November positive news
Ten positive environmental news stories from this month.
Article by: Eveline Vouillemin
This month's collection of positive climate news stories highlight the opening of a climate centre to encourage people to take action for the planet, the first city in the world to have 1,000 sustainable B Corp companies, and the startup turning waste products from the beer industry into building materials.
1. Rare rodent in Pembrokeshire gives conservationists hope
The discovery of a rare hazel dormouse in the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park has given conservationists new hope for its recovery there.
The tiny rodent, known for its big eyes, has declined across Britain by 70% since 2000 and is one of seven vulnerable mammals, external in Wales. Volunteers set out nesting boxes as part of a park conservation scheme and "got lucky" finding the famously sleepy dormouse thriving in a new area.
Find out more on the BBC website.
2. Devon college scoops national sustainability award
South Devon College in Paignton has been awarded the Green Gown Award for Sustainability Institution of the Year in recognition of its sustainability strategy and its commitment to action.
In the last 15 years, South Devon College has opened the South West Energy Centre, launched the Green Travel Plan, invested in solar panels and air source heat pumps and it has opened the £17.5m Hi Tech and Digital Centre.
Find out more on the BBC website.
3. London becomes first city in the world with 1,000 sustainable B Corp companies
London has become the B Corp capital of the world with more than 1,000 companies being awarded the certification for their sustainable policies.
To become a B Corp, businesses are required to measure and improve their impact on their employees, customers, local communities and the environment while making a legal commitment.
Find out more on The Standard website.
4. Rewilding project could see beavers return to estate
A rewilding programme at a country estate could see the reintroduction of beavers and an increase in bats, turtle doves, bees and butterflies as part of a biodiversity scheme.
Castle Howard in North Yorkshire has turned 5% of its 9,000 acres into a habitat bank, which will allow organisations that want to offset their carbon footprint or are required to meet biodiversity targets to buy “nature credits”.
Find out more on the BBC website.
5. Climate hub launches to help encourage positive action
Charity Climate Hub Bath and North East Somerset have opened a climate centre in the city's old bus station's ticket office. The charity aims for it to be a grassroots space where people can learn more about and engage with the difficult challenges of climate change and nature loss.
Mel Clarke, chair of trustees, said: "There will be a wealth of resources and information, including displays about climate science, the importance of connecting with nature, sustainable fashion, ‘greenwashing’ and many more”.
Find out more on the BBC website.
6. Cricketers take lead on climate action
Cricket for Climate is a player-led movement in Australia, with cricketers contributing financially to the installation of solar panels at their junior grade clubs as well as a major partnership with Cricket Australia and at the National Cricket Centre in Brisbane.
The idea was simple: solar would reduce carbon emissions, enable clubs to use the money saved in energy bills to further the future of the game – to invest in nets or buy new equipment and, lastly, help cricket lovers to start a conversation about climate and energy transition.
Find out more on the Guardian website.
7. The bee project helping to tackle elephant-human conflict in Kenya
Elephant conservation has been a success in Tsavo in Kenya, with their number increasing by about 6,000 in the mid-1990s to almost 15,000 in 2021. The human population has also grown, encroaching on grazing and migration routes for the herds, with resulting clashes becoming the number one cause of elephant deaths.
But a long-running project by the charity Save the Elephants offered an unlikely solution: deterring some of nature’s biggest animals with some of its smallest: African honeybees.
Find out more on the Guardian website.
8. The startup turning waste products from the beer industry into building materials
When hops are harvested every autumn in Germany's Hallertau region, for every one kilogram of material inside the cones that can be used to brew beer, there are 3.5 kilograms of wasted biomass from the rest of the plant. That's a ratio that's roughly 20% usable product to 80% waste.
Three students from the Technical University of Munich researched how they could use local waste products to produce building materials and within months, they'd begun selling products to the construction industry made from the waste created in the beer-brewing process.
Find out more on the Euronews website.
9. The London restaurant that cooks with ingredients grown 60km away
The restaurant chain Gladwin Brothers is committed to buying from the local farm - Tangmere Airfield Nursery - and cooking with in-season ingredients. Research shows that local farming can cut transportation emissions by up to 40%.
Oliver Gladwin, Creative Director of Gladwin Brothers, says, “Now it’s even more essential that we’re sustainably minded. We’re sourcing from the right suppliers and we’re harvesting it in season. It’s a continuous journey to ensure that the food we serve is both ethical and delicious”.
Find out more on the Euronews website.
10. ‘Trees of hope’ will be planted across the UK
Saplings from the felled Sycamore Gap tree are to be planted across the UK, including next to one of London’s most famous roads, at a rural category C prison and at a motor neurone disease centre opening in the name of the late rugby league star Rob Burrow.
The National Trust on Friday announced the recipients of 49 saplings it has called “trees of hope” - one for each foot of the sycamore’s height – and all were grown from seeds recovered from the felled tree.
Find out more on the National Trust website.