Following a special awards ceremony in York on Saturday, the Pickering and Kirkbymoorside Team, based in Ryedale, has been announced winner of the Green Neighbourhood Challenge – a year-long sub-regional carbon-cutting campaign.
The team, headed up by champion Mike Potter, was picked to take part in the campaign in January last year – competing alongside six other groups from across York and North Yorkshire to make lifestyle changes that will create greener communities for themselves and for future generations, helping them to save money at the same time.
The Green Neighbourhood Challenge's aim was to see which group could do the most to save (and even generate) energy, cut emissions and encourage local people in their area to foster a low-carbon lifestyle. Teams were challenged to achieve an 11% reduction in their carbon footprint by the end of 2011 - whilst earning the laudable title of North Yorkshire's 'Greenest Neighbourhood Team'.
The Pickering and Kirkbymoorside Team has been awarded £500 to invest back into their community and a certificate congratulating them on their achievement of a whopping 11.9% carbon reduction and evidence of strong grass roots activity within their neighbourhood. Whitby4Sustainability took second prize and the Boroughbridge Eco Group came a close third.
John Brown, Ryedale District Council's Environmental Co-ordinator is proud of the Pickering and Kirkbymoorside team's achievement:
"We're so thrilled that the Pickering and Kirkbymoorside team has won the Green Neighbourhood Challenge. We've monitored their progress throughout this challenge and their fantastic efforts will no doubt be used as a catalyst to creating a more sustainable community for themselves and others. We applaud their award and hope it will encourage more communities in our area to partake in low-carbon living. The teamhas laid the groundwork for any local community to take up the Green Neighbourhood Challenge - which is a very worthy way of greening your community, having fun, learning and saving money at the same time."
Green Neighbourhood Challenge Project Coordinator, Denise Hall, is impressed with the level of commitment shown by the groups involved:
"Our teams have all contributed differently – but the overall aim of increasing awareness of the benefits of low-carbon living has been achieved in all areas. The groups have created a blueprint for other communities to follow suit and discover the challenge for themselves – and I'm incredibly proud to be a part of this successful project. Congratulations to everyone taking part."
Supported by local councils across York andNorth Yorkshire, the project was funded by the Yorkshire and Humber Improvement and Efficiency Partnership (YoHR Space). It was managed by Yorkshire Energy Partnership and the Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI) at York University.
The Green Neighbourhood Challenge is now relaunching its website to feature toolkits and resource packs so that any community group can organise and launch their own challenge or series of activities. To find out more visit http://www.greenneighbourhood.co.uk/ .
For further information or interview requests with members of the team, please contact:
- Nicky Harmson at Yorkshire Energy Partnership, emailnicky.harmson@energypartnership.org.uk or telephone 01904 554415.
- John Brown at Ryedale District Council, email john.brown@ryedale.gov.uktelephone 01653 600666
Pickering Group take gold. 
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