ahead with our work with the East London Green Jobs Alliance (so many alliances..).

So I think, maybe, we’ve done a pretty good job as a team since our return from California! Granted, we don’t have a green economy yet, but we sure as hell are paddling fast to get there.

What else is going on?

There are some other very cool things going on too, including the One Million Climate Jobs Caravan (coming to a town near you in a couple of weeks), and the UK Youth Climate Coalition Youth for Green Jobs campaign. Actually, there are too many cool things going on for me to list. Upsetting that I can’t list everything, but also kind of heartening!

What more needs to happen?

Um, a lot. Because unemployment is kerazeee right now and that pesky climate just won’t settle down. Because the solutions being presented through government programmes, like Workfare, are neither green nor decent. If you want me to talk about, you know, actual concrete things, then I suggest that we can all shine a spotlight on the UN Earth Summit come June (also known as the Rio+20 UN Conference on Sustainable Development). Why? Because they are negotiating two big themes, and a green economy in the context of sustainable development and poverty eradication is one of them. This is a crucial opportunity to shout loud about the commitment we want to see from nation states in making the transition to a green economy, by making actionable plans that will create green and decent jobs, and promote access to green skills. So why not sign up for updates and take action. I will also be following the negotiations and blogging from Rio, so may be sending along a personalised update or two…

So that’s the One-Year-On update! Well done if you got to the end, since it was looong. But I think that’s testament to the fact that, although we’re operating in a very difficult economic and political climate at the moment, things are still moving forward. We are pushing ahead and little by little, change is happening.

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Otesha – A pen portrait

27th April 2012 by

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Posted in alumni adventures, Otesha's adventures, random | No Comments »

UN summits, flying, decisions, decisions, decisions: or, how we think we change the world.

27th April 2012 by

I’m on a bit of a 90s kick at the moment – dungarees, lots of plaid, long straggly hair, and Grandmaster Flash on the stereo.

And it’s not just me feeling nostalgic, even the United Nations (UN) is rewinding to the 90s! You might not remember (I was only nine), but in 1992 the UN held its first ever conference on environment and development, otherwise known as the Rio Earth Summit. Lots of things came out of this conference, including an agreement on the Climate Change Convention (which in turn led to the Kyoto Protocol), and an agreement to “not carry out any activities on the lands of indigenous peoples that would cause environmental degradation or that would be culturally inappropriate”.

In other words, it was at this conference that the world set standards for itself on how to develop in a sustainable way. Twenty years on we are, of course, struggling to meet these standards. Every day brings another headline about some environmental challenge or injustice that is happening somewhere in the world. The 2009 Copenhagen climate conference, where we had hoped to find solutions for many of these challenges, was widely accepted as a failure. It seems that we need another boost of inspiration, determination, optimism, and motivation to get things moving again in the right direction.

Cue the Rio Earth Summit that’s happening this June, 20 years after the original (also known as Rio+20)! At this conference, the UN aims to get Heads of State and other bigwigs together, to assess how progress is going towards internationally agreed commitments, and to secure further political commitments to sustainable development. They will also be negotiating on two main themes, which are… drumroll….

- Green Economy in the context of Poverty Eradication and Sustainable Development

- Institutional Framework for Sustainable Development

It’s not only bigwigs that will be there at this conference. Lots of representatives from ‘Civil Society’ will be there too, including NGOs, indigenous peoples, farmers, and an estimated 2000 young people! You can bet your bottom dollar that there will be a ton of lobbyists from business and industry too.

So, why am I telling you all this? Firstly, knowledge is power! And secondly, I will be one of the 2000 young people going to the conference! I’ll be running workshops for the youth there on building green jobs alliances, I’ll be following the negotiations, talking to our government’s negotiators, trying to get media coverage and blogging. I’ll be learning lots too and bringing lessons and stories back to the UK.

But, it takes a lot of carbon to get to Rio. Two tonnes, if you’re flying (which I am). Here at Otesha, we have a really clear travel policy which states that ‘All long-haul trips are made overland if possible. Flights are only taken as a last resort when no other transportation options are available and when the benefit of the trip is clear.’ Since travelling to Rio overland is super, super difficult (although you can read about our friend Lucy Gilliam, who is on an Edwardian sailboat to Rio as we speak – wow!), we had to make a consensus decision as a team about whether we thought this trip to Rio would be of clear benefit – to the people that I’d meet, to those who would read my blogs and learn about the summit’s progress, and to us as an organisation by bringing back learnings and contacts.

