Who We Are
Sharing our Experience and Expertise
Emerging environmental work across the district has increased considerably over the last couple of years, with many parishes and villages establishing their own eco groups. These groups have a wide range of initiatives, have gathered a huge amount of useful knowledge and have worked with, or have contact with, people who have specialist expertise.
They are also garnering the support of their communities by engaging and educating their residents on green issues and fighting the feeling of ‘environmental distress’ by providing local ‘do-able’ actions. By their community nature, these groups are often siloed in local bubbles and are problem-solving on their own.
Together we constitute a significant resource of expertise, volunteers and district connection. However, currently this is too dispersed, and this means that the effort and expertise does not achieve its full potential.
We believe that a larger organisation is required to help support and connect our endeavours; to pool our resources and to make our voice for the environment more effective. The benefits of a larger organisation include:
- Access to larger amounts of grant funding
- refining and improving the quality of grant applications to ensure a greater success rate
- sharing of project ideas, expertise and resources
- a go to space for advice
- contacts and reliable information
- creation of an ‘eco-network’ that spans the entire district
- creating greater visibility for sustainability in the district
Whilst, creating Sustainable Uttlesford would necessarily have an Uttlesford focus, it would be important for it to have elastic boundaries, in the sense of working collaboratively with neighbouring organisations, e.g. Stansted with Bishop’s Stortford and Hadstock with South Cambridge and Cambridge.
Initially, at least, the organization is fairly informal, without the necessity of complex registration. Later, once we have some momentum, we can register as a Community Interest Company or Charity.
Explore Projects and Groups
Our directory contains details of groups undertaking sustainable and environmentally focussed projects throughout the Uttlesford area.
Search for a specific group or browse projects by location or project type.