Chris Gledhill at Future Directions

Environmental Management and Small Organisations

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Gledhill) — Mon, 27 Jun 2011 20:49:00 +0000

Over the last few months I have had the priviledge of conducting audits across several small businesses. What constantly impresses me is their committment to improve their environmental performance. This is never easy for a small organisation and they all have an approach which although based around an Environmental Management System has to be appropriate to the size and scale of the organisation. Often the person responsible for the system has little or no environmental training and therefore appreciates any professional advice they can get. Soalthough they are being audited it is also possible to give them some advice or relay examples of good practice from others.

This has got me thinking, what resources are available to help small organisations. I have recently developed a resource to help such organisations. More details can be obtained from me at chris@futuredirections.org.uk.
The structure of this resource briefly explains the importance of the environment and guides the participants through a series of worksheets to assess their current environmental impact.

Chris Gledhill
www.futuredirections.org.uk

The Challenge of IT equipment

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Gledhill) — Wed, 04 May 2011 19:48:00 +0000

We now have some pretty neat IT gear these days at home. At Christmas my wife got an
i-pad and I now use one of the new Android phone. Both of these have had a dramatic impact on our daily lives and means that our old trusty PC and my lap top get used less and less. As for newspapers, they are a thing of the past with the ability to download some of the major quality newsheets free. The downside of this is that we have no newspapers to light our stove!

The i-pad is so innovative that it becomes almost an extension of the hand and the brain and there are an increasing number of apps out there, some great, others less so. The same is the same for the android phone. What would i do without my GPS, diary and emails. The downside is that the battery quickly discharges. On one trip to Sheffield, I found myself without any power. This got me thinking about what would we do if the power actually runs out. This is no idle exercise as it is suggested that we could face power cuts by 2016 if we don't find new sources of power. So the one obvious solution is to generate more power, but how can we do this in just five years. Wind power is facing planning battles on shore and for off shore developments its at least a six year programme from conception to commissioning.

The other option is to find ways to reduce our energy consumption. So before you switch your lights and heating on, think about whether you actualy need to switch on. For more information on Greening your Office (and of course home) read my article on my website.

GOOD PRACTICE HINT:

Don't leave your electrical equipment on standby. They still consume a significant amount of power, so when not in use, switch off electrical and electronic equipment.

Chris Gledhill
01874 638 979

The Power of Mother Nature and cleaning products

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Gledhill) — Sat, 12 Mar 2011 18:40:00 +0000

The events of the last few weeks in Christchurch and now Japan has demonstrated that irrespective of how well we build, the sophistication of our technology and our emergency preparedness, nothing can prepare us for the full force of nature. Our hearts and thoughts go out to all those who have lost their families, friends and loved ones in these two devastating natural disasters.

In Japan there is so much still to do to try and find survivors, then no doubt the clean up will begin and the nation can start to come to terms with the full impacts of the earthquake disaster. Then the clean up can begin.

Cleaning Products

This week my blog is all about cleaning products. If you are like me, the temptation when choosing cleaning products is to purchase on the claims of what the products can do, rather than look more closely at the ecological attributes. Some cleaning products rely heavily on chemicals. If you look at their product data sheets it can be quite scary to learn of their potential harmful impacts to the environment. As a child, I remember my parents using Lysol. I checked this out and it contains benzalkonium chloride, a substance highly toxic to fish and aquatic invertebrates. So whenever possible I look for Ecover for the main source of our cleaning products. They have a really friendly and helpful website, so I would suggest readers to check it out. Whatever products you buy do check the labels, it’s a good idea to look for the European Ecolabel.

The European Ecolabel is a voluntary scheme, established in 1992 to encourage businesses to market products and services that are kinder to the environment. Products and services awarded the Ecolabel carry the flower logo, allowing consumers - including public and private purchasers - to identify them easily. Today the EU Ecolabel covers a wide range of products and services, with further groups being continuously added. Product groups include cleaning products, appliances, paper products, textile and home and garden products, lubricants and services such as tourist accommodation. While the logo may be simple, the environmental criteria behind it are tough, and only the very best products, which are kindest to the environment, are entitled to carry the EU Ecolabel. So really there is little excuse not to find a product which has minimal impact on the environment.

Researching all these “eco” products got me thinking. Do we actually need to buy these commercial products? What did our ancestors do? So Future Directions has started to do some research into these and I will share my findings in future blogs. I will also look out for other brands who have achieved the EU Eco Label.

GOOD PRACTICE HINT:

Bath cleaner: Mix 15 mls of vinegar into 1 liter of water. Use this mixture to clean your bath. For persistent strains use full strength vinegar on a cloth and rub briskly.

Future Directions work with companies to help them improve profitability and sustainability by finding ways to reduce running costs and ensure that they are compliant with environmental legislation and regulations. We offer an initial free consultation and can also conduct an initial assessment on your existing environmental management system. Contact us at;

email: enquiries@futuredirections.org.uk
telephone: 01874 638 979

The Importance of Business Planning

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Gledhill) — Mon, 28 Feb 2011 19:51:00 +0000

More U turns than a learner driver or is it purely lack of business planning?

