Hello from a WCA member!

dnnclsn · 2020-07-01T15:32:32.894Z

Andrew from Bradford on Avon here. Glad to be part of this dynamic new umbrella group, and to see energy building for change to the Climate Change, starting in our own backyard with Wiltshire Council. An uphill struggle, I worry, because the councils are broke, and Wiltshire has been a bit, er, conservative about these things. Factoid: Bridget Wayman (Nadder and East Knoyle), Cabinet Member for Highways, Transport and Waste, likes to retweet Global Warming deniers and sceptics. The first chief executive of Sustrans, the charity making it easier for people to walk and cycle, once wrote a letter describing the former Wiltshire County Council as the worst he'd ever had to deal with in terms of co-operation and positive thinking about the green or sustainable modes of transport. One highway engineer was heard to say, ""Transport is something you get in!" - as in, through a metal glass and plastic door. Hopefully the new Wiltshire is poles apart from the bad old county! Bradford on Avon Town Council is going to put £30,000 of its own money, including cutting into reserved, into a 6 month temporary Highways Social Distancing project benefitting pedestrians by widening pavements. In better days, Wiltshire would foot the bill - and to give them credit where due they have done lots of design and supplied the drawings. This time their cash contribution looks set to be £0.00. Another factoid: the word "Umbrella" comes from a word for shadow, not a word for rain. Get yours out for either, as we go into another scary record-setting summer 2020! Oh, and I'm running a Young People's Climate Art Contest in B on A, closing date 19/7/20, hoping to get amazing pictures on the themes of the Climate and/or Biodiversity Emergencies, for future use as big public art murals in the town. Watch the WCA website for updates on that - would it be a good idea for your own community?

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