Cotteridge Friend proposes ‘energy champions’ project
‘A concern is being taken to Cotteridge Meeting that Central England Quakers should be an active partner and support financially a joint fuel poverty and energy champion project.’
A Cotteridge Quaker has asked his Local Meeting to support a project to create ‘energy champions’ in a bid to tackle the energy and climate crisis.
Chris Martin, co-clerk of Central England Quakers’ Climate Emergency Action (CEQ CEA) Cities, told the Friend: ‘A concern is being taken to Cotteridge Meeting that [Central England Quakers] CEQ should be an active partner and support financially a joint fuel poverty and energy champion project.’
The project, initiated by him, will aim to develop ‘a network of community energy champions addressing the fuel poverty and “keeping warm” crisis that many people will face this coming winter and beyond. The work would be across the West Midlands and launched from Quaker Meeting houses building on their local contacts and knowledge’.
Chris Martin said that the project has emerged from his seven years developing a group called ‘Footsteps – Faiths For a Fair low carbon Future’ and, over the past eighteen months, coordinating ‘Footsteps’ Project 4F. This organises energy assessments for faith buildings, providing fuel poverty advice, support and clothing exchange and repair workshops. It also developed a Birmingham Faith Community map.
Chris Martin said that Footsteps and Project 4F are Birmingham-based, but with CEQ as a partner the project can be taken to the West Midlands Combined Authority, which is the conduit for the large amounts of public funding being made available for at scale retrofit programmes. Community energy champions volunteer to help households find retrofit, insulation and ‘keeping warm’ guidance for reducing home energy use and paying bills.
They also create awareness of the need to ‘view energy differently; as a (costly) resource to be used with thought and care’; and to ‘obtain energy from the sun, wind and other sustainable sources rather than fossil fuels’.
Chris Martin added that he would be particularly interested ‘to hear from Friends with experience of working with energy champions or think that the concept might work in their own area’. He is also taking the concern to CEQCEA for support and involvement.
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