I can’t help but notice that our current government have done more u-turns in the last few weeks than a lost driver. Some of these have included;

The re-organisation of the NHS (despite earlier promises)

The sell off of our forests (some of these are ancient Royal Forests)

Free milk (one day they were withdrawing it, then no they weren’t)

The Lisbon Treaty (what happened to the promised vote?)

In addition they have been told by the courts that the cancellation of the schools building programme was illegal. All of this does beg the question “what is going on?”

I always thought that our governments would develop a plan, discuss it in Parliament, refine it and then implement it. All they seem to doing at the moment is falling off their bikes.

Most businesses have some form of plan with targets and deadlines and generally then get on and do it. Increasingly more enlightened companies have embraced some form of environmental management as part of their business strategy. As the costs of fuel, they are in a stronger position than their competitors, because they measure and manage their energy use. The ongoing recession is not going to make it any easier for any business but there is an opportunity to improve performance and reduce costs by minimising waste which includes not just rubbish, but heat, light and materials.

So what can we do about rubbish and waste? A good approach is to walk around your premises and have a look at what you are throwing away. Look in your bins and skips. Ask the questions what and why you are throwing it away. The why is the question we don’t ask enough? For example, is the paper you are throwing away printed on both sides, or why does there seem to be too many rejects or damaged products in your skips. It is not rocket science but these simple steps can reap a big reward in starting to identify what you are wasting and if you are not throwing things away then you not adding to the rubbish in land fill sites.

We can help you with your environmental management and associated systems. Contact us.

GOOD PRACTICE HINT: If you can not cut down on the volume of waste cardboard, flatten or crush it to reduce its volume.

Merthyr Mawr National Nature Reserve

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Gledhill) — Sun, 11 Jul 2010 17:49:00 +0000

Just back from Merthyr Mawr National Nature Reserve. This is a fantastic sand dunes complex on the south Wales coast. Famous for it great number of invertebrates and its unique flora. The dunes lie on top of a limestone outcrop. Hardly a soul about, but really great to see local stables using it. But I have got to have a rant. The amount of litter across the reserve is appalling. No matter where you looked you saw it. Come on Countryside Council for Wales, I know that it is difficult to stop these ignorant people dropping the litter, but what about a few volunteer parties to pick it up and who knows, if there was no litter then maybe people would be less likely to drop it.I would certainly sign up to volunteer. What about getting Keep Wales Tidy involved as well?

Picture from the Ramblers

Chris Gledhill
Future Directions

The Hiddens Costs of Climate Change

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Gledhill) — Wed, 07 Jul 2010 20:46:00 +0000

With the outcome of the recent UK elections and the BP crisis, there hasn't been too much kin the papers or the media about climate change. Sadly it is still there and following a recent piece of research by the u-Switch website, it looks as though the average household is now paying £84 per year to meetthe increasing environmental levies. This includes the EU Emissions Trading Scheme, the Carbon Emissions Reduction Target, the Community Energy Saving Programme and the Renewables Obligation currently make up 7% of energy bills.Writing in the Independant Nicky Burridge reports that this could well double in the next 10 years. It is clear that as governments (UK and Europe) look to tackle the challenges of climate change whether we like it or not we the end user will have to pay.

So what are our options? The simplest way is to cut back on our use of electricity and fossil fuels. We have installed an energy meter to better manage the way we use electricity in addition to switching to a green tariff. We also have installed a multi fuel burning stove from Clearviews Stoves. We are really impressed by its performance, but it does take quite alot of work in cutting the wood. However we have an agreement with our neighbour, we do work on his hedgerows and get the wood.

Our next consideration is to practice what we preach and our looking at solar and photovoltaics.

Future Directions are pleased to offer advice and guidance on energy reduction and alternative energies. e-mail us or call us on 01874 638979

Wind Power

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Gledhill) — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 20:36:00 +0000

One of the impressive things that I saw when I recently visited Denmark was the way that they approached carbon reduction and clean energy supplies. The coastline is dotted with small wind power farms. Generally these are no more than 3 to 10 and despite the flatness of the country merge well into the landscape. One day we actually sailed into a harbour where there was a large production facility, constructing wind farms. I am happy to see wind turbines in the right place. The UK still has a long way to go to meet the power demands of the next 20 years. Wind farms alone will not solve the problem, we will have to look to other generating sources, however last week saw the official opening of the UKs latest offshore wind farm. I actually flew over it on my return from Denmark. It is an impressive site some 48 turbines that will produce 172 megawatts of electricity (enough to power 125,000 homes on an annual basis). The visual impact of this development is much less than the equivalent sized development on land.