It was a really, really difficult conversation. We have a diverse set of beliefs here at Otesha, even if they are all rooted in the same principles. Like most people in this movement, we all differ slightly in what we think will create change, and how we should get there. Eventually, however, we decided that this was a pretty incredible and unique opportunity. It has been 20 years since the last summit, and who knows when the next one will be? Plus, when we co-coordinated the first ever UK youth delegation to the climate negotiations in Poland back in 2008, we created some pretty kick-ass youth campaigners and organisers as a result. I’m not sure if you can ever judge that one flight or another is more ‘worthwhile’, but we hope that being involved in this process will make a difference.

The exciting bit is, even though we don’t really believe in the concept of ‘carbon offsetting’ (see parody site Cheat Neutral for a good explanation of why) we are going to ‘spend a significant amount of time and money doing carbon-reducing activities’ (another bit of our travel policy). After lots of discussion and ideas, we’ve come up with a three-part plan.

Part 1: We are going to spend £50 on buying pollution permits from Sandbag, who take excess carbon credits out of the EU Emissions Trading System. We are also going to donate £50 to a community project through Global Giving.

Part 2: We are going to go out as a team and spend a day planting trees in our local community. We might buy a tree pack, or volunteer with Trees for Cities or BTCV.

Part 3: I’m going to do a 30-day vegan challenge before I go to Rio, and other staff members might join me! A vegan diet is a lot less carbon intensive, but I’ve never tried it before so I’m a little nervous. If I can go longer I will, I just wanted to set myself an achievable goal first!

I will be updating on how our three-part plan goes, and of course, this blog will be inundated with updates and learnings from Rio come June. So keep your eyes peeled, and vegan cookbooks at the ready!

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Posted in green our jobs, travel & transport | 3 Comments »

Starting as we mean to go on

26th April 2012 by

Before every Otesha bike tour,  members gather for a training week. Aside from offering a chance to meet fellow change makers (and start lasting friendships) it is a time to prepare for what’s ahead, forging a strong team to bring real, lasting change wherever they ride to. It’s a bit like starting a day with a hearty breakfast.

For me, training week was a real buzz because it confirmed that I had made the right decision in signing up for an Otesha tour - a choice that was going to be a real catalyst for positive change in my life and outlook. We began with practicalities – first up was bike maintenance. I soon learnt my Dad’s ‘technique’ was way over generous when oiling chains and I was shown punctures really don’t take 3 attempts to stick (as well as tips to avoid them in the first place). Workshop completed, I was confident and able to maintain and safety check my bike. A further session on group riding shared best practice of how to ride as a group safely on the road.

That done, we moved on to discussions and workshops on sustainability, group living and consensus decision making. Being able to speak openly and contribute fully to discussions and decisions enabled the group to respond positively to any situation. Early on, I felt consensus decision making could take an age – but once the ground rules and hand signals were in place, each decision was explored fully and consensus was soon reached. Any extra time taken was easily paid off by knowing it the group was behind the decision, everyone has had a chance to contribute and importantly, that the right action had been taken. Writing our food mandate was the first real test of the teams consensus decision making skills.. the mandate acknowledges the fact that the food we eat has wider impacts, and also that different people have different needs with the food they eat. We shared opinions, practicalities and debated issues before agreeing on a a mandate that would dictate what the team ate for the weeks ahead.

Then began the rehearsals. I am no actor. When my friends heard I was going to be  in a play, they were eager to see me to perform – if only to confirm that I am not an actor. Luckily a role in an Otesha play simply requires enthusiasm, a sense of humour and a bit of bravery –  no sonnets, monologues or dramatic stage falls required (except when making the Banana Pirate walk the plank).

This year, the tours are starting from suitably inspirational places. Walking the talk is a core part of our ethos, and so we’re happy to be hosted by projects with shared values.

