News Articles Archive - Page 34 of 140 - Cross River Partnership

It’s the most wonderful time of the year! To celebrate, we have been running the #CleanAirChristmas campaign throughout December on social media, showcasing the CRP Clean Air Villages Directory and all of the amazing businesses and villages on there.

Every day until Christmas Eve, we’re featuring all 26 CAV4 Clean Air Villages and 13 businesses from the Directory, including Christmas deals and a look at what’s on across London this Christmas. Take a look on our Instagram, Facebook and Twitter to take advantage of these great offers and ideas to make this year a Green Christmas!

All of the businesses on CRP’s Clean Air Villages Directory are committed to reducing their carbon footprint by delivering by zero or ultra-low emission methods. For any businesses interested in being added into the Directory, please get in contact!

For more information, contact CRP Project Officer Dave Ebbrell.

The Small Business Saturday Tour 2021 travelled across the UK from Monday 1st November to Wednesday 1st December, calling at different towns and cities for five weeks! CRP tagged along with Westminster City Council and Cycle Confident to showcase the CAV4 cargo bike scheme – take a look at the live video.

Starting at COP26 in Glasgow, ‘The Tour’ visited twenty-four British towns and cities to support, inspire and highlight the six million small businesses across the UK, as part of the countdown to Small Business Saturday.

As the tour stopped in Soho, CRP showcased the CAV4 cargo bike scheme, which can save small businesses time and money on deliveries throughout the festive season! Free hours of bike and rider are available for all businesses, community organisations, non-profits and charities in Soho, Northbank, Covent Garden and surrounding areas. Please see here for more information.

This year ‘The Tour’ showcased an electric vehicle fleet. This was implemented following the fact that 97% of small businesses say that sustainability is important to their organisation (according to research by BT Skills for Tomorrow and Small Business Britain).

For more information about the CAV4 cargo bike scheme and to sign up to use free hours, please contact CRP Project Manager Kate Fenton.

Take a look at CRP’s favourite small businesses here.

Thursday 25th November was the first time that the CRP Team have met up in-person since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic for its team planning day. It was a great interactive day and provided the opportunity for the team to collaborate in shaping the future of its activities.

The Team got down to planning its strategy for 2022/23 and beyond, which included discussing:

CRP’s Vision and revamped mission statement
How best to capture and showcase the partnership’s innovative projects and impact
Budgets and expenditure; and
How best to illustrate achievements in CRP’s upcoming annual report and business plan.

The team managed to pack a lot of activities into the day including a visit to the Westminster Wheels Project, based at a shop in Church Steet, NW8 8ES. It is a training programme initiated by Westminster City Council in partnership with Groundwork. The training programme supports young unemployed Westminster residents to gain valuable skills and experience to become qualified bicycle mechanics, by refurbishing unwanted bikes into high quality bikes that are either donated to community groups or sold.

If you have an unused or unwanted bike you would like to donate, you can drop it off at the shop on Monday-Saturday, between 09:00-5:00pm. Alternatively, you can donate online. Contact ResponsibleEconomy-Team@westminster.gov.uk if you would like more information or to sponsor the project.

“Over the festive season the UK creates 30% more waste than usual.” Biffa.

As we start slowing down for the end of year festivities, let’s take a moment to consider how we can indulge in some of our favourite holiday pastimes, without hurting the earth.

Cards

Having lived with the pandemic over the past couple of years, we’ve adjusted to giving and receiving e-cards. If you still prefer to give paper cards, you could upcycle old ones, use charity cards, or specialist retailers that use the proceeds for a green cause.

Presents

Give twice over by buying from a charity shop. In addition to second-hand goods, several charities also offer new items. Try reusing wrapping paper, shopping bags, old newspapers, crisp wrappers or old clothes to wrap your present, instead of buying new wrapping paper.

Or, instead of gifting an item, offer a favour or service.

Decorations

Try a pot-grown living tree, some of which can be kept for several years, or replanted after the holidays. Decorate it with handmade ornaments such as dried fruit or popcorn garlands.

Food

If you’re making a Christmas meal, plan ahead to avoid waste. Done correctly, you could pull together a scrumptious Boxing Day meal from leftovers with minimal effort.

Travel

Take the bus, train or carpool, if you can. Can’t avoid flying? Consider an airline carbon offset program. Walk, cycle, or use public transport as much as possible once you’ve reached your destination.

There are lots more pointers about how to reduce our impact over the next few weeks and well into the New Year. Click here for a full version of the infographic in the picture.

Chances are if you’ve considered it, someone else has, too, and found a solution. So look online or ask us – email CRP Project Manager Sefinat Otaru.

Season’s Greetings, everyone!

CRP partner Hammersmith BID recently hosted London’s first zero emission market on Sunday 29th November.

From jams to jumpers, the market allowed shoppers to browse for Christmas gifts that had all been brought to the market on cargo bikes, electric vehicles or on foot. This added to the innovative work they are delivering through CRPs Clean Air Villages 4 and Healthy Streets Everyday programmes.