Lynn and Inner Dowsing wind farm, off the Lincolnshire coast Photograph: David Sillitoe /Guardian

There are many ways that we can all get involved in renewable energy and recent government incentives for the Feed In Tariff or the Clean Energy Buy Back Scheme is beginning to make it more viable for many households, farms and estates to invest in renewable energy. Under this scheme energy suppliers make regular payments to householders and communities who generate their own electricity from renewable or low carbon sources such as wind turbines, hydro electric or solar panels.
At Future Directions we can provide advice and guidance for those thinking about renewable energy and can identify appropriately qualified installers.
You can contact us on 01874 638979 or email us at enquiries@futuredirections.org.uk

The Joys of Sailing

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Gledhill) — Wed, 16 Jun 2010 20:25:00 +0000

Just imagine the joy of travelling without any motorised power. Well I had the experience of a 7 day trip round the coast of Denmark on a 44 foot yacht. As a first timer to this sport, I was looking forward to this for some time. It was really good fun, with my fellow crewmates being very sociable and knowledgeable. I now can navigate and steer, some of the complexities of the sails still escape me, but I will learn these further.

There is something magical about flying across the sea using nothing but the power of the wind. Sadly, the wind was not always blowing in the right direction, so I cant put my hand on my heart and say that we never used the engine, we did. I would recommend the sailing experience to all. Check out your local marina.

Hamsters and the Economy

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Gledhill) — Thu, 13 May 2010 19:58:00 +0000

Up to today the two things I knew about Hamsters were; that it took me 6 years of schooling to learn how to spell their name (I always thought that there was a “p” in it) and second that my two sons had varying success in looking after them as family pets. After today I will never be able to look at a Hamster in the same way. Let’s face it, I have always thought that Hamsters were incredible, but I never knew that they could be used as an economic model. I have just been to the Princes Mayday Network meeting
in Cardiff today and one of the speakers was from the New Economics Foundation (NEF). An inspirational speaker Andrew Simms captivated the whole audience with his talk. Throughout his presentation he kept promising us that we would meet a hamster. Not to little his brilliant views he finished off his session by introducing us to the Impossible Hamster.

This very simple cartoon does highlight the dilemma that we face and highlights the issues in the report “Growth Isn’t Possible: Why rich nations need a new economic direction”. Living on a world with finite natural resources, can we realistically expect continued economic growth year on year?

Andrew Simms, co-author of the report said, “We tend to think of growth as natural for economies, forgetting that in nature things grow only until maturity and then develop in other ways. A world in which everything grew indefinitely would be strange indeed. A young hamster, for example, doubles its weight each week between birth and puberty. But if it grew at the same rate until its first birthday, we’d be looking at a nine billion tonne hamster, which ate more than a year’s worth of world maize production every day. There are good reasons why things don’t grow indefinitely. As things are in nature, so sooner or later, they must be in the economy.

“The economic priorities of the rich world are as ridiculous as the impossible hamster. Endless growth is pushing the planet’s biosphere beyond its safe limits. The price is seen in compromised world food security, climatic upheaval, economic instability and threats to social welfare. We urgently need to change our economy to live within its environmental budget. There is no global, environmental central bank to bail us out if we become ecologically bankrupt.”

One way that we can start to address this is by living more sustainably and in business a good way to embark on this is to introduce an environmental management system into the business. This not only will help to reduce your carbon and environmental footprint but make savings. Yes it is a journey, but if we don’t start to act now just remember the nine billion tonne hamster.

For advice on an environmental management system or your carbon and environmental footprint, we can help you.

Chris Gledhill

The Power of Nature

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Gledhill) — Sat, 17 Apr 2010 21:05:00 +0000

It’s not every day that we experience the true force of nature, but today we are experiencing the consequences of a major volcanic eruption on Iceland. The cloud of talcum like particles started to drift across the UK on Thursday. Airports were closed down like a stack of dominos due to the problems that the volcanic dust can reap on flying aircraft. By late afternoon, the whole airspace above the UK and Ireland was shut down, an unprecedented step in the history of aviation. This now has spread to the north of Europe. The net result not one plane in the skies above the UK and most of northern Europe with many tourists and business travellers stranded across the globe, not mention the thousands of internal flyers faced with the confusion. Where we live in the depths of rural Wales, every 10 minutes we normally see up to 7 vapour jet trails in the skies above us, today the skies are clear. I truly sympathise for those whose holidays have been destroyed by this natural disaster. But let’s think the big picture for a moment, some of the positives we must learn from these natural situations.

Business travel is critical for many organisations and brings economic benefits buts it also adds significantly to Greenhouse Gas emissions. A recent project report suggested that 20% of business air travel is not necessary and that video conferencing was an effective means of communications (Project Icarus, Cranfield University February 2009). So if international businesses invested in video conferencing, not only could we reduce by 20% greenhouse gases but think of the money savings to be made by not travelling but the additional staff time available to the company. This also applies to most other businesses and their business travel. So come on businesses, review your staff travel plans and invest in your ITC. At Future Directions we can help you with these and bring in associates to advise on your ITC needs now and for the future.

