The times they are a changing

Sustainable Brampton is launching a community event at Brampton Community Centre at 11am on Saturday 28 June with a rendition in 3-part harmony of the timeless Dylan song by Brampton Players Choir!

Also at 11am, there will be the launch of a new joint campaign between Sustainable Brampton and Brampton Chamber of Trade, to rid Brampton of the infamous throw-away plastic shopping bag. The Chamber of Trade is working with traders in the town with a view to making Brampton “plastic bag-free” by the end of the year, and is starting off with over 20 of its own members getting rid of the plastic bag immediately (BCoT contact: Alison Cheetham: 016977 3775).

The launch event will lead to a day of stalls and games and discussions and films, to which everyone in the community is invited. The Community Centre café will open serving refreshments and light lunches. The stalls will be run by key organisations in the area, celebrating what they do, and considering what they should be doing next to strengthen the community and help it make the transition to a sustainable future.

Sustainable Brampton believes that the challenges ahead arising from climate change and the competition for dwindling fossil fuels will place a great strain on communities, and they need to prepare for future. This event is the first attempt to involve community organisations in engaging with the wider community, about that future.

Local organisations, whether or not they are formally participating in the event, are invited to a discussion to set the theme for the day at Brampton Community Centre at 9.30am. The public launch will follow at 11am, and the stalls/discussions/games will be running until 3pm.

At 3.15pm there will be a public showing of the film “The Power of Community”, which is about how Cuba responded to its oil supply collapsing in the early 90s after the fall of the Soviet Union and a United States-led embargo. It is a stirring tale of what you can do if you get organised, and has lessons for us all today.

Schedule of events:

09.30 – 10.30	Open meeting for representatives of community groups
11.00 – 11.15	Launch event. Welcome – Song – plastic bag launch
11.15 – 15.00	Stalls, games, discussions
11.30 – 12.00	Discussion – Waste - reducing/reusing/recycling
12.00 – 13.00	Film “Message in the Waves” about the unbelievable accumulation of plastic bags in the pacific ocean and a discussion on waste and recycling.
13.00 – 13.30	Lunch break
13.30 – 14.15	Discussion - Food
14.30 – 15.15	Discussion - What do we mean by a 'Stronger community'?
15.15 – 16.10	Film “The Power of Community”
16.10 – 16.30	Discussion on the film/Feedback on the day

Contacts:
Phil Pennefather – 016977 45023
Bob Allan – 016977 3111 or 07813697571
Mike Downham – 016977 48331