Today is the day, five long years ago, that we held our first Restart Party at Passing Clouds. We were so nervous when we opened up, we didn’t know if anyone would come!

Just found these old photos https://sustainablehackney.org.uk/photo/albums/restart-party-thanks-to-kate-and-hth-foe …

Following a successful meeting at Hackney’s only Eco-schools’ Green Flag school, Orchard Primary School, several schools signed up to take on the Eco-schools’ programme.  We've been into some of the primary schools to support them on the beginning of their journey. 

An increasing number of schools are now appointing Sustainability Coordinators and pupil/school community Eco-teams to lead the Eco-schools’ programme. We have been to meetings and…

There was cause for celebration at the end of October as a coalition of campaigners and protesters successfully beat off eviction notices in Ridley Road Market. This result came after weeks of anxiety for those affected and protests to voice their concerns.  

A delegation of small traders…

Fracking was headline news this September while at the same time dire warnings were sounded by the IPCC about the risk of runaway climate change. Fracking companies across the country are now poised to step up fracking for shale oil and gas and their flagship Caudrilla is readying itself to drill in earnest at Preston New Road near Blackpool. However, just a few days in and earthquake tremors interrupted their plans bringing them more negative publicity. Our…

Transport for London are consulting on changes to the Stoke Newington Gyratory. 

It's been many years in the making so the first disappointment is how little time there is to discuss and comment, just six weeks.  

Sustainable Hackney will submit comments and we want to hear from you.  Please let us have your views and suggestions in response to…

Thursday 18th October at Shoreditch High Street Station 16.00-20.00.

Launch of Energy Garden Community Bond with nibbles and drinks.

For more information visit: www.repowering.org.uk

We had a fab day co-hosting the zero waste market with Plastic Free Hackney, educational activities such as DIY vertical salad leaf planters and ofcourse the screening of 'A Plastic Ocean' in the evening followed by a lively panel discussion.…

Hackney Energy has struggled to get a new solar power/community energy project up and running this past year. The big issue is government cuts in support for community energy - as frackers, the Tories seem to despise the wishes of local communities.

Meanwhile, Hackney Council decided not to support the Wilton Estate solar scheme while it works out a borough-wide energy plan. It's six months since the local elections and we haven't heard anything further.

If we had received…

At the April screening of the film ‘Powertrip’ on fracking we were pleased to welcome Richard Roberts aka Richard ‘the piano tuner’ as a panellist. Sadly Richard along with two other anti-fracking activists received a much rougher welcome by the HM Prisons Service this month. His crime, for which he received a sixteen month custodial sentence, was attempting to stop a greater environmental one.

The judge handed down the three…

After a day helping at the Big Fix, some strong images remain.

There were the two young women modelling second-hand garments they had bought while Traid volunteers nipped and tucked until they fitted perfectly – a veritable fashion show.

Traid clothing repair

And the man who had brought his much-loved…

Every day, a dangerous and even deadly threat faces millions of children across the UK: toxic air.

That's one in three children living, learning and playing amidst toxic air; 4.5 million children at risk of stunted lung growth, reduced brain development and lifelong conditions like asthma; £40 million a year spent by the NHS and social services on related illnesses.

The devastating impact on children's health must not be ignored.…

Anti-fracking: Let Communities decide

Right now, our government is consulting on outrageous proposals that could allow fracking to go ahead across England without local planning applications. These plans fly in the face of local democracy and threatens to slash community involvement in decision-making.

The consultation ends this October, so it’s…

Governance of Economic Transition is an invited background document for the Global Sustainable Development Report 2019 drafted by the Group of independent scientists. 

They point out straight away the difference  between typical economists who emphasize carbon pricing as a policy tool for tackling climate change and natural scientists and multidisciplinary environmental research groups who are arguing for more profound political engagement and…

Alongside watching whales and dolphins, one of Whale and Dolphin Conservation’s wonderful Scottish Shorewatch volunteers Steve Truluck and his dog Riley have been collecting garbage from their local beaches for a while now, to stop plastic pollution from making its way into the ocean.…

Last year residents were delighted by the "People Parking Bay" near London Fields. 

Now, in a pilot scheme promoted by Hackney Council, residents can apply to create a parklet in their own street. The pilot…

Tackling climate change and air pollution and giving residents a real voice in how the borough is changing are upfront and bold in the Mayor’s foreword to ‘A Fairer, Safer and More Sustainable Hackney’, Labour’s manifesto for the 2018-2022 Council. And while the environment is bringing up the rear in the document, the…

Tackling climate change and air pollution and giving residents a real voice in how the borough is changing are upfront and bold in the Mayor’s foreword to ‘A Fairer, Safer and More Sustainable Hackney’, Labour’s manifesto for the 2018-2022 Council. And while the environment is bringing up the rear in the document, the…

Between 5 December 2017 and 12 January 2018, local residents, businesses and schools were consulted on the proposals and a majority were in favour of the proposals. You can view the approved Delegated Powers Report which gives full details on the scheme and consultation at…

Cockroaches are widely considered to be a house pest, and it is. But that doesn't mean that if they pass through your garden they won't stop and taste what you've got there.

These bugs are omniverse and would eat pretty much anything that is organic. They belong to the species Blattaria and there are four common cockroach types in the UK. Their digestive tract is rich in a variety of protozoa and special kinds of bacteria that help them digest a wide range of…

At long last it’s starting to happen, but so, so slowly – general recognition of our right to breathe clean air and that we are not able to do so. Our air quality is illegal; our air quality is killing people – 40,000 early deaths every year. Here in London, which falls way down the air quality league table of European capital cities, the main contributor to pollution is transport.

The pressure started with Client Earth, whose UK offices are in Hackney, successfully taking…