Green grants, sustainable breaks and cutting plastic

With the EU’s climate monitoring service saying that 2024 could be the world’s hottest year, it’s important that we keep making small changes to reduce our impact on the environment. Here’s our three green steps for July.

Grants of up to £15,000 available now to help combat climate change

The latest round of the Community Climate Action Fund (CCAF) is now open for applications.

Community and voluntary organisations from across the district can apply for grants of up to £15,000 to support projects that benefit the wider community and encourage education on the response to climate change.

Projects we’ve supported in the past include climate change events, bike shelters, water refill stations, biodiverse gardens and solar panel systems.

Have a sustainable summer holiday!

With the school holidays imminent, there are great sustainable trips and stays just around the corner.

Whether you want to take a step back in time at Butser Ancient Farm, have an active holiday cycling the South Downs Way, or take a free bike ride on the Green Loop, visit the homes of literary great Jane Austen and world-renowned naturalist Gilbert White, you don’t need to go far to have a great break.

If you’re looking for eco-tourist options, you can find some on the Visit Hampshire website.

The South Downs National Park also awards a sustainability certification called the Green South Downs Award for accommodation, visitor attractions and shops. Find out more on the Our South Downs website.

Plastic Free July

It's Plastic Free July. This annual event, organised by the Plastic Free Foundation, encourages all of us to choose to refuse single-use plastics.

Even if you recycle single-use plastics, the quality of the plastic at the end of the process degrades each time it’s recycled, unlike glass bottles or metal cans which can be recycled into new bottles or cans over and over again.

Not sure what plastics you can change? You can take the Pesky Plastics Quiz on their website to find ideas for either plastic free, or multi-use solutions.

For more more to do in your local area, check out Plastic Free Communities, which has been set up by Surfers Against Sewage. Well known for their beach cleaning campaigns, they're tackling the problem of single-use plastic at its source by encouraging towns and villages (including residents and businesses) to go plastic free.