The Transition movement is a worldwide network of people who are concerned about the future. As fossil fuels are burned up and carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases are released into the atmosphere, we are already experiencing unpredictable, and in some cases catastrophic, climate events such as floods, droughts, big freezes, heat waves and storms. We are also seeing shortages of crucial raw materials and the destruction of vulnerable ecosystems.
The challenge is to find ways to live our lives sustainably: ensuring the well-being of future generations; not using up finite resources or creating insurmountable problems; and making our towns and villages better places to live. Each Transition Initiative finds a way of working that is appropriate to the individuals and the community involved.
Transition Chesterfield was started in 2008 as part of the transition movement and since that time has involved hundreds of people in practical projects and activities to raise awareness of climate change and help to make Chesterfield more resilient, sustainable, low-carbon and locally self-sufficient. We have a number of current projects and campaigns.
What is the transition movement?
Transition is a movement of communities coming together to reimagine and rebuild our world. The name came from the need for communities to ‘transition’ from oil dependency to local resilience (something that is even more urgent now). It was based on the idea that we’re coming to the end of the Age of Cheap Oil, and that for a society utterly dependent on it, this means enormous change. But a future with less oil could be preferable to the present if we plan for it with imagination and creativity. In our current and long overdue efforts to drastically cut carbon emissions we must also give equal importance to the building (or rebuilding) of resilience.
Who are we?
We are an entirely voluntary community group and new members are always welcome. No one person is in charge but we have a small Committee of members who are elected each year to make decisions on behalf of the group. The current committee is Margaret Hersee (Treasurer), Karl Deakin, Kathy Farr and Andie Cooper. Coordinators for projects/campaigns include: Potato Day (Alastair Meikle); Abundance (Alison Cowley and Polly Bentley); Repair Café (Wendy Pinchbeck and Ann Birks); Seed Swap (Lizzie Henshaw and Martin Baxter); Littersorters (Kathy Farr and Peter Gray); Ec0-Hub (Karl Deakin and Kathy Farr);Divest Derbyshire (Lisa Hopkinson); campaigns on walking/cycling (Lisa Hopkinson and Alastair Meikle) and home energy saving (Lisa Hopkinson). Click here for the 2022 Secretary’s Report. Click here for the 2022 AGM minutes and the 2022 EGM minutes
Changes to the constitution were agreed at the 2022 AGM. The latest version of the constitution can be downloaded here.
We support:
Renewable energy • More energy efficient homes and buildings • Better public transport • More walking and cycling • Less waste • Re-use and repair • Less meat and dairy products • Organic, local food • Local industries serving local markets • Less plastics, fertilisers and other oil-intensive goods • Re-learning skills • Working together.
Join us
Help us to make our town a better place to live. Join us at our monthly open meetings or sign up for our free newsletter by emailing hello@transitionchesterfield.org.uk
See the results of our 2022 Members’ Survey here
Past highlights and achievements
2009: first Potato Day – held in the market; movies and talks; skillshare workshops including beekeeping, jam-making and composting; harvest swap and critical mass bike ride
2010: abundance project started; 6 car-free walk leaflets; skill-share workshops on wild food foraging, chicken-keeping and solar PV; Eco-homes Open Day; planting fruit trees in public parks
2011: skill-share workshops including fruit tree pruning, bread making and herbal teas; support for 20’s Plenty; Eco-homes Open Day
2012: fourth Potato Day; Bike Project to train bike mechanics
2013: first Repair Café held as part of Chatsworth Rd Festival; meeting on Renewable Energy; pedestrian audits to improve Chesterfield’s urban walking routes
2014: Transition Chesterfield awarded Community Group of the Year; Carbon Conversations; drama project
2015: land found for organic community garden project; vegetarian cookery workshops; repair cafes; three seed swaps
2016: Inspire Community Garden becomes separate charity; bi-monthly Repair Cafes; Divest Derbyshire campaign started; new Chesterfield Climate Alliance formed; car-free walk leaflet
2017: Inspire Community Garden run weekly workshops on organic gardening; Abundance project collects surplus fruit for food banks; over 1,000 signatures collected in support of divestment; support for anti-fracking groups in the region
2018: tenth Potato Day!; Repair Café goes monthly; visit to waste recycling centre; talk on plastic waste recycling; presentation to public enquiry on fracking; complaint to council about lack of walking and cycling access
2019: signed up to Manchester Declaration on the Right to Repair; Transition and 20 other groups formed Derbyshire Climate Coalition; Chesterfield Borough Council declared a climate emergency; talk by former MP Alan Simpson; pop-up market stall on divestment; Plastic Free Chesterfield supported by Transition
2020: Repair Cafe moved to bigger premises at Chesterfield Baptist Church, held a series of practical eco-homes workshops and an event on electric cars and bikes, 12th annual Potato Day, part of Chesterfield Borough Council climate working group, seed swaps and Abundance project.
2021: Monthly appointment-only Repair Cafes, 13th annual Potato Day, monthly climate-themed Countdown to COP events, 2 walks organised as part of the Chesterfield Walking Festival, surplus produce collected and distributed to food banks and communities, Plastic Free Chesterfield became an accredited plastic free community, website relaunched including a new Postcards from the Future section
Transition Chesterfield is part of the wider Transition movement https://transitionnetwork.org/about-the-movement/what-is-transition/.