For Western Quest, the tour will be hosted deep within the beautiful Wye Valley, at Highbury Farm. It is the home of Stepping Stones – a Co-operative inspired by a vision of finding ecological and socially sustainable ways of living together as a community. At the moment they are exploring ways to manage the land without the exploitation of animals. As the site is reliant on a spring for water we will see how important saving water is, especially relevant as much of the UK remains in drought.

For our food themed tour - Tastetastic, we are being kindly hosted by the folks at Breadmatters. They passionately champion the lost practice of home baked bread through workshops, books and by producing some fantastic bread. To say Thank You, we’re planning to build a solar dryer to dry produce from their small holding without consuming electricity. Excellent!

By demonstrating the best of sustainable innovation with practical and positive steps, our hosts will provide a perfect base from to launch this summer of change making tours.

If you or someone you know wants to saddle up and change the world then applications are still open – see the Cycle Tours page. or email us at cycletours@otesha.org.uk.

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Cambrian Challenge – Chapter 2

24th April 2012 by

Last time we left you the courageous Otesha alumni were about to embark on an epic adventure up the wilds of the Cambrian coast in north Wales. But before we hear of their tales of high hills and handlebars  here are some handy statistics:

Punctures: 1 (one very steep hill  = one burnt inner tube)

Workshop audience numbers: 20

Miles covered: 150                                                                            

Hours spent cycling in the rain: circa 10 minutes!

Average leg muscle growth: about 5 inches (ish)

Mountainous Mondays

Monday arrived and we packed up our panniers with much gusto, itching to get out onto the road. First stop was the Centre for Alternative Energy, a world renowned eco-centre perched on an old slate quarry in mid-Wales. Everyone had a good time learning about all things renewable – with Alex picking up some hints about how to make a solar water heater for his houseboat.

Unfortunately we had to rip ourselves away from this sustainable heaven and say goodbye to Machynlleth, heading over the hills to a permaculture farm near Dolgellau. And wow, it was hilly! So steep our front wheels were lifting off the road. Alex won the medal of the day for valiantly pulling BOB the trailer all the way over the steepest hill of them all, while we lagged behind eating sugary treats.  The struggle was worth it though as we were treated to the most stunning views of green wild valleys and buzzards fighting in the clouds.

We finally arrived at our destination deep in the Coed-Y-Brenin pine forest just as dusk was falling. Our home for the night was Penrhos Uchaf mountain bothy, an old farmhouse kept in good nick by volunteers – it didn’t exactly have many mod-cons (like electricity or running water) but was a welcome shelter. After a gourmet Thai-style curry courtesy of Josh we all curled up for a good night’s sleep.

 

Tasty-time Tuesday

We discovered that a dark cottage in the woods and scary noises coupled with  with 5 over active imaginations does NOT make for a good night’s sleep. Nevertheless we all survived to see dawn, and a trip to see Chris Dixon and his permaculture land project at Tir Penrhos Isaf. Chris and his wife Lyn have been working on the site since 1986, basing land design on observation of natural eco-systems. We spent an inspiring, if cold, morning learning about how to build productive habitats using sustainable methods, as well as hearing about the intricacies of low-impact development planning permission. An interesting new development in Wales is the ‘One planet development‘ policy, which makes it easier for low impact dwellings to be built.

 

To thank Chris and Lyn for showing us their amazing project we did a couple of hours moving wood and taming brambles, before hopping back into the saddles and heading up north. Several hills, one hail storm, a chocolate eating fest and 20 miles later we reached Llanfrothen- a small village nestled in Snowdonian foothills. We were met by a feast of bean stew and cake provided by our generous host Awel, and put our feet up by the fire purring like content cats.

Workshop Wednesday

Wednesday morning and time for school. Awel had arranged for us to do our Fairtrade workshop with the older classes  (a total of 10 pupils in years 4-6!), so we spent an interesting morning discussing the finer points of where your money goes when you buy a banana. After playing some fun games our newly clued up advocates of a just trade system ran off to check for Fairtrade fruit at their break-time tuckshop, and we cycled off to find tuck of our own.

