Climate Action North East

An event celebrating World Environment Day was the first official activity for Climate Action North East, a new community interest company.

The theme of this year’s World Environment Day is ‘connecting with nature’. It felt like I was getting more than my fair share of nature as I battled through the wind and rain to the World Environment Day event being held by Climate Action North East. Thankfully, the organisers had planned for the worst, and the numerous stalls, displays and talks were all under cover at the Washington Wetland Centre. The weather didn’t dampen the spirits of the many visitors.

Washington Wetland Centre

World Environment Day is the biggest annual event for positive environmental action and takes place every 5th June. This year’s theme invited everyone to think about how we are part of nature and how intimately we depend on it. The tranquil setting of WWT Washington was the perfect location, with wildlife thriving even in the midst of urbanisation near the River Wear. As well as numerous stalls, there were interactive workshops and talks from local environmental specialists. The Wetland Centre’s ranger team engaged visiting children with pond dipping sessions, getting them outdoors into nature, and helping them to appreciate its beauty and its importance. In fact I hadn’t been to the Centre since I was a kid, and was delighted to see the broad range of habitats they’ve created over the years.

“There is a huge gap in the North East at the moment in terms of providing support and advice on all aspects of climate change. We hope by combining our knowledge, skills and networks we can make a positive difference across the region.”I joined Sharon Lashley, one of the co-founders of Climate Action North East, to learn more about their aims. Sharon, together with Anna-Lisa Mills and Jennifer Clair Robson, is setting out to ignite action on climate change in the North East. All three entrepreneurs have worked for conservation and environmental organisations over the last decade and now plan to share this experience with communities and businesses in the region. Sharon said: “There is a huge gap in the North East at the moment in terms of providing support and advice on all aspects of climate change. We hope by combining our knowledge, skills and networks we can make a positive difference across the region.”

Sharon Lashley, Anna-Lisa Mills and Jennifer Clair Robson of Climate Action North East

The goal of Climate Action North East is to raise funds to deliver practical support and advice for businesses and communities. This will include many activities from working with businesses to help them reduce their impact on the environment while minimising their risks to the changing climate to organising litter picking sessions with community groups. If you’d like to find out more, or whether there are opportunities for you to be involved, get in touch with Climate Action North East by email, or follow them on Facebook and Twitter.