As Garden Organic enters its third year partnering with the Greening Campaign, senior project coordinator Paddy Halling shares how the campaign has helped more than 20 communities tackle climate change at local level

Alternative text should describe the visual content of the image. — Up to 20 communities across Hampshire are learning to grow their own food and recycle

Eco-anxiety is real. Up to 75% of adults report being very or somewhat worried about the impact of climate change¹. And more than 45% of children and young people say their feelings about climate change negatively affect their daily life and functioning².

In the face of this climate change related anxiety, Hampshire resident Terena Plowright took matters into her own hands to empower her community. She believed if people could make small environmental changes in their homes, gardens and communities, it would help them feel more invested.

In 2008, Terena began to drop flyers through letterboxes in her hometown of Petersfield: each one outlined five environmental ‘challenges’ that homeowners could tick off. If they achieved them all, they could pop the flyer in their window.

“When I went back a few weeks later, I wasn’t expecting to see many flyers,” says Terena. “But I was completely taken aback by the response. Houses, businesses, and even big chains such as Waitrose and Waterstones were proudly showing off their flyers. It was an emotional moment.”

What is the Greening Campaign? 🔗

By giving people clear challenges and keeping it simple, Terena found people were able to achieve big steps in a short time. The Greening Campaign programme is now structured around five projects or ‘pillars’.

At Garden Organic, we’re incredibly proud to have run the ‘Cycle of Seed’ project for three years, which focuses on food growing and food security, as well as supporting effective waste prevention activities.

Other key areas of focus for the campaign include creating space for nature, making homes more energy efficient, and the health impacts of climate change – working alongside partner organisations such as Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust and Hampshire County Council.

The campaign offers toolkits, expert support, training and workshops to build skills and help people feel they’re making a difference. Today, keen gardeners in 20 communities have come together to grow food and, most importantly, to inspire others to do so.

There are wonderful demonstration growing spaces in a variety of locations, such as a scout hut in Headley, and some communities are taking up the challenge of establishing community gardens. In Shedfield, they’ve installed decorative and functional seed swaps in public spaces, while others have grown heritage Hampshire varieties of peas and beans to preserve these varieties for our Heritage Seed Library.

£60,000 of savings have also been made by reducing food waste, and 2,000-plus household items have been given a new lease of life thanks to community-led waste prevention initiatives such as repair cafes, toy libraries, clothes swaps and driveway freecycle.

“It can be really difficult to know how to make a difference to the environment, but we’ve shown that if you just focus on your local community - change is possible,” says Terena.

“When people plant veg in their street, they can feed their family – but when they realise this can also feed a family of butterflies or bees, they see the wider impact they’re making. And from this, we can create a patchwork of green communities right across the country.”

1. According to the Office for National Statistics’ Opinions and Lifestyle Survey 2021.
2. According to a 2021 article in The Lancet’s Planetary Health journal.

Greening Campaign achievements 🔗

3,700+ hours of free time given by volunteers.
1,000 trees planted.
2,100+ items repaired or reused.
£60K+ saving made from reducing food waste.
150+ people trained to train others.
100 tonnes of C02 saved.

How to help the environment in your own community 🔗

Unplug. Put your headphones away, switch your phone off and put your walking shoes on. Sit in park, in a garden, under a tree and take in the sights and sounds, at least once a week. You’ll soon start to appreciate what’s around you.
Link with your local community in whatever shape or form that is and bring them together. There are so many benefits, both emotional and environmental.
Find your tribe. Seek out like-minded folk through eco organisations – whether that’s garden clubs, Master Composters, Waste Busters, Plastic-Free Communities, Bee Walkers (through the Bumblebee Trust) or Transition groups - and join some of them. They’re already thinking like you, and they’ll give you lots of tips and advice.
Prevent (not recycle) one piece of waste once a month. Instead of buying carrots in a plastic bag, grow them, buy them loose, or commit to buying one item from the refill shop. If you multiply that across the country – that’s an awful lot of plastic waste saved.
Understand heritage seeds – the importance of saving seeds and growing them for the future cannot be underestimated.
Don’t focus on the negatives around climate change. Focus on what you can do… and get on with it!
Join the Greening Campaign. If you live in Hampshire, get in touch. Or why not create your own branch by reaching out to your town/parish council to support you.