Later that day us Cambrian Challengers walked over the soggy fields, making up a thank you poem for our host Awel, on our way to an old farmhouse which was to be the setting for our next workshop for Gwerin Y Coed (the Woodcraft Folk in Wales). We had decided to give our workshop on energy here as the farmhouse is powered by solar energy, giving a chance for the young people to get up close and personal with renewable energy. Not only that but Trystan, who lives on the farm, is somewhat of an energy expert, building his own open source  household energy monitors which he ships as far away as Uruguay. Anyway, we must have done something right as apparently the kids (aged 6-10) spent the 15 minute bus ride home debating the merits of solar versus coal!

Thursday and we’re thundering along

The weather gods were upon us on Thursday as we cycled along the North-Wales coast in blazing sunshine, just missing some major storms judging by the puddles on the road. We stopped for a spot of lunch (ergo potato salad) by the harbour in Pwllheli, before grabbing a cuppa (or ‘paned’ in Welsh) to warm up. The road onwards and a return to the hills due to a small map reading error (we were singing ‘she’ll be coming round the mountain’ at full belt until we realised we were actually going over it). Nevermind, we had a breezy downhill sprint all the way to our next destination- Felin Uchaf- a wonderful land-based community project right on the tip of the Llyn Peninsula. Here we met up with Iona who was on holiday from her normal job as Otesha Change Projects director. She showed us around the community-run garden, ship-building barn (under construction) and cob round houses built by local volunteers and school children.

That night we all snuggled down in one of the stunning roundhouses, complete with resident bat (all that is apart from Ellie who got lost on the way), looking forward to volunteering the next day.

Friday funday

The team refreshed from reclining in the roundhouse, Emyr, who works at Felin Uchaf, led us off across the fields to some trees that had been planted about 5 years ago as a wind break. Our task was to remove all the guards that the trees had outgrown but as ever work slowly disintegrated into hilarious chaos – how much fun can you have in one wheel-barrow?

For lunch Leah and Josh had assembled us a superb stinging-nettle soup, complete with a garnish of wood sorrel, all foraged from the fields we were working in. Talk about local food! It triggered the usual debate over whether nettles taste like fish or not…

A windy but sunny trip to the local beach followed- Ellie and Leah were brave bikers (or foolhardy?) running straight into the sea whilst the rest of us shivered on the beach. Later that evening we sat around a fire eating stir-fry made from the garden’s vegetables, playing biscuit themed charades and plotting about how we can move Otesha HQ to  Felin Uchaf.

Super speedy Saturday

Saying farewell to Iona, the band of Cambrian Challengers stampeded along the route of the longest and final cycle ride, a mammoth 50 mile race to meet the 5pm train from Bangor. Those hours of pedaling up hills must have paid off, as we made it to Caernarvon, a 35 mile ride in only 3 and a bit hours, leaving time for a spot of lunch in a high-class greasy spoon. After toasting to a highly successful tour with a cuppa the Cambrian Challengers disbanded – Leah,  Alex and Ellie zooming off to catch a train to Bristol, and Luci and Josh off to spend the night in a cosy yurt near Bangor.

Although short the Cambrian Challenge tour sure did pack a lot in! Not only did we get to cycle through one of the most stunning landscapes in the UK but we also learnt a lot about sustainable land projects, renewable energy, and low impact building. Hopefully we inspired 20 young people to take small sustainable actions like buying a fairtrade banana or switching off the lights, and have all been inspired by the amazing projects and passionate people we met along the way. So now we shall bid you adieu, I for one have a pair of lycra to wash!

Love the sound of this and want to get in the saddle as part of an Otesha team? Sign up for our summer 2012 tours here.

Posted in alumni adventures, cycle tours, energy, food glorious food, Otesha's adventures, travel & transport | No Comments »

Unfair Advantage

19th April 2012 by

A little cartoon abut doping (which allows me to crow bar in my interest in solar panels – sorry). Click to see the full size image. More cartoons here.

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A food learning journey in Hammersmith

17th April 2012 by

Spring has well and truly sprung. This is the time for sowing and planting – in a window sill, balcony, a pot on your doorstep, a garden, a farming field. Now’s the time to reaffirm our relationship with food.

