Thanks to Peterborough’s Future Jobs Fund a team has been established to help Peterborough achieve its aspiration of becoming the UK’s Environment Capital.The team of ten visits local people and provides help and advice on how to live in an environmentally friendly way. The team started working in the Ortons in April and will cover three wards in total before the project ends in September.
The project is being managed by green charity Peterborough Environment City Trust (PECT) working with Greater Peterborough Partnership. It is hoped that as well as giving people hints and tips on being green, the team will raise the profile of local environmental initiatives and collect data to help establish what kinds of things local people are already doing to reduce their environmental impact.
Team members conduct a short survey with all the residents they visit asking a range of questions including: Did you know that Peterborough is now working towards becoming the UK’s Environment Capital? How do you actively try to save water in your home? Do you think it is important for each of us as individuals to work towards living greener lives?
Sophie Antonelli from PECT, who is heading up the team, believes the project will greatly benefit the young people involved as well as the people receiving visits from the Green Team. She said: “The project is going really well and we’ve already spoken to over 250 residents. People we’ve visited have been extremely positive about the project and receptive to our suggestions to reduce their environmental impact and save money.
“I’ve been pleasantly surprised by how many people are aware that Peterborough is aiming to become the UK’s Environment Capital and believe it will be beneficial for the city and those living in it.”
