Hello all!
This morning, Sue mentioned a White Paper on the NHS.
Here is a link to the petition on NHSCampaign.org and here is some info about it in The Guardian and some at the Nuffield Trust.
Online petitions are a quick (and easy!) way of taking action. I think Elizabeth Gaskell would approveJ
/Tristan
Religion Dispatches published an op-ed piece on the spirit of US Unitarian Universalist social action. It’s an inspiring read.
Krista Tippet’s recent Speaking of Faith features an interview with Bill McKibben, one of the leading thinkers and organisers on issues of climate change. I encourage you to set aside an hour with your computer/iPod and have a listen. Go to Speaking of Faith or subscribe to the podcast via iTunes. Every week is worth a listen.
At our first meeting, the social action group decided that we would like to find an opportunity to do occasional volunteering on environmental projects. Having done a bit of research I have recommended that we take part in a day at Bowyers Water in the Lee Valley Country Park. This is a location which is very close to London and easy to reach on public transport (just 20 minutes by train out of Liverpool Street). The date of this event is Saturday 11th September and we would need to meet up at 9am.
The organisers describe the day’s activities as follows: “After the annual meadow cut, to help keep the soil low in nutrients, the vegetation needs raking off and the nitrogen fixing alder saplings pulling up. This will provide the correct habitat that the Orchids need to flourish.”
The social action group decided that we need at least six of us to commit to taking part in this volunteering day to make it fun – as long as we have a decent group then we should have fun even if the weather isn’t fantastic – so please let Jane know ASAP if you are intending to join in. We will need to contact the organisers in mid-August to let them know we are planning to come.
Here are some good online activism opportunities. Please add to the list and post new opportunities when you encounter them. The more we are able to take part, the better!
Government contact
· http://www.parliament.uk/mps-lords-and-offices/mps/
Petitions
There are a number of online petition services.
Posterous is a great social tool for co-ordinating efforts and sharing experiences. One reason I chose it as my blog is because it’s extremely easy to use: all you have to do is send an email to the blog’s address with the subject as the title of the post and they do the rest. You can send pictures, links, maps, links, text—anything—and they do the formatting. The instructions are simple because it’s so easy!
If you’d like to be able to post to the site, all you need to do is send Tristan your email address. If you’ve been involved or expressed interest in the group and confirmed with Jane, then I have already added you to the permitted contributors. You will only be able to send emails from the address you registered. If you change address, or your send address is different, you’ll need to let me know. Similarly, if you need support, please email or grab Tristan in church.
If you’re not interested in posting but still would like to keep up with the social action goings on, you can still visit and have a look! Comments are open to all.
