What is WEN?

Wirral Environmental Network is an environmental education charity (Registration No. 1068306) set up to promote and facilitate ethical and environmentally friendly lifestyles.

Aims

The aim of the organisation is to advance the education of the public about the preservation of our world’s natural environment, ecological sustainability, natural resource conservation, waste management, recycling, and the principles of Fairtrade within Wirral and the surrounding area.

Where are we based?

The Sandon Building, Falkland Road, Wallasey, CH44 8ER.
Tel: 0151 639 2121 fax number 639 4826. …how to get there The office is halfway along Falkland Road look for blue railings and an orange roof. Our entrance is at the right-hand side of the building as you look at it. The entrance at the other end belongs to Energy Projects Plus.

General enquiries / FairTrade: info@la21.net
Community RePaint: jim@la21.net
Gardening courses: janet@la21.net
Finance: phil@la21.net

What is sustainability?

Sustainability is now a term used internationally to describe an approach to life that many believe to be mankind’s only viable chance of avoiding the environmental disasters that now seem to be part of our future.
It is also a chance to reassert the value of social and environmental issues in a world that is becoming more and more materialistic and money orientated. It stresses that environmental issues are bound into social and economical ones, and are not to be considered as separate, or less important.

The Sustainable Life is one in which we meet our daily needs in a way that is within the carrying capacity of the Earths ecosystems, and that could be maintained indefinitely by our children. It is living off nature’s interest, rather than her capital. It is to respect our resources, by minimising waste, reducing energy use, recycling materials, and cutting out excessive consumption. We dont need to starve ourselves, but rather change our present care-free attitude to resources and materials.
This website offers practical ideas for sustainable living.

Why live sustainably on Wirral?

At local level:
- It would bring all the benefits of a clean and natural environment: better quality of life and health. Clean air, water, parks etc.
- Saving resources will save YOU money.
- Improving the environment is an essential part of rebuilding community spirit.
At global level:
- It is a life that has a future. Our present form of consumerism is unsustainable, neglects both our future and that of our children, and threatens global disaster. Much of Wirral’s residential land is below sea level. If Global Warming causes the sea to rise enough, the 21st century could mean drastic changes for our peninsula.

The Sustainability Movement is an international one that is being subscribed to by governments and businesses all over the world. In 1992, 179 world states met at the United Nations’ Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro to try to attack the issue of our relationship with our environment. They realised that environmental issues reach deep into economic and social ones: for example, that rising sea levels brought about from Global Warming will mean loss of land, property, huge expenses for flood defence, and great risk to health and lives.

They had realised that our life-philosophy and idea of development must be reformed. Their term used to label this philosophy is Sustainable Development. The UK was, in fact, one of the first countries in the world to prepare a national Sustainable Development strategy

Wirral Environmental Network is here to provide information and education to the public of Wirral about sustainable living.

Swap Days

Saturday 28 January 2012, 10.00-1.00
Grosvenor Ballroom, Liscard.

More details of these days will be published here nearer the time.

What is a swap day?

This is a way of reusing goods that would otherwise end up in landfill. Perhaps the best way to imagine it is to think of a massive jumble sale without any money changing hands.

Bring goods ……Take goods………or both!

Bring along – toys, books, videos, DVDs, sports equipment, furniture, curtains, kitchen utensils, gardening tools – and anything good quality which you no longer need and might be useful to someone else.

Take away anything you or your family can use at home ! FREE !!

We can’t accept electrical goods or furniture without the current fire certificate labels, or vast amounts of clothing, but otherwise virtually anything !

There will normally be a van and driver available to collect large items from addresses on the day. This needs to be booked in advance.

Cheshire Wildlife events

Fri 13th Jan 7.30 p.m.
Cheshire’s wildlife: the last 50 years and the next
A talk by Professor David Norman, Chairman of Cheshire Wildlife Trust.
Room B, Heswall Hall. Admission £2.
Cheshire Willife Trust www.cheshirewildlifetrust.co.uk

Fri 10th Feb 7.30 p.m.
The Wirral Society: preserving Wirral’s natural beauty for the past 80 years.
A talk by Rod Tann.
Room B, Heswall Hall. Admission £2.
Cheshire Willife Trust www.cheshirewildlifetrust.co.uk