Chris Gledhill

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Gledhill) — Mon, 29 Mar 2010 20:57:00 +0000

I am just back from Scotland and it is great to get back home. The Greenock Cut has now been fully restored and it was a pleasure to meet up with many old friends and colleagues in Scotland last Friday. Well done to everyone involved. I know that many more people will now be able to enjoy and learn about this fantastic engineering project. For more information click here.

Catching up with friends and colleagues is a really important and a great way to keep in touch. Thank you all for your hospitality, it was great fun. So now it is back to getting my business focused and organise a range of workshops on environmental management. Hopefully, by sharing the many opportunities that environmental management brings many more businesses can benefit.

Our barn bookings are going great. We are really pleased about how popular it has become, ther are no weeks left apart from the second Easter week and one in June until September. Autumn is one of the best times to visit so if anyone wants more information check out our website.
It is graded as a five star self catering accomodation, lying within the heart of the Brecon Beacons and the Geopark. It can accomodate 4 people in a double and twin bedrooms.A feature of the barn is the oak flooring and the magnicient oak spiral staircase. More detailed information and how to contact us is on our website and you can now find us on Facebook as Madog Barn. become a fan and keep up to date with what is happening.
Enjoy the rest of Spring and I hope that you all have a great Easter. If you would like to contact me for help and advice on tourism, coutryside/conservation management and environmental management systems e-mail me or give me a phone on 01874 638 979

Happy Easter

They who shout the loudest

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Gledhill) — Sat, 13 Mar 2010 17:32:00 +0000

Despite being bombarded by news feeds from the press and media, there is always a danger that we only listen to one source of information or viewpoint. Often because people either choose to go with the story they want to believe or the one that is getting the greatest coverage. Over the last few months on the environmental front, our attention has been on the reduction of CO₂and the trials and tribulations of Copenhagen and its aftermath. Much has been made of the impacts of CO2 and its contribution to global warming. But there are other Green House Gases (GHG). The different Green House Gases are not all equal; 23Kg of CO2_is equivalent to about 1 Kg of Methane (CH₄). In other words, for everygram of Methane produced its GHG impact will be the equivalent of 23 grams of CO_2.What is really scary is that since the pre-industrial times (from 1750 onwards) there has been a 67% increase in Methane to 1.77 ppm.The corresponding increase in CO2 is 38% to 387 ppm. BUT Methane absorbs up to 30 times more infrared radiation than CO2 and with its shorted lifespan therefore has a greater potency. So potentially tackling methane emissions could make a significant impact on climate change.

In a recent report in the Ecologist, it is claimed that by reducing our Methane output, we could make a significant impact on reducing global warming. Research is already underway on cow and sheep diets, the reduction of gases from landfill sites and better hydrological management of rice paddy fields. Wouldn’t it be good to see governments, including the UK, putting more resources into these areas and in particular providing financial support to farmers to make this happen!

Finally like millions of others I was captivated by the Winter Olympics. Often the favourite didn’t find the form on the day so someone else won the event, what excitement. Well done to everyone who competed. How envious I was of those people who were able to get to Whistler to spectate and what I would do to have a go at the Ski Cross. Skiing will never be the same again. Canada has done well to mount this spectacular international event. It certainly is now on our must visit list.

Chris Gledhill

The Blog Returns!

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Gledhill) — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 21:55:00 +0000

New Year seems an age ago and I have thought long and hard as to what my first blog of the year and decade would be. What I wanted to do was to contemplate some of the key issues from last year before starting off my regular blog. So here goes!

We have seen the snow; we had 26 days of snow lying on the ground here and with it would seem that the whole of the UK ground to a halt. Just before Christmas I and my son Jamie, sat for 6 hours on a closed M74, before finally getting one of the last hotel rooms at Gretna Green. Others were less lucky. I am now looking forward to the first Snowdrops coming through, as Mother Nature does her job.

On the other hand, bankers, well what can I say? “Aren’t they wonderful? After being bailed out by our money, they continue to award themselves huge, if not disgusting bonuses. We need our banks to provide a stable monetary basis for us, but should they be allowed to gamble the way that they have being doing over the last 10 years.

Copenhagen, well I did say in my last blog; “As the world looks to Copenhagen and to our global leaders, the future prosperity and environmental and social well being of our countries and communities rests in their hands.”

So are we really surprised to the outcome of those 10 days of deliberation in December? The Chinese are being widely blamed for the failure to reach a legally binding agreement. Obama jetted in and out and ignoring all the bureaucrats (it is widely reported that they weren’t happy), got the momentum going on the Copenhagen Accord. This brings the existing big polluters together in a single accord with the emerging economies which will produce 90% of the new emissions by 2050. It lists the actions of each major player for all to see. It hopefully will provide the basis for moving forward, but not at the pace that had been hoped for. Some interesting happened over the course of 10 days. Protesters in their thousands expressed their concerns and worries over climate change. The Chinese main negotiator couldn’t get past the security and into the talks for the first 3 days. I guess what sums it up for me is what the Venezuelan President said; “If the climate was a Bank they would have saved it”. So what went wrong? Is the UN the right body to be driving the agenda on this?

