Hello dear readers, we hope the arrival of August finds you happy and well. Here on Arran summer is in full swing – the island is busy with visitors and the sun is even casting its rays on proceedings! And as in other years, the coming weeks are packed with some of Arran’s most anticipated cultural events – Arran Open Studios, and the McLellan Arts Festival, which is joined this year by the McLellan Book festival and Wee Mac Arran. There is also an inaugural International Festival of Chamber Music and Song.
But as quickly as a new month arrives, the preoccupations of the old disperse. And while for me the hubbub of the election has as good as evaporated into the hazy distance of holiday activity and long evenings, not so for our new political leaders. In this issue we hear how the change of government has already led to some encouraging moves by Ed Miliband, the new Energy Secretary. In ‘Who Owns Our Future Energy?’ Molly Scott Cato says the “immediate action on onshore wind and the steps he will take to sound the death-knell of North Sea oil and gas is a sign of positive things to come.” But she asks, putting voice to some of my recent thoughts, “What of Great British Energy? It’s a useful electoral slogan, but what will it mean in practice?”
Similar themes emerge In Sally Campbell’s piece ‘Progress, Democracy, Power and Autocracy.’ With the advent of a new government, comes a feeling of hope that momentum on the environment may be turned into reality. But despite the renewed context Campbell reminds us now isn’t the time to be complacent, and she urges us all to “be willing to play our part in reducing our own carbon footprints and push to encourage Arran to support green energy initiatives.”
As if on cue, there is news from Arran Eco Savvy about the launch of a new project to do exactly this. “Tackling Climate Change by Living Well for Less” builds on the learning of the Green Islands Project. Alongside Green Home Systems, an accredited installer, Eco Savvy will help coordinate the support people need to act on recommendations from energy audits and EPCs, rather than leaving them as just recommendations.
Amidst the talk of Energy and Politics, my mind turns to a meeting at the end of the month and to a lesser-known cause – the Arctic Tern on Pladda. This tiny island is home to the last breeding colony of Arctic Tern on Arran. But with reports last month that the new owners have recently brought heavy machinery onto the island, the future of these birds here, and their breeding this year, is uncertain. Arran ornithologist Jim Cassels states that if we are to benefit from the continued presence of these remarkable birds the responsibility of their situation lies with us all.
The planning documents for Pladda do not mention the resident bird populations, but a meeting has been organised and the owner is keen to meet and listen to the views of the community. Campbell’s words on Democracy seem as relevant for this context as for the country, and the outlook of Arctic Tern for me really brings to life what it is we can and need to do. For if we take our place, Democracy can act as a “a valuable support network… to create inclusion with many opinions around the table,” thereby building “a stronger society where communities work together for the good of the society and the world in which we live.”
And with these sentiments in mind we wish you a wonderful month to come, Elsa