A few weeks back I set out with about thirty other people onto the streets of Hammersmith to explore the local landscape for food shopping. A few games, smiles and chats with shopkeepers later and we’d uncovered some of the social, environmental and the health implications of the food we buy. A lot of ground covered for one spring morning!

As I prepared seed beds for the new growing season over the long Easter weekend I had the chance to reflect on three things I took away with me:

Build health on a plate

We played a game with string and jumbling up fun to figure out the recommended proportions of the main food groups.

The proportions for the pie chart were taken from government guidelines; a good place to start and a springboard for me to look deeper into understanding the importance of fresh and whole foods. This is so pertinent when you consider over 60% of adults in the UK are said to be obese.

Local food history is rich. And the high street needs supporting

Over the last decades our economy and lives in the UK have undergone big transformations. This hasn’t missed our high streets – most notably in the massive decline of independent food retailers. For instance, there were 10,000 fishmongers on our streets in the 1950’s. In 2000 this had dropped to 2,000. A similar story for butchers and greengrocers which numbered about 45,000 each in the 1950’s, this had fallen to 10,000 each at the turn of the millennium.

We witnessed this locally on Goldhawk Road. Local residents are fervently campaigning to protect the street from complete
redevelopment as its shops face decline.

Talking to a butcher, John Stenton, we learnt about his commitment to sourcing local and organic meats over his almost 30 years of trading in Brackenbury. He represents the retailers with deep roots and strong support locally that won’t be budged so easily.


Reconnecting with the origins of my food 

A typical, average, find-me-on-a-street-corner banana costs about 20p. The entire chain of production and trading that brings this fruit to my breakfast bowl was brought to life in a game that morning. Legendary and designed by Otesha, the Banana Chain Game prompted me to think about the inequalities built into our food system. The slap in the face for the characters representing the production side of the chain was evident on their expressions when they learnt that 1p of that value had to be shared between them representing the tiny proportion of value that accrues to producers.

Straight after, a volunteer from the Hammersmith Community Gardens Association told us about what could be done to reconnect people with food production and distribution chains that are much shorter. And easier to see from start to finish.

Before we’d had a chance to retrace our steps the morning’s travels were over. So we all drew maps to remember them by…I hope that when I’m next out shopping I’ll refer back to these before I just let items drop into my basket.

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Cambrian Challenge on the road

16th April 2012 by

From April 14-21, a group of cycle tour alumni are taking to the tarmac once again, pedalling round Wales to run workshops on sustainable living and volunteer at a few amazing projects along the way. Follow along here to read about their adventures:

Hello and welcome from the Cambrian Challenge alumni cycle tour!

We band of 5 intrepid adventurers are all set and ready to go, and are looking forward to pedalling the roads of north Wales. We arrived to Luci’s parents house near Machynlleth, a small but vibrant town in mid Wales, on friday evening safe and sound after some pretty challenging journeys.

The team assembles

Luci had her first experience of taking a bike trailer on a train on her own, and despite a few bruises and well placed strong words is still just about friends with Bob, our lovely yellow trailer.

Alex, Leah and Ellie arrived after some major delays to a torrential downfall that unfortunatly Wales seems famous for! Many thanks to Arriva Trains Wales for holding the train at Shrewsbury for a WHOLE hour so our Cambrian Challengers wouldn’t miss the last connection- it would have been a long cycle ride!

Day 1: turbine first aid

Saturday and the rain cleared. After a quick spot of birthday breakfast for Luci we hot footed it up to see the affectionatly named Nora, a local community owned wind-turbine. People from the Machynlleth area own shares in the turbine in return for a share in the profit (as well as some seriously green kudos).

Our host Rod was attempting to nurse Nora back to health as she had mysteriously stopped spinning. After a quick examination of the control board in the huge turbine tower it was decided that the flashing ‘ERROR, ERROR, ERROR’ message warranted a call to the local wind turbine doctor. Even though the turbine wasn’t spinning it was definately windy, so after admiring the stunning vista of rolling hills, mountains, valleys and rivers we set forth back to the homestead.

