Practical action to build community resilience

The Good Life Initiative in New Earswick, York, sought to build community resilience and reduce carbon emissions through a holistic approach to sustainability. The project found that attempts to create groups solely around energy saving were unsuccessful; instead, success was achieved by identifying 'hooks'—local interests such as green spaces and school partnerships—to engage residents. While measurable reductions in household emissions could not be demonstrated, the project successfully raised awareness of low-carbon lifestyles, improved social connections, and enhanced community cohesion.

• Engagement strategies that focused exclusively on energy saving and sustainability were ineffective, as these messages did not align with the interests of existing community groups. In contrast, participation increased by over 70% (from 249 to 431 people) when the project leveraged 'hooks' relevant to local interests and partnered with established entities like the local secondary school and parish council.
• The project successfully raised awareness of low-carbon lifestyles, with approximately 360 people attending themed events. Evaluation indicated improvements in knowledge regarding recycling habits and energy saving, particularly among pupils and staff at the local secondary school.
• The initiative failed to demonstrate a measurable reduction in household carbon emissions due to low participation in household energy surveys, although personal energy saving pledges were popular.
• The project significantly improved community resilience by strengthening social links, fostering community cohesion, and enhancing the practical and organisational skills of residents. Specific successful activities included community mapping to identify local problems and the creation of a new resident-led group focused on food production.

APA

Cinderby, S., Haq, G., Cambridge, H., & Lock, K. (2014). Practical action to build community resilience. Stockholm Environment Institute. https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/sei-report-york-building-community-sustainability-summary.pdf

Chicago

Cinderby, Steve, Gary Haq, Howard Cambridge, and Kate Lock. Practical action to build community resilience. Stockholm Environment Institute, 2014. https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/sei-report-york-building-community-sustainability-summary.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Cinderby |first1=Steve |last2=Haq |first2=Gary |last3=Cambridge |first3=Howard |last4=Lock |first4=Kate |title=Practical action to build community resilience |publisher=Stockholm Environment Institute |date=March 2014 |url=https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/sei-report-york-building-community-sustainability-summary.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{cinderby2014practical, author = {Cinderby, Steve and Haq, Gary and Cambridge, Howard and Lock, Kate}, title = {{Practical action to build community resilience}}, institution = {Stockholm Environment Institute}, year = {2014}, month = mar, url = {https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/sei-report-york-building-community-sustainability-summary.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }