Raising awareness, funds and publicity for the group’s chosen issues including tree planting, ecobricks, bees’ wellbeing, litter picking and reducing single-use plastic.
Here are some ideas on how we help the planet linking to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals 12 (responsible consumption and production), 13 (climate action), 14 (life below water) and 15 (life on land):
Reducing Single Use Plastic
For the past three years we have been working to raise awareness of the negative impact of single use plastic on our planet including the state of our seas and the effects on wildlife. We have engaged in the Big Plastic Count with Greenpeace, participated in beach cleans, collected plastic to be taken to Brothers Make and Green Brick (two local organisations making new things out of certain types of plastic) and, possibly most importantly, engaged four local primary schools in projects that will help young people to think differently about plastic, learning ways to avoid and replace it. We have presented the project at regional and national meetings and submitted a poster to the 2023 Dublin Convention, telling our story. We look forward to sharing the message further throughout the Soroptimist International community.
Tree Planting
Trees are essential life partners for all of us as they provide oxygen, food, shelter, medicine, and beauty in the environment. Two events took place in 2022 in Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole to mark the planting of trees, sponsored by Soroptimist International Bournemouth (SIB) to recognise both the centenary of Soroptimist International in 2021 and the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee in 2022. SIB funded a total of 45 trees that were planted at two schools- Poole High School and St Peter’s Catholic Primary School- and we celebrated these with receptions held in June 2022 attended by HM Lord-Lieutenant of Dorset, the Chairman of BCP Council, Mayor of Poole, Deputy Mayor of Bournemouth, and SIB members. The pupils enjoyed being involved in the project and some of them spoke at each event about the importance of trees to the environment. Both celebrations took place on glorious sunny days, choirs sang, the dignitaries all shared their thoughts, and a good time was had by all.
Aide Memoire- Recycling Opportunities
The Planet Group at SIB has been actively engaged in a variety of projects to help improve the environment. Club members have been encouraged to reduce, reuse and recycle in a number of ways. The group has produced an aide memoire for club members about the many options available- the what, where and how to recycle in the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole area as well as nationally. Examples of more unusual things that can be recycled include razor blades, spectacles, mascara wands and under garments. For more detail look at the Aide Memoire Nov 2021
Ecobricking
Ecobricks are plastic bottle packed solid with clean and dry, used, non-recyclable plastic including many types of packaging like cellophane wrapping, cling film, blister packs, etc. Ecobricks are made to a set density to create reusable building blocks that can be made into a variety of structures e.g. benches, furniture, garden walls, planters, art installations or in a variety of buildings. The Planet Group has produced detailed guidelines on how to make these, click on this link… Ecobricking SIB
Bee Friendly Gardens
The Planet group has compiled a comprehensive guide on how to make your garden more bee friendly, drawn from a number of sources on the internet. Bees are vital for the pollination of plants, playing a crucial role in helping to provide around a third of the food we eat. No matter how small your garden or outdoor space, you can do your bit to help native bees thrive. This guide provides detail of types of plants and garden features (e.g. wildflower patches, bee hotels, sources of water) that will encourage bees to use your garden productively. The full guide is included here…… BeeFriendlyGardens 2021
Cleaning up the planet……….where better to start than on our beautiful coast.
On a beautiful Friday in July three SI Bournemouth members and two husbands joined the Marine Conservation Society (MCS) organized beach clean at Hengistbury Head on the Dorset coast.
Alongside collecting litter from the beach, the MCS is collecting data on the type of litter to be found around our coast in order to inform policy planning. Therefore we were juggling gloves, bags, litter pickers, paper and pens so we could record our finds. The most frequently found items were packets (crisps, sweets, sandwiches) and nurdles (those little round balls of plastic that seem to be everywhere these days). More exceptional were two large beach towels half buried and very ingrained with sand, a sock, a comb and a small metal bell. We filled three bags and enjoyed the company, the views and the glorious sunshine.
Thanks to all involved Gail Thomas on behalf of the Planet Group
