National Downshifting Week

The UK will soon be celebrating its 3rd National Downshifting Week an awareness campaign spearheaded by sustainable living writer and broadcaster, Tracey Smith.

The week takes place between 21st and 27th April 2007 and is designed to help participants slow down and lean towards the green. Smith is breaking with tradition this year, by not touring the country to promote it! Instead, she will be using her local radio and TV studios, video conferencing, the Internet, email and the phone to spread the good, green word.

She’s also harnessing the strength of the UK’s Hospital Radio community, a strong and shining example of volunteer energy, to help do it too. Tracey broadcasts ‘Slow Down and Green Up’ on Taunton Hospital’s Apple AM which has a rapidly expanding Internet audience.

She told us, “I’m promoting simple, green living and leaving as light a carbon-footprint as I can. I will be using public transport, Shanks’ pony and car sharing to get me to my destinations and if I physically can’t get somewhere, I’ll use another method to communicate my point!”

She added, “We can be more effective in business if we travel less and focus our energy on getting our message across by another means, saving time, money and carbon emissions; corporate giants would do well to follow this lead, instead of flicking employees onto planes for 10 minute meetings.” "Simple technology from ethical companies like Ozone Conferencing provides cost effective, eco-friendly solutions. It also keeps sole-driver ‘gridlockers’ off the road and gets people home to their families after a day in the office, not in the air.”

National Downshifting Week’s slow down top tips are targeted at Individuals, Companies, Children and Schools and includes....

• Cut up a credit card - “Learning to live within our means is key to downshifting and positively embracing living with less is better still.”
• Plant something in the garden you can cultivate and eat - “Grow a few tomatoes or chillies on a windowsill if you have no garden; pesticide-free produce tastes amazing. It also breaks the myth that all food comes from the supermarkets!”
• Contact local food producers and re-think your vending machines at work – “Low mileage food and drinks and Fair Trade and Organic treats in the workplace…whatever next!”
• Book a half-day off work to spend with someone you love, no DIY allowed - “How can we have ‘quality time’ with great people, if we spend so much of it chasing the money? Money can’t buy you time.”

For further details see www.DownshiftingWeek.com

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