So much about tackling our climate emergency is about the massive changes that governments need to do but, actually none of that will matter (or work) if people don’t reconnect with the environment around them.

Clarrie from Seacroft Climate Action buzzes with energy; ‘Me and my Husband were locked down together. I’d never been a gardener, but we put some radishes in, and it was AMAZING. Our garden looks like an allotment now.

The group came together during lockdown and decided that the first thing they needed to do was make sure that people realized how much green space there is in Seacroft, and then encourage people to enjoy the space.

After getting going properly a few months ago, the steering group of 8 and 25 connected members are now up to full speed. Recently, they’ve taken on a community allotment in Killingbeck. The allotment isn’t ideal because it’s separated from the main bit of Seacroft but it’s a start. It was created for a similar project a few years ago, one of Climate Action Seacrofts’ members found it and they have worked incredibly hard to make it useable again. They have two raised beds, a polytunnel, a pizza oven and a compost toilet!

‘I thought it’d be horrible but actually it’s pretty nice’ says Clarrie.

 

 

Of course, it’s not just Seacroft Climate Action doing this stuff – when they were getting started they took a busman’s holiday across the A64 to the established “Cross Green Growing Together” project to see what they’ve been up to and get a few tips.

Not satisfied with hanging out on the allotment, they’ve started to develop a forest garden in the heart of Seacroft, which is attracting new people to help with clearing the land, so that some trees can be planted and pathways laid over the winter. Their big dream is to re-develop a derelict site as a community garden with room to play, sit, dream, and have mental health support – but that’s for the future.

It’s great building these new spaces, but in order to spread the word they know they need to do the small things, and they know they have to build connections across the neighbourhood. That’s why they’ve partnered up with LS14 Trust, with Chapel FM, Together for Peace, and with the library service. They’ve worked with Leeds Wood Recycling and Seagull paints to build mobile planters that just appear outside community facilities. They’ve got a seed bank in the library and have plans for low cost growing kits.

 

 

As well as being involved in Climate Action Seacroft, many of the members are also active in other local initiatives that have got off the ground during lockdown, such as the Seacroft Wombles.

I ask Clarrie what difference this all makes and she reels off an incredible list:

 ‘We’re making new green spaces, we’re linking people together, we’re sharing learning about recycling, we’ve passing on what we’ve learnt on courses about climate change, we’re getting people growing and I’ve made incredible new friends’

Before we finish I ask Clarrie how she feels;

‘Sometimes I just go to the allotment and I stand there, and it’s quiet, and I feel good and it’s just AMAZING!’

To find out more  about Climate Action Seacroft find us on social media, and email climateactionseacroft@gmail.com

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