The United Nations is an international organisation founded in 1945 after the Second World War by 51 countries committed to maintaining international peace and security, developing friendly relations among nations and promoting social progress, better living standards and human rights. Due to its unique international character, and the powers vested in its founding Charter, the Organization can take action on a wide range of issues, and provide a forum for its 192 Member States to express their views, through the General Assembly, the Security Council, the Economic and Social Council and other bodies and committees. Check out their website, I think you will agree that the work that they do is excellent and does have a major impact across the globe.

I believe that there is really no other organisation with a global remit. Who else could we leave such important initiatives too? Despite our hopes and aspirations, our world leaders don’t seem to have the mandate to a problem that will be a global crisis in a few years time. However, they do somehow have the mandate to spend billions, if not trillions saving the banks. I guess we can all read into this what we want. Are Banks really more important than addressing the problems of global warming and climate change? The Stern report clearly identified that by not tackling the problems now, will cost us much more in 10 years time. Its main conclusion is that the benefits of strong, early action on climate change considerably outweigh the costs. It proposes that one percent of global gross domestic product (GDP) per annum is required to be invested in order to avoid the worst effects of climate change, and that failure to do so could risk global GDP being up to twenty percent lower than it otherwise might be. So let’s be grateful for the United Nations and hope that over the next 12 months there is a concerted effort to move towards a voice of unity on a lasting agreement by all the key players on climate change.

The work of the United Nations reaches every corner of the globe. Although best known for peacekeeping, peace building, conflict prevention and humanitarian assistance, there are many other ways the United Nations and its System (specialized agencies, funds and programmes) affect our lives and make the world a better place. The Organisation works on a broad range of fundamental issues, from sustainable development, environment and refugees protection, disaster relief, counter terrorism, disarmament and non-proliferation, to promoting democracy, human rights, governance, economic and social development and international health, clearing landmines, expanding food production, and more, in order to achieve its goals and coordinate efforts for a safer world for this and future generations.

So finally, i hope that you all have enjoyed the festivities of Christmas and New Year.
Happy New Year and I hope that you are considering a more sustainable approach to the new decade.

Chris Gledhill

http://www.futuredirections.org.uk/

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Gledhill) — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 21:32:00 +0000

Copenhagen, "one small step for man; one giant leap for mankind"?

Climate change is the most serious threat posed to our society both in the West and the East. Despite the sceptics, the evidence is irrefutable as to the damage that will be caused if our politicians do not take decisive steps over the next 14 days to reduce our carbon emissions. This will be a real test for the leaders of the 192 countries now gathering in Copenhagen. Unprecedented was the publication by 56 newspapers in 45 countries of the same editorial to highlight the serious state that the world is in. Well done to the Guardian for leading on this

As with these newspapers we all need to put pressure on our politicians and leaders to make the correct decisions. Equally, we have to make a commitment to modify our lifestyles. It won't be easy but we have no choice. The Future Directions of all our lives and more importantly those of our children rests in the hands of our world leaders and politicians.

The first step in achieving this was to get our world leaders to Copenhagen for at least some of the next 14 days. With the worlds’ eyes on them, we now expect them to make and take the necessary actions to bring the developed and the developing countries together to progress the inevitable difficult economic and political decisions that have to be made.

Forty years ago in 1969, Neil Armstrong was the first man to step out onto the lunar surface with his famous quote “That’s one small step for man; one giant leap for mankind”. As the world looks to Copenhagen and to our global leaders, the future prosperity and environmental and social well being of our countries and communities rests in their hands. The one message that Copenhagen can bring to us all, is that collectively our world leaders and politicians have made the decisions that will be that giant leap for mankind. We will all be watching closely.

Chris Gledhill

01874 638979
Future Directions web site

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Gledhill) — Sat, 28 Nov 2009 18:17:00 +0000

Christmas bah ~~Humbug~~ Environment

I find it difficult to believe that we are on the countdown to Christmas 2009 - where has 2009 gone? For the past few weeks you couldn’t avoid being bombarded with the pre Christmas retail hype. Seriously, each year the retail industry seems to start their Christmas marketing earlier and earlier. A couple of weeks ago, I heard one of the money experts on the radio having a go at the commercialism of Christmas and how it in effect changes our behaviour, with everyone ‘blackmailed’ into buying, buying and buying. OK yes, Christmas is very important for the economic survival of many shops but it becomes a competition between the corporate giants, which I believe is not really what Christmas is about. This year however, we as a family have decided that we will have a Ho-Ho-Home Made Christmas, so we won’t be rushing out to join the crowds in the run up to Christmas. So it’s going to be a really exciting Christmas and I think we are all looking forward to it. The one shop I will recommend is the Do the Green Thing shop “Amazero”, they have fantastic offers. Try it out, I can guarantee that you will not be disappointed. I certainly was not disappointed with my first purchase of Nothing. Check out what they do and give consideration to their seven tips to reduce our impact on the environment.

1. Rather than jump in the car, walk the walk
2. Really think about the high environmental costs of flying, stay grounded
3. Rather than throw something away and replacing it, wear it or use it more.
4. Go easy on the meat, because believe it or not, the way we rear our animals, it produces more CO2 than the car industry.
5. Turning down the thermostat by 1degree can have a marked effect on ur CO2 emissions. Better still put on some extra clothes and turn the central heating off.
6. Even on stanby your electrical items still consume a lot of electricity so switch off and pull the plug out.
7. Stick with what you have got. Do you really need that new phone or lap top?

It is not going to be easy to ensure that we all do our bit to help reduce the green house gases and the impacts of climate change, but we can make a difference.

One of the best gifts I think that we could all get for Christmas is an agreement on climate change and reductions in CO2 emissions. So with the days rapidly approaching for the UN Copenhagen Summit on Climate Change our eyes are on the world leaders and what steps they are prepared to take. Sadly, there appears to be little chance of a legally binding agreement but who knows what may happen. Basically what we have to do to try and keep global warming below the projected and dangerous +2oC rise, is to reduce our CO2 emissions by 40% relative to our 1990 levels. Our long term aspiration must be a low carbon economy. So it will require something short of a miracle to get the world leaders to agree new legally binding targets. I will no doubt keep you posted on their progress.
In the meantime if you would like to know what more you can do, then drop me an e-mail or phone me on 01874 638 979
Have a great Advent

Chris

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Gledhill) — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 17:44:00 +0000

Ethical man versus the Petrol-head

I don’t think my eldest son forgave me for high jacking his Facebook entry the other day when I demonstrated little sympathy for him having to travel by train and put a link on his website to my Blog. So with his impeccable style and charisma, he somehow tracked down the BBC’s “ethical man”, Justin Rowlatt and his article on how the car could actually been greener than public transport.

My first car was a Mini like this

I actually have a great deal of sympathy for anyone who has been forced to give up their car. Since passing my driving test all those years ago, the car has been part of my life and that of my family. We’ve driven the kids to school in them, dragged them round National Trust properties, taken them on holiday and provided the family taxi service until they could drive themselves. Jonathan was whinging last week that he had to take the train to meetings in Glasgow and Edinburgh and I had little sympathy, but it has got me thinking, could I give up my car?

For my recent birthday, a very dear friend gave me among other things a book by Colin Beavan called “No Impact Man”. I am only half way through it but the book is about how he and his family embarked on a project to minimise their impact on the environment. The book is sub titled “The adventures of a guilty liberal who attempts to save the planet and the discoveries he makes about himself and our way of life in the process”. To say that I am engrossed in the book would be an understatement. I think it has got both me and my dear wife thinking that our own efforts to reduce our impact on the environment are fairly half hearted. Before rushing off and doing something rash we will both wait until we finish the book. But already I suspect that there will be some easy options and many more challenging.

So back to the dear old automobile, could I live without my car? The quick answer is I don’t know. We live in a very rural area, with very few services. Very few buses, no trains (nearest station is an hours drive away) and definitely no underground. Obviously, if I share my car when I go somewhere, then I could reduce my impact and carbon emissions. Could I cycle to Brecon (to the bus interchange) or Swansea (nearest rail station)? Going back to my last post, could I afford the rail fares? There is clearly some work to be done on our transport options. I need to weigh up the time travelling and the opportunities to do work on the public transport journey, with the convenience and costs of using my car. Of course, if I didn’t have a car, then this debate would be academic! Somehow I suspect that I will be returning to this subject again. So in the meantime, I will try when possible to use public transport as I did last week, but I will drive to the station, for the moment at least.

If you would like to know more about what you could do to improve your environmental performance give me a call 01874 638979 or e-mail me. I am shortly going to roll out a series of seminars/workshops on business and the environment and how you can save money from your waste and energy costs.

As always keep thinking about your environmental impact.

Keep smiling

Chris

Transport- what a cost

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Gledhill) — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 18:37:00 +0000

It seems an age since we got back from holiday, but life has been rather busy these last three weeks. However, I couldn’t help smile when I read last week that a walk in train ticket from Newquay in Cornwall to Kyle of Lochalsh is now £1002. Hardly a price to encourage anyone to take the train. It would also take you just over 25 hours to get there. You can see why people choose to find alternative ways of travel. Oh, I did forget that this was for a first class ticket. So a quick web search throws up a price of £456 for an open second class return and £244 for an off peak return. It also takes 28 hours. Not that anybody would just take the train to Lochalsh, there would be an onward journey say to Skye or up to Ullapool.

The Kyle is not an easy place to get to easily by public transport so I thought that I would look at another fairly long journey from Bristol to Inverness. So what are the options? You could fly to Inverness (Flying easy jet from Bristol to Inverness will set you back as little as £30 but can be over £250 dependant on when you fly but takes only 90 minutes), drive (529 miles and just over 9 hours) or you could opt for a bus to get to Inverness from Bristol (15 hours), you still have to find £72. There seems to be little logic in our approach to public transport in the UK. The train will take 10 hours and cost you £160.

Time and Cost

Bus 15 hours £72pp

Plane 90 minutes £30 - £250pp

Train 10 hours £160pp

Car 9 hours £65

When you consider that by flying you have to get to and from the airport, you could allow an extra 3 hours, so the total time jumps up to 4 and ½ hours. This still is better timing than the bus or train, but think about the Green House Gases and the impact on the environment. The prices and times are such that there is little encouragement to leave the car behind, especially if there are several of you travelling.

However on the environmental side the big bus companies have come together to promote bus travel to save the environment. The campaign is to encourage people to get out of their cars and onto buses and coaches; a quick and cost-effective way to reduce carbon emissions. It is called the “One billion challenge”

Switching from car to bus or coach for just one journey in 25 could save 2 million tonnes of CO2…

• That would mean one billion fewer car journeys on our roads …

• 50% more CO2 savings from transport than planned by the Government

• And it could be achieved in just three years if everyone played their part

If they reach their goal, there will be a reduction of 2 million tonnes of CO2, which would deliver an additional 50% reduction in CO2 from domestic transport to that anticipated over the same period by current Government policies. These measures would see both existing and new passengers attracted by added comfort, reliability and convenience, choosing to travel more often by bus or coach instead of car.

To succeed in the ONE BILLION Challenge, all they need is for car drivers to make one in 25 journeys previously made by car by bus instead. Here are some small changes that can make a big impact:

• Make just one extra commute by bus or coach a month

• Three out of every 100 parents letting their children travel to school by bus

• Every couple of months taking the bus to the town centre to do the shopping instead of the car

• Instead of driving to the bank, the doctor or the hairdresser, just take the bus

• Do one leisure trip per month by bus or coach – such as taking the bus to the cinema, for a day out, or to visit friends

So good luck to them I will do my bit. But what about the government putting subsidies into bus and coach travel to encourage more of us to get on board.

I wonder how many world leaders will use public transport to the Copenhagen?

Chris
Future Directions

Holidays and Climate Change

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Gledhill) — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 10:25:00 +0000

One of the things I find with blogging is not what to talk about, rather what I have to leave out! Last week I was in Sardinia, the weather, accommodation and company were perfect, sadly the exchange rate isn’t. So there were not too many Brits out there. What a difference a year makes. Generally everything is third more. English farmers no doubt will be delighted with their euro grants as the grant is based on the Euro rate. To get to Sardinia we flew, on the way back, we flew across the Alps (we did offset our holiday travel).

What a wonderful sight it was, the weather was clear and the peaks and the valleys stood out clearly, their forms accentuated by an early sprinkling of snow. My first experience of skiing on snow was ay Engelberg in Switzerland. I dare not say how many years ago this was but I was so impressed by the amount of snow. I have many happy memories of that visit.

This area is unique as an ice cave has been carved through its glacier. (picture credits to the Virtual Tourist). This glacier is now in retreat at a scary rate. This will have all sorts of social, environmental and economic consequences. Can you imagine that in trying to safeguard the glacier they wrap it up in a sort of fleece blanket to try and stop it melting in the summer! Well now in Engelberg they do this. The European Union has produced an excellent video on Living with Climate Change which can be accessed on the European Environment Agency website.

I am currently about to launch a series of seminars on Business and the Environment and you can get the details of these by contacting me. I will cover climate change in these, albeit briefly.

Chris Gledhill

Focus on the Future not the Past

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Gledhill) — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 08:35:00 +0000

I have been thinking about this weeks post for a few days now. I was going to focus on travel, however having listened to what our current political leaders are saying at their annual conferences, I just have to say something.
Our current politcal leaders seem to be spending their time with their heads buried in newspapers or ears stuck to the radio trying to dream up speeches that they think will win the support of the electorate. OK fair do's, their political longevity depends upon their appeal to us the voters, BUT wouldn't it be great if these "leaders" focussed on the really big issues rather than reacting to the current popular headlines. These matters have to be dealt with but they are mainly a matter of process. Yes if you have to bring in legislation to curb big bank bonuses and deal with anti social behaviour, get on with it BUT come on Clegg, Brown and Cameron as our potential political leaders how are you going to
Lead us out of recession
Lead us to deliver a sustainable and quality transport infrastructure
Provide the investment in zero carbon products and support businesses in reducing their environmental impacts
Support and develop capacity in local communities
Harness the untouched energies of our young people to ensure that they learn from our mistakes
Take the lead on climare change

In short what I want to see is their vision and plans for what they will do to support our communities, to develop the skills and capital to build a robust economy for the rest of this century, and finally and not least how they will ensure that we conserve our built and natural environments providing opportunities for development, recreation and tourism.

