General Area > Greening Bedales

As the volume of media coverage increases on the subject of global warming, it is clear that the moment is ripe for communities and individuals to make their positive contribution to what is generally agreed to be the most significant difficulty facing the world. Reports from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the impact and huge exposure of Al Gore’s “An Inconvenient Truth” and the discussion on the topic of “peak oil,” all urge us to make the difference sooner rather than later.

The first ideas for encouraging Bedales to be more environmentally aware, surfaced in the mid nineties when eight members of staff carried out an audit which resulted in a number of recommendations – some of which are still around today although many have fallen by the wayside.

Talks at the school by Professor Tony Marmont (Founder and Director of Beacon Energy) and Simon Aldrich OB (Environmental Consultant) re-ignited the initiative and a committee of students and staff was formed to take forward ideas on sustainable living into practical and successful conclusions.

At senior level, the Headmaster and Governors are discussing planning which will look at two key headings – energy in and energy out. By March 2009, it is envisaged that there will be a ten-year Green Plan where priorities are agreed and major expenditure having been thoroughly considered will be put into place at a strategic level.

In the meantime the Green Bedales Committee will endeavour to add to the growing number of projects that have been initiated and to encourage more people to work along lines that will lessen the school’s carbon impact.

The school’s aim should be to move towards carbon neutrality.

Greening Bedales: the background

Greening Bedales conferences, 8 September 2007

Green policy