Banbury Friends host sustainability forum
Banbury Quakers recently held a sustainability forum at Banbury and Bicester College
Banbury Quakers recently held a forum dedicated to topics such as food waste, biodiversity and the impact of poverty on children.
The discussion was held at Banbury and Bicester College on Thursday 9 October. It was intended as an outreach event, designed for those new to sustainability. An eighty-strong audience attended, a quarter of them Quakers.
Anti-waste consultancy WRAP (Waste and Resource Action Programme) was represented by speaker Marion Homer. She explained that almost half of the UK’s food waste comes from domestic households. The audience was surprised to learn that supermarkets and retailers are responsible for just 2.5 per cent of food waste.
Mike Pollard from the (RSPB) Royal Society for the Protection of Birds spoke of the importance of biodiversity.
The third speaker, Karen Stenning, of the charity Kids Company, described the support that they provide for 36,000 vulnerable children in London and Bristol.
Finally, Sabrina Gröschel, the newly appointed head of the Ethical Money Churches, explained how she hopes to reach out to all faith communities to help them make ethical choices about investing the money entrusted to them.
Banbury Quaker Judith Mason shared an audience member’s thoughts with the Friend. They told her: ‘I guess such events are often preaching to the converted, although in my case I think a fairer description would be informing, inspiring and re-energising the half-heartedly converted, which feels very worthwhile.’
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