June 2010 is not far off, so come on gents, get yor speaches written, your policy writters busy and lets see what you are really about, orators we can get any day what we need are true political leaders who let us know how they are going to shape our futures.

In the meantime, Future Directions will work with you and your business to support you in understanding and maximising on the opportunities that environmenal management can bring.

Chris Gledhill
30th September 2009

Plastics and Waste

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Gledhill) — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 20:51:00 +0000

One of the things I hate is recycling or at least the sorting of rubbish into its component parts. Glass, metal, paper I can cope with, BUT with plastics help! We not only recycle our own waste, but we offer our visitors in our barn a recycle service for them. On a weekly basis this reduces what the bin men take to landfill by over 75%. So what is my rant over plastic about. Plastics are complicated, there are many different types (you can classify them into 7 types and each has a different method of recycling. Look out for the symbol such this.

This one is for polypropylene common to yoghurt tubs. But it is not so much the type of plastics it is the sheer quantity. Without exageration, so many products don't just come in plastic, they are excessively wrapped in another plastic.As for milk bottles why? I guess because they are light and cheap and they are taking over the world.

The irony to all this is that plastic was invented by Alexander Parkes in 1855 as a substitiute to replace ivorty for piano keys. Poor Elephants were being slaughtered for their ivory tusks to such an extent that it was becoming more difficult to obtain. So in a way, plastic was invented out of a sortage of raw material due to mans greed. Bakelite and nylon really put plastic into all our daily lives and today we are so dependant on it that no matter where we turn it is everywhere. Just look at a half or litre bottle of milk, better still save them up for a month and look at how much space they take up. Just imagine how much space it would take if we didn't recycle them and sent them all to landfill sites.

So what can we do? Milk now comes mainly in plastic bottles (thanks to our friends at ww.freephoto.com for the picture of the real glass milk bottle) so I guess we are largely stuck with them unless you have a coop close by. . For the other plastics we could be difficult at the checkouts of supermarkets taking off all unneccessary wrappings OR we could shop local a butchers, fish mongers, fruiterers but these are getting few and far between. We have come to rely largely on technology to make our life easier so if we want this to continue we must take up a new mantra for waste

1.Try to Eliminate Waste

2.Reduce

3. Re-use

4. Recycle

5. Dispose, but only as a last measure

If you would like advice and guidance you can e-mail me or visit my website

Don't forget to visit 10:10 to help reduce your carbon emmissions

Have a good week

Chris Gledhill

The Age of Stupid

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Gledhill) — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 14:14:00 +0000

Over the last month I have become increasingly frustrated at several press articles which have got me thinking as to the extent of the press in influencing our views and focussing on what they want, which is to sell papers, rather than to keep us informed of the really important issues which affect our lives. I say this from a viewpoint where I do not believe that we are doing enough to promote a more sustainable and environmental friendly lifestyle. OK yes I like my comforts, but equally I recognise the needs for change and have done much in the last few years to try and reduce my carbon footprint. Last years I was clocking up 10+ tonnes of CO2 . Today I rechecked this and I was delighted to find I and my wife Carole had managed to get out household footprint down to under a tonne of CO2. Check out yours today with the following Carbon Trust calculator.

Carbon calculator

So WOW, what has happened this week is fantastic. At last someone doing something to raise awareness and committment with us the people. The Director of the film The Age of Stupid is about to change all this. She has launched a campaign 10:10. Basically it is simple campaign to get everyone to cut their carbon emissions by 10% by 2010. Check out their website and sign up. It couldn't be easier. So well done Franny Armstrong , check out her video interview here. And well done the Guardian newspaper for the full support of this campaign.

I have now scrubbed the rest of what I was going to say on the press, but lets see what my next blog brings. And remember sign up to 10:10

FOOTNOTES:
If you would like to know how we slashed our carbon footprint contact me on enquiries@futuredirections.org.uk

For organisations and businesses I offer an environmental review service check out my website

So heres to the future and the ten simple steps for getting there!

Chris Gledhill

My First Blog

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Gledhill) — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 15:20:00 +0000

Well I have finally done it. After a a period of dithering, I have now set up my own blog. Why? Well I think that I have things that I can share with a range of friends and colleagues and customers. What I hope to do is share some of the things that I get up to and more importantly raise issues about sustainable development and tourism.

The day here has been awful, so much for a cracking barbecue summer. Is this really a very dramatic sign that the forecasts on climate change are true. Mainly warmer and wetter summers. Well to date, we have had soaring temperatures (but not too many) but we have been in the high 20's, equally we have had torrential downpours. When we went to scotland a 2 weeks ago, we were flooded in and had to drive through the flood waters to escape our valley here in Wales.

Yesterday was brilliant and I was working on my lap top in the garden, today it is pouring again. So for those people who decided to have a "staycation" in the UK, I feel sorry for them. At our holiday cottage Madogfechan, we had one couple who only saw two weeks of rain. However, when the sun shines, every is beautiful and green. My next blog will be far more structured.

Bye for now.

Chris