In addition, lighting was solar-powered, and delivery options were made available through cargo bikes, as attendees were encouraged to walk, cycle or take public transport. The event was held on Hammersmith Bridge, which is currently open to just pedestrians and cyclists. eScooter company, Lime, even offered free eScooter training to support residents to consider fun and alternative ways to get around London.

CRP is delighted to see that our partners are hosting zero emission events, encouraging active travel and improve Londoners’ health by tackling deliveries in polluting vehicles. Hammersmith BID are hoping to run more of these events in 2022, so if you are interested in attending, check out their events page.

On Thursday 18th November, CRP Project Manager Fiona Coull met with colleagues from Ecofleet and Beckett Ranki ne to do some in-situ testing of cargo bikes on piers.

The testing was done to help inform an upcoming study on pier adaptions for river freight, which incorporates integrating cargo bikes for last mile deliveries as part of the designs. The study is being funded by CRP’s CAV4 Programme in partnership with the Port of London Authority and will be completed early in the New Year.

As part of the testing, Ruby (a rider from eco-fleet) cycled a cargo-bike onto Battersea Power Station Pier to help understand the space needed and any challenges or limitations. Surprisingly, we found that the angle of the brow of the pier was not an issue for Ruby due to the electric assist of the bike. The biggest challenge was actually trying to turn the bike on the pier.

The tests also highlighted the importance of making sure that there was enough space for the cargo-bike and pedestrians to pass safely.

Following the testing, CRP’s Fiona Coull gave the cargo-bike a mini trial herself. Results indicated that all cargo bike riding should be left to the experts in the future…

For further information about the River Freight Pier Study, please contact CRP Project Manager Fiona Coull.

London Borough of Lambeth have unveiled an Air Quality Vision for the borough – setting out tough new targets to reduce pollution and improve public health.

The Air Quality Vision for Lambeth sets out bold new targets to reduce Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2), and particulate matter (PM 10 and 2.5), by 2030 based on new guidance from the World Health Organisation (WHO).

The interim WHO targets adopted by Lambeth Council are:

An annual average of 30μg/m3 for Nitrogen Dioxide, compared to the current target of 40μg/m3
An annual average of 20μg/m3 for PM10, compared to the current target of 40μg/m3
An annual average of 10μg/m3 for PM2.5, compared to the current target of 25μg/m3

The Air Quality Vision will be used to shape the development of Lambeth’s Air Quality Action Plan 2023-2025.

Lambeth is also engaged in a solid fuel burning project with Imperial College London, which aims to produce street-by-street mapping of solid fuel burning, monitoring particulate matter along walking routes in Clapham and Streatham. This project aims to better understand levels of pollution in the borough from domestic solid fuel burning, identify hotspot areas and inform interventions and awareness raising.

Find out more about Lambeth’s air quality vision.

The Greater London Authority (GLA) is exploring the possibility of scaling up the Mayor’s Business Climate Challenge (BCC) in the 2022-2023 period in partnership with Business Improvement Districts (BID) and local organisations with a network of business members.

The BCC is a programme developed by the GLA in partnership with Bloomberg Associates to reduce the energy and consumption and emissions of London’s commercial building.

If you are a BID or local organisation with a network of business members, please fill out this survey to support members become more energy efficient and reduce their emissions today.

Please fill out the Business Climate Challenge Partnership Exploration 2021 Survey!

NLA’s New London Awards 2021 in association with the Mayor of London has announced the winners. The overall winner and also the winner of the planning category was PDP London’s Low Line. Its mission was described as to ‘connect people with nature and increase environmental resilience along its length by promoting innovative and sustainable projects that mitigate climate change.’

The Low Line connects neighbourhoods in London while celebrating London’s heritage rail architecture. It utilises public space for community, economic and public health benefits, creating positive change for the area.

The project was praised for incorporating sustainability, environmental resilience, heritage, diversity alongside economic and community benefits.

The Low Line was created in partnership with Better Bankside, one of CRP’s BID partner organisations. Our recent lunchtime webinar invited Valerie Beirne from Better Bankside to speak about the Low Line. Check out the recording of the event.

Friday 3rd December marked the 29th UN-supported International Day of Persons with Disabilities (IDPWD). The 2021 theme is ‘Fighting for rights in the post-COVID era” which examines the challenges and barriers and celebrates the opportunities for people who live with disabilities in the context of a global pandemic.

Those with disabilities have been hit disproportionately hard by Covid, with reduced access to routine health care and rehabilitation services, more pronounced social isolation and a lack of emergency preparedness for people with special needs.

IDPWD has been running since 1992 and since then they have evolved to offer free disability advocacy, provide support workers and more.

To find out more please visit their website.

Archives: News Articles

#CleanAirChristmas

Small Business Saturday 2021

CRP Team Planning Day

A Conscious Christmas: Ways to Minimise Your Environmental Impact

Hammersmith BID Hosts First Zero-Emission Market

CAV4 Cargo Bike Pier Visit

Spotlight On: London Borough of Lambeth

Mayor’s Business Climate Challenge

Congratulations to PDP London!

International Day of Persons with Disabilities