Simon has written this at the request of the transition network
The splendid market hall in Abergavenny was buzzing on October 27 when hundreds of people came through the door to be part of the launch of Abergavenny Transition Town. Within the market hall they saw over 40 community groups , charities and social enterprises, and spoke to the enthusiastic and passionate volunteers. They also enjoyed fair trade tea and coffee, were entertained by performances from local school,and in the middle of all this the Mayor of Aberagveny formally launched Abergavenny Transition Town.
The successful launch was a springboard for the real work of Abergavenny Transition Town to begin – ordinary people working together to improve the quality of life of people living in and around town, and working long term to make Abergavenny more resilient to future changes. Part of this is am ambition to make Abergavenny carbon neutral town in 20 years.
The work is focussing on four areas:
· We want to make sure people can afford to pay their fuel bills and can insulate their homes. Work is well underway to set up an new energy company for Abergavenny, which will be installing photovotaics to supply affordable, zero carbon electricity, and helping people make their homes energy efficient;
· We want more people to grow, cook and eat their own food. Through Incredible Edibles Abergavenny, work to plant up public green space (such as around the Doctor’s Surgery) with fruit and vegetables has already begun. We want to show people how easy and affordable it is to grown your own food, and inspire them to do likewise. We want to see a town full of home grown fruit and veg!
· We are working with Abergavenny Cycle group, who have already mapped out easy to use cycle rides in and around Abergavenny. We want to help Monmouthshire County Council use the opportunity provided by the Welsh Government Active Travel Act to make Abergavenny welcoming for cyclists as well as pedestrians. We would like to see the main roads into Abergavenny made safer for cyclists, for example through marked cycle lanes and 20 mph zones.
· Finally we want to work with different parts of Abergavenny, and different ages (bringing the young and the old together) to help people learn new skills (such as growing and cooking vegetables) and gain the confidence to help them improve their quality of life and reduce their food bills, energy bills and transport bills.
Transition Town is open to everyone. We are not experts, just ordinary people coming together to make a difference to Abergavenny now and for the future. More information is available on our website
Best wishes Abergavenny Transition Town