After a quick venture to ‘Mach’ (spray it not say it in a Welsh accent), where some swish new bike gear was purchased (namely waterproof socks n gloves to keep us nice and toasty for our journey ahead), we power pedalled towards the sunset to a happy little field filled with friends to celebrate Luci’s birthday with warming fire chats and dancing.

Day 2: on your marks, get set …. 

After a frosty night snoozing we were woken to beautiful sunshine and some reggae tunes. A cycle was just the remedy for our weary dancing feet, swooping through the valley back to Mach to hot cups of tea and a delicious curry provided by Rod and Angie.

With food in our bellies it was time to put our noggins together to draw up our food mandate – how we will choose our food for the week, considering the impacts on the environment around us, opting for a flexigan (mostly vegan) diet that is as locally sourced as possible as well as being organic. Luci then revealed our route and we dusted off of twinkling fingers for a spot of consensus decision-making, putting together a mini-wheel of responsibility to share the daily tasks of cooking, cleaning, and the all important ‘time-lord’ to stop us faffing and get us places on time!

Right, we shall have to bid you goodnight, we have a very very busy day tommorow! We are getting up super early to visit the renowned Centre for Alternative Technology to learn about all things sustainable, before jumping on our bikes for a 30 mile cycle ride into Snowdonia National Park, to our next destination- a permaculture farm deep in the mysterious woods of Coed-Y-Brenin just north of Dolgellau. Please cross all your fingers and toes to keep the rain away from us- it ain’t looking too hopeful, but at least we can all test our our new swanky waterproof gloves.

Love, peace and bicycle grease!
Ellie, Leah, Josh, Alex and Luci

Love the sound of this and want to get in the saddle as part of an Otesha team? Sign up for our summer 2012 tours here.

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Yoga in London- what comes to mind?

4th April 2012 by

Yummy mummies, Madonna’s arms and overpriced classes?

Or sharing, integration and rehabilitation for some of the most vulnerable women in London?

Yoga, a Sanskrit word meaning ‘unity of mind and body’ is more popular than ever before, but practice is also further removed from the idea of ‘unity’ than ever before.  Very much seen as a white middle-class hobby, the benefits of yoga practice have become reserved for those with time and money; something which very small few have!  For me, yoga is about well-being in all senses of the word and nothing embodies this more than a project I’m involved with at Hackney City Farm; the Hackney Yoga Project.  Combining restorative yoga practice, hot nourishing food and language learning in a safe space; the project directly challenges the exclusivity of yoga by opening up the benefits to refugee and asylum seeking women- some of the most vulnerable and un-represented people in the UK.

I’ve been teaching English at the project since September which has been a great way to bring together three things I’m passionate about- yoga, teaching and delicious food- whilst supporting women who have suffered huge change and upheaval.

Many of the women are facing isolation; unable to access resources and support due to destitution and low English language skills.  The opportunity to learn the language in which you live is a human right and is key for equal participation in society.  There is a well- established correlation between poor English language skills, low pay, unemployment, poor housing, poor health and poverty.  Many women at the project are unable to access ESOL classes due to cuts in funding to ESOL provision and strict eligibility requirements, large class sizes and a quick learning pace.  Loss and trauma have been widely experienced amongst the women who attend the project often manifesting itself in depression, lack of concentration, memory impairment, anxiety and an inability to retain learning.

At Hackney Yoga Project a model of subsidised Yoga+English provision has been developed which builds greater capacity for learning, concentration and knowledge retention and is open to all refugee and asylum seeking women in London.   And we have seen great results; students are more relaxed and focused in the classes and I’ve been able to see real improvement in confidence and English abilities.

There are huge challenges too; working with women who have big gaps in education or no first language literacy is incredibly hard, letters having no correspondence to sounds, words being a jumble of shapes.  Mapping pathways into further education, training and employment against a seemingly impenetrable web of service providers, community organisations, changing immigration regulations and funding cuts is becoming an important and much needed part of my role.

Yet the farm and collective spirit of the project continues to provide us with inspiration and now that the weather is getting warmer I’m looking forward to working outside and incorporating the natural environment into classes more and more!

You can read more about the Hackney Yoga Project here: http://hackneyyogaproject.blogspot.co.uk/

Tamsin Robertson, Green Jobs Caseworker at The Otesha Project UK

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