As a child, I never paid much attention to what could and could not be recycled. I never thought it was my responsibility or that it was that important to do so. Sure, you learn in school why recycling is important so that we don’t waste materials that can be reused, but what about recycling’s […]
CRISIS PROJECT
“We’ll be alright”: How Upton Upon Severn has changed since the 2007 Floods
Upton Upon Severn has been dubbed “the most flooded town in Britain” and was one of the worst effected towns in the 2007 floods. Floods are a regular occurrence in this countryside town, with historic major floods recorded throughout the years. With climate change quickly worsening, how safe is this town from heavier rainfall and […]
The latest addition to Gloucestershire’s independent coffee scene
There’s nothing quite as comforting as an autumnal walk through crunching orange leaves and frost bitten air, followed by a trip for a hot coffee (or tea if that’s your preference) Gloucestershire has a lot to offer, and with the rise in the popularity of plant-based options, local businesses have shone with their ability to […]
How this fridge is helping Cheltenham turn green
A new community fridge in Charlton Kings hopes to bring communities together and fill bellies not bins. Planet Cheltenham, an independent environmental charity, is collaborating with Vision 21, the Co-operative, and Cheltenham Borough Council. Raechel Kelly an organiser of Planet Cheltenham says that they want to provide people with warm filling meals. “Rather than food […]
How to make your Christmas wrapping paper more sustainable
Wrapping gifts, which originated in ancient China, has become a global tradition. In fact, gifting a present without wrapping it can be considered rude. With COP-26 it’s our responsibility to begin questioning whether these long-standing traditions are harming our planet. When gifting season rolls up the vast majority of wrapping paper can’t be recycled since […]
Is housing the root cause of the climate crisis?
With the UK housing industry accounting for 27% of the UK’s carbon dioxide emissions, attention turns to what we can do to reduce this figure, while still keeping costs low. The BedZED project has already proven that it’s achievable, albeit expensive. For those of you who aren’t aware, BedZED is the UK’s first major zero-carbon […]
A more sustainable future: are universities promoting sustainable travel?
Are our Universities sustainable? More importantly, are our universities promoting sustainable travel? With transport becoming the most polluting sector in the United Kingdom it’s important we look to our universities to see if they are doing everything in their power to encourage sustainable travel with their students. Looking locally, the University of Gloucestershire seems to […]
Which animal species are currently ‘under threat’ in Gloucestershire?
In recent years, Britain’s wildlife has suffered from an immense loss. Conservation organisations are calling for urgent action to be made to protect the nature around us. Now, more than ever, it is critical that we work towards a green recovery. This way we can prevent further and likely irreversible damage. Rob Curtis, an environmental […]
Is housing the root cause of the climate crisis?
The environment is at the forefront of people’s minds, and with global temperature slowly rising, people are asking what can be done to sort this problem out? Later on today, Branch will be publishing an article focusing on this very problem, taking into account voices from the UK Green Building Council and BedZED (the UK’s […]
Environmentally Sustainable Housing – Will it help?
The UK housing industry accounts for 30% of the UK’s total energy use, and 27% of the UK’s carbon dioxide emissions. With this, I decided to investigate whether there is something that we can do to solve this, and make housing more environmentally sustainable. I looked into whether these improvements will be worth the money […]