Hello Open Eco Homes 2017!

I’m excited to have just started work again on the Open Eco Homes project in Cambridge. This is my second year for OEH Cambridge and I’m really pleased to be back working with the wonderful folks at Cambridge Carbon Footprint, a great group of staff and volunteers who between them put on many many key events in Cambridge. I’ve just written a blog on the OEH website about what we’ve got planned in 2017. You don’t have to be based in Cambridge to enjoy OEH. The houses and technologies you see are relevant anywhere. Take a weekend: spend one day on OEH and one day sightseeing. Whether you live in Cambridge or not put October 8th and 14th in your diary and make some space for Open Eco Homes! If you live in Cambridge and want to open your eco home for those two days in October please do get in touch.

Machynlleth Town Council elections

Local elections are just around the corner and as well as County Council elections this is your chance to stand for Machynlleth Town Council. An election will only take place for Town Council if more people stand for council than there are seats, which means that councillors can be elected unopposed. This has happened many times in the past.

The last time there was an election two sitting councillors did lose their seats so elections do matter in terms of delivering the choices the people of Machynlleth want.

If anyone is interested, please phone the Electoral Services Team at Powys County Council on 01597 826747 to request a pack of nomination papers. Also phone Rab at The Plas for further advice: 07831 402002. The closing date for applications is 4th April next month.

Rab will explain the details of what it entails being a councillor but the basic job is to be of service to the town. This will become more important if the Town Council has to take on more responsibilities from the County Council to deal with service cuts.

So, if you have the capacity to stand and feel able to contribute in this way please do get involved.

RIP Chuck Berry

Changed the face of music…not many people can claim that. Louis Armstrong, Miles Davis, David Bowie, The Beatles…(add to). I re-watched the scene in Back to the Future today where Marty Fly re-writes history by ‘giving’ Chuck Berry rock n roll. I used to love this scene but it now seems massively problematic as the white boy gives the black musician his own music. Probably not intentioned but considering American, jazz and Hollywood history it seems insensitive at the very least. A culpable neglect of history. In this era of fake news it seems important to challenge these representations and our own perceptions of what’s culturally acceptable.

Vamos in Machynlleth

These guys are amazing! They’re a masked theatre company and they’re going to be in Machynlleth tomorrow night. 9th March. Y Plas. 7.30PM. Highly recommend as a very unusual and brilliant theatre experience.

Yoga in Kilts realism

Thanks Rick Warner for sending this other slice of yoga reality. Pretty, no. Achievable yes!

Happy International Women’s Day

Women are going on strike today as part of a global day of action for International Women’s Day. Yay! Amazing response to continued repression, inequality and misogyny. In celebration of the day just thought I’d post this link to a selection of audio clips of women talking about their experiences living and working at CAT. This was recorded as part of the Holdfast a project originated by Ariana Jordao and Rosie Leach as part of International Women’s Day in 2014 and continued with a live group oral history interview at the National Library of Wales later that year. Men, if you want to do something today, as well as supporting your friends, colleagues, mothers, daughters, sisters in whatever they are doing, then sign up for the White Ribbon campaign as a commitment to stand against violence towards women.

Beautiful and haunting documentary

It’s hard to see the world the same way after seeing this beautiful and haunting film about photographer Sebastiao Salgado.