Thinking of joining us?

Are you thinking of joining us? If so, you are probably thinking what this might involve, both in terms of time commitment, and the kinds of things that you will be doing. This section will give you some insight into what you might be doing, and what you might get out of volunteering in a group like ours.

What skills do I need? Do I need any past experience in sustainability or environmental mangement?

Absolutely not. Yes, some of our group members do have qualifications in the environmental field, but the majority just have a passion to help reduce our dependency on oil, and reduce our carbon footprint. In fact, it helps us enormously if you just come with bags of enthusiasm and a little bit of time to give the group, to help us move forward on the wide range of activities we run and get involved in. Also, if you have an idea which you would like to take further, we would equally be delighted if you joined our group and led on this. We can help you in terms of finding funding, like minded enthusiasts who can help out, and any communications you may need in order to get it off the ground.

What’s in it for me? What might I get out of this?

Everyone joins for slightly different reasons, and takes away something different. Here are some of the benefits you will gain from getting involved. Make friends with like minded people, learn new skills which can help you in your personal life, and professional career, make a contribution to your community and really feel a part of the vibrant community that is Bollington. Use our group to gain experience, so one day they can embark in a career in the field.

What might I get involved in?

We have many exciting activities, some of which are listed here. Take a look at our website, and get in touch and come along to our committee meeting as a starter to see what you might like to get involved in. How much time would I need to contribute? That is entirely up to you. Broadly speaking we have three types of volunteers:

1. Committee

We have a dedicated core group of volunteers who meet every month as the committee, and make decisions around activities, funding, resources and prioritisation. This group meets every 4th Tuesday evening in the Church House Inn.

2. Sub-group specialist projects

Many of these people are on the committee, but some chose not to be, and drive specific projects or services. For example, we have a network of Ecoteam facilitators, who each run a five month behaviour change programme with householders. We have a community garden group who have tasked themselves with seeking plots of land which they can farm together, and are currently in negotiations with the land owners of their first plot. We also have a group of people looking at bringing hydropower back to Bollington, taking forward the results of our hydropower feasibility study which was completed late last year. Recently a group has formed looking at turning the old disused toilet block at the end of Shrigley Road into an exemplar sustainable building and low carbon advice centre.

We also need volunteers to help run the thermal imaging photography service, and organise the range of events we host each year, such as the eco-refurbishment course in November, film nights including the Age of Stupid which will be screened later this year, and the Copenhagen march in London on 5th December 2009. We are constantly updating our website, and this year would like to strengthen the “my impact” section, and are hoping to work with schools and businesses further and build on our support to these groups.

Finally, we increasingly get involved in spreading our message externally, both through providing advice to other like minded people who are thinking of setting up a low carbon community group in their community, and by responding to local, regional and national consultations in an effort to influence public sector policy.

3. Supporters and specialist advice

Some of our volunteers put in just a few hours a month, or less even and just join in when we need man power, such as at events. Others take a back seat and we go to them when we need advice with marketing, or communications. These kinds of volunteers are equally important as we can draw on specific support when we need it. We have volunteers who make a regular contribution, and others who dip in and out depending on their work pressures, family commitments, or what interests them. In short any contribution is a huge help and we will welcome anyone who would like to get involved.