Action Briefing Dec 2002 - Jan 2003
	The Newsletter of Birmingham Friends of the Earth

Eastsiders Launched and Lunched at the Urban Summit

You may remember from previous newsletters that, with 17 other local organisations, we produced a guide called “Sustainable Eastside: a Vision for the Future” on how Eastside (aka Digbeth, etc) could be truly sustainable and provide real regeneration. The report covered issues such as waste, transport, wildlife, buildings etc - and also extras such as access and social inclusion, participation, and economic issues such as local sourcing, green and greener industry and planning for proper mixed use. You can view it at www.beep.dial.pipex.com/esag or give us a call for a copy.

Having had the document well received by the Council we decided to launch it at the Urban Summit, which was in Birmingham as you might have noticed. This brought interest from press, public sector, national NGOs and developers, (such as Balfour Beatty - I didn’t tell them I was a shareholder, having bought ONE share to attend an AGM last year....) and we will be following these contacts up in the next couple of months. Our “Day in the Life” portrayal of a sustainable lifestyle, “Eastsiders”, was also published in the Birmingham Post.

Our main message - especially if much of the sustainable detailing is truly being implemented (credit where it’s due!) - is that to be truly sustainable Eastside regeneration needs not only to protect the planet’s resources but also to identify businesses that meet the needs of Birmingham’s population both in the jobs created and in the services or products delivered. It’s a localisation approach and provides environmental protection and economic stability rolled into one. Regeneration needs also to provide jobs and housing across the employment spectrum.

Of course launching Sustainable Eastside at the Summit also meant we got to attend. Tracey, Jenny and I shared two tickets to attend most of the sessions, which meant those wonderful huge bags of free used paper they hand out at such events, a nice lunch and the chance to witness the slightly nauseating backslapping speeches of various local and national politicians congratulating themselves on their urban regeneration successes in Birmingham and the UK.

However, the most heartwarming line I heard was from the refreshingly sarcastic Milwaukee Mayor John Norquist, who explicitly made the link between his slides of urban deprivation/rural damage and of the beauty spots featured in the car industry’s cherished adverts. I don’t think you’d catch our council making that connection. John Norquist for US president!

Meanwhile the Eastside Sustainability Advisory Group, who created the document, continues to operate. The City Council’s bid for European funding for Eastside included a portion for the group to function as advisors to the development. We recognise that on many issues the council’s hands are tied - for example where policy is decided by a landowner or developer - but we hope that they will facilitate ESAG to have our say even on such issues. It does not mean they have to put themselves in the scarey position of actually saying it themselves, however much we might like them to, but enables those who understand sustainability to express it openly - effecting real consultation.