WiserEarth UK
The Wiser UK group aims to bring together WiserEarth members based in the UK. We aim (among other things) to further the vision of WiserEarth and Paul Hawken in helping put up a mirror to the movement, to connect and create alliances between those working towards a more just and sustainable world. We hope that this 'flocking' effect will enable us to improve ...learn more
GROUP DETAILS
Created: Mar 20, 2009
Updated: Nov 24, 2009
Membership: Open
Semi-Private
Topic: Ideas & Objectives for UK group - We'll try to stay on topic for this one :)!
Posts (1 - 20 of 24)
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I think we need to be more localised in order to meet each other easily, this could be by setting up sub groups,for England, Nothern Ireland, Scotland, and Wales, then sub dividing these again to Counties or Cities.
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The map on the group page(?) suggests maybe a bit of a cluster round London and the South East . Wouldn't something in London mirror what happened in Paris (ie go for regions rather than smaller scale until there are more people?)
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It sounds like a bit of a swings and roundabouts situation. A meet up is a gret idea but, what price al that travelling regarding pollution etc? I think it is a good idea to have local group set ups but, for now stick with regional or even national. Once there are enough in areas around the country then revisit this idea.
We are having exactly the same problem at the moment with a local LUG (Linux User Group) that I am a member of... If it is pushed then it will only start to upset people and possibly alienate them. Just my thoughts from observations of a similar situation :-) Kevan |
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Since I'm all the way up on Orkney, I'd appreciate having a group that doesn't centre entirely around London or even England, since chances are there won't be a whole lot of people from my area on here. I'd like to learn from what all of you are doing.
What about a tip-sharing session where we volunteer to share with the group advice or things we've learned? Meet up online and do it, rather than in person. For example, I'd be happy to offer help with people's websites, thinking about how to get the most from them, how to set up a nearly free WordPress site if you don't already have a good one, that kind of thing. I used to be a web designer for social businesses, and I like helping good groups wherever I can.
I'd also be interested in a discussion about setting up a social enterprise, since that's what I'm in the middle of. Anyone with experience in angel investors or private financing for non-profit businesses would be great, though that may be too specific for our group. Marketing, business plan writing, working with architects -- all things I'd love to learn more about. |
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Hi All,
It's been fascinating trawling through all the UK members to send the invites - I noticed a strong Edinburgh based contingent, lots around the SE and a heavy scattering across the SW and midlands, then more dispersed around the rest of the UK. There were quite a few people who described themselves as 'networkers', and I imagine the most active of these will probably volunteer themselves into some kind of coordinating role locally.
I'll start off with an offer to meet where the greatest number of members are, and will do what I can to support gatherings elsewhere. We can use the group to share discussions/posts etc. and could also set up conference (Skype?) calls on specific topics if that's what people would like to do. I'd love it if we can get some good connections going across the regions as well as within them...
So - two suggestions:
1) If you have a place that could be used to freely host a gathering, please let us know 2) If you'd like to coordinate meetings in your area, please volunteer!
Thanks again for getting involved |
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This comment was removed by a WiserEarth editor for the following reason:
Subject of debate on authenticity of the franchise holder which is not on topic - will invite John to add AMA as a resource. |
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This comment was removed by a WiserEarth editor for the following reason:
Part of debate string off topic |
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This comment was removed by a WiserEarth editor for the following reason:
Part of debate string off topic |
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This comment was removed by a WiserEarth editor for the following reason:
Part of debate string off topic |
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This comment was removed by a WiserEarth editor for the following reason:
Part of debate string off topic |
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This comment was removed by a WiserEarth editor for the following reason:
Part of debate string off topic |
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This comment was removed by a WiserEarth editor for the following reason:
Part of debate string off topic |
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On topic now
Wiserearth is a very broad base group so IMHO we should find out what UK members want and how they can contribute. Perhaps there could be 2 arms to the UK group, domestic and international.
I feel strongly that if we can motivate people and engage the community spirit we can begin to make a difference and start to leverage big business interests out of our lives where appropriate.
One of the strengths of the 'environmental' movement has been act local think global so perhaps thats how we should operate. Using local knowledge to do local good and pass this experience on so that others may benefit.
And if we can all get together in the pub then so much the better. |
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Having regional and local meetings is all well and good, but what would the meetings be doing? Setting tangible objectives is a necessary step towards achieving our aims, but we need some consensus on what those aims actually are. What is the problem that this group seeks to address? And what would we like to replace it with?
Form follows function: once we know what we're aiming for, then we can have a discussion on how to get there.
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Thank you for these comments...
The French group began with an on-line survey to find out what people particularly wanted to discuss, and then formed an agenda around that. Camilla has a presentation on web 2.0 and organising on-line communities that she'd be happy to share.
My own hope for the group is firstly to strengthen connectivity through meeting - so objective 1) for me is simply to have oppoortunities to get to know each other personally. objective 2) is to enhance collaborative working. I don't see this as a problem to be solved, but as a dynamic issue we need to be better at working with. This is how I see the first group meeting.
I don't think the UK group needs to have a standard format for meetings - so it's quite possible that some are topic-specific, some have agenda's and speakers, and some are completely free-flowing.
Keep the suggestions/thoughts coming!
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@super - Those sound like good objectives to me. Is there any reason why we shouldn't meet up in a public or semi -public type space such as the Royal Festival Hall terrace/foyer/cafe, South Bank, London? Or maybe one of the London parks in June (what used to be called London Sustainability Weeks round about then) and have a sort of bring and share picnic?
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The previous post led me onto the idea of 'Green picnics', just put up on the Sustainable Community Action wiki: http://sca21.wikia.com/wiki/Green_picnics
If you have time to read the (very short) article I'd very much appreciate any feedback. (Apologies for the ads, signed in users get an ad free version). I'm thinking of suggesting an event like this to another couple of groups I'm involved with. Depending on any response maybe we can come up with a more specific date and venue? |
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This comment was removed by a WiserEarth editor for the following reason:
Off topic |
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Well I can't remember what i wrote about my own efforts but they seem to be off topic.
Meanwhile my colleague is on his way to Sumy to a conference on Ecomonics for Ecology in which he's a plenary speaker.
http://econ.sumdu.edu.ua/iscs/en/about.php
So, if you don't want to know about that either, I'm going to have to let you get on with it.
Jeff |
Do you have any ideas for the objectives for this UK WiserEarth group?
What are some of your own goals as a member of the WiserEarth community or as a member of this group?
Please share your thoughts and ideas here.