Dear Transitioners

Exciting times!  We had a great pruning session at our Community Orchard last Sunday and it’s looking very lovely, Monmouth Town Council is setting up a partnership agreement with ACE Monmouth for Action on the Climate Emergency, the snowdrops and hellebores are out, the days are getting noticeably longer, and there is much else on its way including, for a start:-

A major Seed/Plant Swap and Potato Day next Saturday, 19 February, from 10 till noon at Bridges Community Centre.  The Heritage Seed Library will be there along with Transition Monmouth, ACE Monmouth, Tools for Self Reliance, and Wye Weight will be providing very delicious refreshments.  Please bring along your saved seed, bought seed, plants, bulbs to swap – but please come even if you have nothing to swap – donations very welcome! 

Tools for Self Reliance will have their beautifully refurbished tools and will also be blade sharpening – so bring those tools along that need a bit of TLC.  Donations of your old tools are always welcome.  They will be refurbished and put to good use.  Manual sewing machines are particularly valuable – a refurbished sewing machine can be a life changer for an African family.

Please contact vivienmitchell@yahoo.co.uk or phone 01600 715065 if you can help on the day.  If you have seeds or plants that you would like to donate but can’t attend on the day, you can drop them off at The Barn, The Burgage, NP25 3DP earlier in the week

Benthyg – The Library of Things with tools and equipment for you to borrow (rather than buy) is at an advanced stage of test runs including a computer system that links the Monmouth Benthyg with others in the county and further afield in Wales.  Opening likely on Friday 25 February but we will firm up on this

One Planet Development – Paul Trotter will repeat the presentation he gave at the Climate Future Festival on the One Planet Development that he and Mel are hoping will become a reality later this year at Trecastle Wood – probably early March

Members’ Meeting – Tuesday 15 March at 7.30pm by Zoom, to take forward our various events – further details in due course

Repair Café – Sunday 20 March, 2pm to 4pm at Rockfield Community Centre:  Yes, at last, a real, live Repair Café event for you to bring your broken items and learn how to repair them.  But we need more repairers!  Prior to the event we would very much like to hear from you if you would like to be a repairer, what skills you can offer (what type of repairs, admin, catering) and if you would be available to undertake repairs on the day.  There will be an opportunity prior to the event to discuss any queries or concerns with seasoned repairers

Poppy Stowell (Wales Young Climate Ambassador) event:  Last week in March hopefully at Monmouth Comprehensive School with input from young people and an invitation for them to submit their questions to the Hustings event.  We feel it particularly important to involve young people as, for the first time, those aged 16 and 17 have the vote!  And yes, further details just as soon as we have them

Hustings for the County Council elections:  Friday 29 April, 6.30 to 9pm at Bridges Community Centre.  Probably the only opportunity for you to hear all the candidates for the Monmouth wards in action

Farmers Event with Peter Fox AM on his Sustainable Farming Private Members Bill:  Mid-May:  Peter Fox and other local farmers

Watch this space – more details nearer the time for these and other happenings.  And please, if you are able to volunteer to help with any of our events, contact vivienmitchell@yahoo.co.uk or phone 01600 715065.  The more volunteers we have, the more we can achieve together!