A U T U M N

2 0 1 2

News from

Transition Town Forres

AGM info
Were pleased to announce that the Transition Town Forres (TTF) Annual General Meeting will be held at the Tolbooth in Forres. Holly%Reinhard%and%Moira%Wu%% having%fun%on%a%wheelbarrow.%%%% %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%Photo%by%Lla%Schwair

Sowing Seeds for Next Year

The Community Garden group continues to be the backbone of TTF. They held an AGM in October and have lots of ideas for the upcoming year. Turn to page 3 for details. On the TTF board, the fundraising committee has been hard at work to secure funding for converting the pavilion to an Environmental Ed & Healthy Living Centre. Details are on p 4.

TTF AGM 7:00 9:00 pm Thursday, 29 November The Tolbooth High St, Forres
Light refreshments will be provided.
It will help us greatly if you could let us know in advance that youll be attending, so we can get an idea of what our numbers will be. This is not strictly necessary, but it will help us a lot with planning. Please contact us at ttforres@gmail.com

Save the Date!

AGM
29 Nov 2012 7-9 pm The Tolbooth High St, Forres

TTF has also been exploring partnerships. A very promising one is with Community Food Moray, which has recently started a Food Bank. We foresee that the EE & Healthy Living Centre could, among many other functions, serve as a drop-off point for donations of food.

````````````````

TRANSITION TOWN FORRES

AUTUMN 2012

Whats New & Good

Centre funding!
In October, we received another 16,750 towards establishing the Environmental Education and Healthy Living Centre from: Jill Marsden, the Margaret Cameron Trust, the Garfield Weston Foundation, and Trusthouse Charitable Foundation. Thanks to all! On 10 Nov we will launch a crowd-funding bid on RocketHub.com please check it out and donate!

Transition Streets
TTF will soon begin piloting the Transition Streets initiative developed by Transition Totnes. The experience in Totnes was that in 61 Streets groups, a total of 550 households cut their average annual bills by 570 and saved 1.2 tonnes of carbon. And, some said most importantly, they got to know their neighbours better. We hope Forres residents reap similar benefits!

TTF + Transition Sweden

Whats the link between TTF and Sweden? A LEADER trans-national project, designed for us to learn from each other. In September, LEADER sent four TTF directors to London to attend the Transition Town Network conference and network with members of Swedish Transition delegation. Here is the mission statement we came up with: Colearning and explorations of communication, including elements and strategies, to better motivate and engage people in our local communities, to improve local resilience and well-being. Exchanges in 2013 will give us chances to explore what we can learn from the Swedes and give us specific ideas for on-the-ground work here at home.

TRANSITION TOWN FORRES

AUTUMN 2012

From the Chair

The year since our last AGM has primarily been spent fundraising for the Pavilion. I am delighted to say that we have had some considerable success and we are positively looking forward to the 'transition' from an agricultural shed in to a well insulated Environmental Education and Healthy Living Centre. We are planning for this to happen in the early spring. All going well we will then see weekly farmers' markets and a whole host of interesting activities. The garden is going from strength to strength and looks vibrant even in a rainy summer. A success story this year is the 'carrot boxes' also becoming known as 'Chatter Boxes', as they lend themselves to leaning on and having a good old chat while weeding. The board has been strengthened this year by the addition of Claralynn Nunamaker, a virtual energy machine. She runs a local social enterprise called Compassion n Action and has added a wealth of knowledge and energy to the board. Our other board members are all actively taking part in planning the future for TTF and we all look forward to 2013.

From the Community Garden Group

The Community Garden group held their AGM on 20 October. At that meeting, the following were decided and/or discussed. 1) Voted at last AGM: Chair, Vice-Chair and Membership Secretary. Chair Ian happy to continue - Vice-Chair: Carin Schwartz - Membership Secretary: Manja 2) Redistribution of spaces in polytunnels is going to take place soon. 3) Trying to find possibilities to get rid of weeds. 4) All the leave mold that has been stored at the neighbours site (where they plant Christmas trees) has been removed by them. We now have to think of an alternative space to put the leaves (as compost) that we get each fall from Moray Council. 5) The development of a chicken area still being discussed, to decide if it's worth it or not. 6) Importance of an introductory tour for all new members, to let them know about the facilities, rules of conduct, etc. 7) Thanks to volunteers who help with cleaning, etc. Everyone is encouraged to follow their example. 8) Everybody is encouraged to participate at the meetings and workdays.

Our Friends @ the Hub

need a little help from their friends! The Hub supports TTF by giving us computer time, office time, a mail slot, and friendly support. They are in need of volunteers to staff The Hub (located at 20 Tolbooth Street). They need people who can do 2 -hour shifts, either 10 am -12:30 or 12:30 3 pm. Are you interested in helping out? Please contact Colin Lipscomb, 676 285 or 672 244, email office@forresweb.net.
3

TRANSITION TOWN FORRES

AUTUMN 2012

Environmental Ed & Healthy Living Centre

What will it be?
The existing Pavillion will be converted into an Environmental Education & Healthy Living Centre with a 60 square metre space for meetings, classes (cooking, nutrition, growing your own classes, films & discussions, etc), and whatever else we dream up! It will also be a place to get a cup of tea, sit down for chat, and explore the notice board, lending library, and loaner equipment as well.

Whos paying for it?

Your TTF fundraisers have applied to dozens of funders and have now secured grants from the Robertson Trust, Margaret Cameron Trust, Hugh Fraser Foundation, Garfield-Weston Foundation, and the Trusthouse Charitable Foundation. Generous donations have also come in from individuals (many thanks for Jill Marsden!) as well as fundraisers like You Cant Eat Money. Our remaining shortfall is now about 30,000, but since everything right now is 100% matched by LEADER, we need only another 15,000. An additional four applications are still outstanding, and we are about to launch a crowd-funding bid on RocketHub.com (details on page 5).

Farmers Market at Bogton Road

The Centre is also an important part of getting the Farmers Market up and running again. The idea is to create a show around the market, making it a family-friendly event. We aim for the market to run every week throughout the year, and are working to find funding for a dedicated market organizer.

Farmers Market
If you are a producer of food or other goods and would like to be informed of progress towards re-opening the Farmers Market, please get in touch. Likewise, if you are a storyteller, face-painter, or run other activities that would appeal to children (young and old), please let us know what youd like to share! Our contact email is ttforres@gmail.com.
4

TRANSITION TOWN FORRES

AUTUMN 2012

Monday Make & Mend group

A Make & Mend group meets every Monday from 1:00-2:30 pm at the Forres House Community Centre in the coffee bar. TTF Board member Kay Fielding leads the sessions and gives instruction on sewing, knitting, and more. Kay explains, "We make something new or mend something old. Make & Mend is open to ladies and gentlemen who want to try something new and pick up creative skills. Or simply make new friends." Kay is happy to answer your questions about the group, just call her on 696898.

Crowd-Funding for Centre begins 10 Nov

Whats crowd-funding? Its internet-based fundraising where people donate whatever they can, be it 5 or 1,000. Lots of people donating a little can add up to a lot of money. Were aiming to close the shortfall for the Environmental Education & Healthy Living Centre with a crowd-funding bid. Were currently dreaming up the rewards for donors of all levels. A few of the rewards planned are: 5 Pic of finished Centre 10 I love Forres sticker 25 a local recipe cards 100 I love Forres bag 500 named on a Be the Change plaque in the Centre We plan to go live on 10 November on www.RocketHub.com Please check it out and donate whatever you can! All donors will be listed in the newsletter & on the web.

Whos on the Board?

The TTF board has had a few changes since the last newsletter. Here is an updated list.
TTF Directors Carin Schwartz, chair Kay Fielding George Goudsmit Bisong Guo Sandra Maclennan Claralynn Nunamaker Donald Rodgie

Key individuals Ian Osgood, Garden Group Chair Tony Pinner, Treasurer

TRANSITION TOWN FORRES

AUTUMN 2012

Join or Renew your Membership

If youd like to join or renew your membership, please fill in the form below and return it to us at: Transition Town Forres 20 Tolbooth St Forres IV36 1PH

MEMBERSHIP FORM for Joining or Renewal

Id like to JOIN ______ (both are FREE!)* RENEW______
Optional donation for EE & Healthy Living Centre ____ 10 ____ 20 ____ Other ____ 50 ____ 100

Name_______________________________________________ Address_____________________________________________ City _____________________ Post Code_________________ Email ______________________________________________ What you want us to know ___________________________ ____________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________ Remind * REMINDER Members need to renew each year.

Please return to Transition Town Forres 20 Tolbooth Street Forres IV36 1PH

Thank you from TTF!