Wed 15th Feb, 10.30am
New Ferry Shore: birds and shipping
Watch birds feeding at low tide, walk along past the fever hospital site, talk about history of area including Great Eastern. No need to book.
Meet: Shorefields open space, New Ferry. SJ340857.
Suitable for most ages except very young children.
Cheshire Willife Trust www.cheshirewildlifetrust.co.uk

Fri 9th March 7.30 p.m.
A Flora for North Lancashire.
A talk by Eric Greenwood.
Room B, Heswall Hall. Admission £2.
Cheshire Willife Trust www.cheshirewildlifetrust.co.uk

Sun 11th March, 2pm
Wild Flower Planting
Help plant 50 wild flowers at New Ferry Butterfly Park to celebrate the 50th birthday of Cheshire Wildlife Trust.
Disabled access. *BOOKING ESSENTIAL 0151 327 5923. Ideal for families.
Meet: New Ferry Butterfly Park, www.newferrybutterflypark.co.uk adjacent to Bebington Station car park, off Bebington Road, New Ferry.  Come by train or bus, or park inside the Park (disabled especially) or in Port Sunlight.
Cheshire Willife Trust www.cheshirewildlifetrust.co.uk

WEN Courses 2011-2012

Running at Wirral Environment Centre, Falkland Road, Wallasey CH44 8ER

Gardening for beginners
Enrolment Day 13th Sept
Tuesdays 9.30 – 11.30
The aim of the course is to give you the confidence to manage, plan and develop any garden in an environmentally-friendly manner. Course runs over 3 terms; £50 per term/£10 fee for most on income-based benefits.

The productive garden
Enrolment Day 13th Sept
Tuesdays 12 – 2 OR 2.15 – 4.15
The main aim of this course is to enable you to build the basics of a garden for growing vegetables and fruit and how to plant and propagate fruit trees and bushes. Course runs over 3 terms; £50 per term/£10 fee for most on income-based benefits.

Open to all, for more information on either of these, telephone 630 3486

Garden Volunteers’ Day

Every Tuesday from 10.00am in the Plants On Plates Community Garden. Travel expenses paid. Please phone the garden manager Jeff Hughes on 0151 639 2121 or email info@la21.net for further details.

Other community allotments currently running are:

Wednesday Mornings 10am – 1pm, in the walled garden at Central Park Wallasey.
Woodchurch Community garden – a garden outside the Library and Ganneys Meadow Early Learning Centre. Planning sessions are held at the Methodist Centre on the last Thursday of the month 3-4pm and the work changes monthly.

Or if you are in the Tranmere area, why not drop into Tranmere Alliances allotment, details from their office on Church Road.

Swap Day Training

The fame of Wirral’s ‘Swap Days’ is spreading!

Swap Days, sometimes known as ‘Give & Take Days’ are like attic sales with a collection and delivery service for large items and with no money changing hands!

Swap Days are a great way to find new homes for items no longer needed but far too good to put in the bin.

You can increase awareness of recycling and make a social occasion of it at the same time!

Want to run one in your area?

We now offer four-hour training days on Saturdays at a very competitive price to any interested group in Merseyside, Wirral or Chester.

Ring 0151 639 2121 for full details.

Ness Gardens 2011

Ness offers short courses and workshops both themselves and in partnership with the University of Liverpool Continuing Education Department and the Welsh College of Horticulture.

Discover Gardening
Starting on the Friday 7th October
An introductory gardening course.
10 Week course, £60/£55 Concessions

A Guide to Growing Fruit
Saturday 5th November 10am to 3pm
One day workshop, £20/£18 Concessions

Organic Gardening
Starting on Friday 6th January
6 Week course, 9.30-12.00; £50/£45 Concessions

Grow your Own
Starting on Friday 24th February
6 Week course, 9.30-12.00; £50/£45 Concessions

Grow Your Own
Saturday 3th to Sunday 4th March
Same as above course, repeated as a weekend course over two days.
10.00 -16.00; £45/£40 Concessions.

The full programme including courses on Botany for Gardeners, Pruning, Propagation, Garden Design and Growing and Cooking with Herbs will be available on the Ness website soon. www.nessgardens.org.uk

Ness Gardens, Neston Road, Ness, Neston, South Wirral CH64 4AY
0151 353 0123, email nessgdns@liv.ac.uk

http://www.cesul.org.uk/index.htm

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