West Hampstead Transition launch event Monday 6 June

Alexis Rowell

I’m very much looking forward to the launch event for Transition West Hampstead this coming Monday 6 June, from 7pm to 9pm at St James' Church Hall on Sheriff Road, NW6 2AR.

Our neighbours in Transition Town Kensal to Kilburn are helping with the launch and are providing their very own Nettle Pesto and Elderflower Cordial for people to sample... then a showing of the great BBC documentary 'A Farm for the Future'. Following that there will be some talks and discussion on how to set up Transition West Hampstead.

One of the presentations will be by Alexis Rowell, who was our Camden Sustainability Champion 2006-2010. I asked Alexis for a few paragraphs on what the transition movement is all about and here’s what he said:

“The Transition movement is about creating and enhancing vibrant, resilient communities who are actively addressing the twin problems of climate change and the end of cheap oil.

Transitioners believe that in many ways life will be better after oil – more local, less polluted, more neighbourly, less stressed – and that we will be better prepared to deal with the challenges if we start working together now.

The aim is to come up with a greener, more resilient vision for an area like West Hampstead, and then to get on with creating a community where we know more of our neighbours and can rely on them to help if we have a problem. We want to enable residents to learn or relearn essential skills, such as sewing, mending, making new things from old possessions and food growing.

There are hundreds of Transition Initiatives all over the world. In Camden there are active Transition groups in Belsize, Hampstead, Kentish Town, Kensal/Kilburn, Primrose Hill and Tufnell Park. See www.transitiontowns.org for more on the movement.”

Looking forward to seeing lots of you there!