Launching Oxfordshire Great Big Green Week 2021 with The Walk for Life on Planet Earth Photography by Feng Ho.
Residents across Oxfordshire are taking part in a nationwide campaign this September to highlight the need for urgent action on climate and nature.
Taking place between 24 September - 2 October, the climate action campaign known as the Great Big Green Week will see thousands of people across the UK organising local festivals and events. The campaign aims to draw attention to climate change and the destruction of the natural world, while showcasing actions to tackle climate change in local communities.
Last year Oxfordshire hosted over 100 events across the county, including tree planting, a natural dye workshop and a ‘Walk for Life on Planet Earth’. This year, there are lots of activities being planned by Green Arts Oxfordshire Network, Tandem Collective, Community Action Groups Oxfordshire, Oxford Friends of the Earth, Low Carbon Hub and many others.
Oxfordshire Great Big Green Week will be kicking off with a launch event in Bonn Square on Saturday 24th September, where you can expect inspiring speakers, poets and performers alongside information about local charities and groups working towards a more sustainable future for Oxfordshire.
The local theme for this year is 'energy', in response to the current energy and cost of living crisis. With prices due to rise again at the start of October, these events aim to raise awareness and highlight some of the ways that we as individuals and communities can work together.
Ellie Monk, 26, who coordinates Green Arts Oxfordshire Network said: “It’s a really scary and worrying time, but we’ve been working together as a community to turn this anxiety into positive action that can hopefully make real change. The more people talk about the climate and cost of living crisis, the more that policy makers have to pay attention.”
“We’ve seen how climate change can affect us locally with the recent heatwave and drought. Back in July, some of the galleries and museums in our network had to close due to the extreme heat, and Northend village was the first in the UK to run out of water. We’re also expecting more frequent flooding this Winter, which will impact local people that have already been hit by crazy energy bills from fossil fuel companies that have made record profits this year. We need to take action, and Oxfordshire Great Big Green Week is a brilliant way to get involved.”
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