A host of events and activities will be taking place across Solihull to inspire residents to take part in action to tackle climate change and protect nature.
Solihull Council is supporting the Great Big Green Week – the UK’s biggest-ever celebration of community action on climate change, which sees more than a quarter of a million people get involved each year.
Now in its fourth year, this year’s event takes place between Saturday 8 June to Sunday 16 June with the theme 'Let's swap together for good’, encouraging people across the UK to make sustainable swaps in their everyday life.
Swaps may include swapping unwanted clothes to help reduce waste and lower the environmental impact of purchasing new clothing, swapping travelling by car to a bike or walking to help cut carbon emissions, or swapping a drafty home for an energy efficient home by retrofitting measures such as insulation or double/triple glazed windows.
In support of Bike Week, which coincides with the Great Big Green Week, the event will also provide an opportunity for businesses to sign up to free electric-assisted cargo bike trials to help their organisation promote carbon reduction and active travel.
Residents and organisations are encouraged to get involved in the week-long celebration and share their sustainable swaps on social media by using the hashtag #GBGWSolihull.
Community-led events and activities taking place during Great Big Green Week include:
- Solihull Repair Café, Sunday 9 June, 10am-midday, at the Happy Heart Café, Richmond Road, Solihull: Swap skills and broken items to help breathe new life into unwanted or damaged possessions.
- The Retrofit Journey to Energy Efficient Homes online workshop, Tuesday 11 June, midday-12.30pm, hosted by Solihull Council and Act on Energy on Microsoft Teams: Join Solihull Council and partners Act on Energy for a free online workshop offering guidance on retrofitting your home with energy efficiency upgrades and routes to financing them. Click here to sign up.
- Count Your Carbon online workshop for schools, Tuesday 11 June, 3.45pm-4.30pm, hosted by Solihull Council and Let’s Go Zero on Microsoft Teams: A free webinar aimed at school headteachers, senior managers, eco-leaders, and teaching staff to find out how schools can use Count Your Carbon – a free online tool – to measure and reduce their carbon emissions. Email slardner@solihull.gov.uk to request an invite.
- Knowle Green Fair, Wednesday 12 June, 7pm-9pm, at Knowle Parish Church, High Street, Knowle: A free drop-in event showcasing easy sustainable swaps to help you make good environmental choices in your everyday life, with a variety of ideas from easy household swaps to travel, gardening, fashion, and home.
- Solihull Council retrofit stall and e-cargo bike trials, Thursday 13 June, 10am-4pm, hosted by Solihull Council at the Foyer, The Core Library, Solihull: A free drop-in event to chat to Solihull Council and partners Act on Energy on how to make energy efficiency upgrades to your home as well as other sustainable practices, joined at 11am-2pm by e-cargo bike trials for businesses. More information on the trials is available by emailing sustainabletravelteam@solihull.gov.uk.
Solihull Council’s Cabinet Member for Climate Change and Planning, Councillor Andy Mackiewicz, said:
“Great Big Green Week is a fantastic opportunity for residents and organisations in Solihull to play their part in tackling climate change and make a difference.
“There are many ways to get involved, either by joining one of the events taking place, setting up your own event, or making your own sustainable swaps in everyday life.
“Together, we all need to adapt our lifestyles and behaviours wherever possible to live more sustainably and reach our target of becoming a net zero carbon emission borough by 2041.
“As a Council, we have made good progress against our Net Zero Action Plan to achieve this, with more than 70% of all actions underway, but I encourage everyone to look at what positive action they can take to help us achieve our vision.”
To find out more Great Big Green Week events near you, visit www.greatbiggreenweek.com/find-an-event.
For more information about the Council’s climate change and sustainability campaign, and to find out how to get involved, visit the Your Future Solihull webpages, or sign up to the Your Future Solihull newsletter.