Big Green Society: Creating cleaner, greener neighbourhoods in a time of austerity
Author: Dominic Rustecki, in eGov monitor |
Councils can ‘nudge’ communities into creating cleaner, greener neighbourhoods, including how to tackle ice and snow during the winter months argues Dominic Rustecki from Localis.
As the days draw shorter and winter sets in there is one question on the minds of adults and children alike; ‘will it be a white Christmas?’
But for local authorities this year’s inevitable snow and ice presents a number of challenges, particularly within the current financial context. With resources stretched and miles of roads and pavements to clear, councils need to think innovatively about how they can encourage local residents, businesses and other public sector bodies to do their bit in the fight against the ice.
Localis, in partnership with Westminster City Council, have recently launched the latest pamphlet in our Big Society Series, ‘The Big Green Society’ which examines how local authorities can do this, as well as meet other, non-seasonal challenges. Through a number of case studies and examples from across the country, the pamphlet offers practical suggestions on how councils can ‘nudge’ communities into creating cleaner, greener neighbourhoods, including how to tackle ice and snow during the winter months.
The report centres, though, on improving the local environment and dealing with the 80 million tonnes ofrubbish we produce every year. As one of the costliest frontline public services – waste collection and disposal cost local authorities around 1.3 billion per annum ?local authorities will be forced to look at how much their residents and businesses are throwing away, and consider how money can be saved through changing behaviours around waste and recycling without compromising the council’s commitments and duties to delivering high quality services. Even the smallest changes to the actions of businesses and residents can make a significant difference, and not just financially. Altering attitudes to waste brings a number of other benefits for communities, including changing how residents view their responsibilities to their neighbourhood, increased community cohesion and a more positive attitude to the long term sustainability agenda.
If a behavioural shift and attitude change towards how communities deal with their rubbish is to be achieved then councils should become ‘enablers’, placing positive emphasis on engagement, recognition and reward rather than on just provision and enforcement. For instance, councils can empower citizens by officially recognising the work of voluntary groups, such as the Bromley LBC ‘Friends of Parks’ scheme, or through simple ‘thank you’ letters or text messages,so ensuring that those who are already a part of the Big Society are more likely to remain so.
But the difficulty comes with engaging those residents that aren’t already contributing. Encouraging people to recycle more effectively, to throw away less, or to actively engage in improving their local neighbourhood can be achieved by first changing the mindset amongst some residents of ‘the council will deal with it’. The first stage in this process is through incentivising and rewarding positive behaviours regarding waste. The RecycleBank scheme in Windsor and Maidenhead, for example, rewards those who recycle more with discounts and vouchers that can be redeemed at local shops, including Marks and Spencer and Tesco. In Tower Hamlets the Muslim Women’s Collective carries our environmental surveys and in return receives both transferable skills and training from the council to add to their CVs. These examples demonstrate that local authorities can help to offer something in return without direct financial inducement.
Another method to engage with the wider community is to ensure a two-way communication process between council and resident. The success of the Love Lewisham campaign ? it has since been rolled out London-wide by Mayor Boris Johnson ? has exemplified the way in which residents can and will inform their local authority of local environmental problems (including fly-tipping, graffiti and damaged roads/pavements) ifaccess through social media and through specific ‘apps’ for their smart phones are made available to them.
The choice of ‘messenger’ also is important if councils are to get across to their residents the importance of behaving in an environmentally responsible manner. Examples from Scandinavia have shown how local residents, acting as environmental representatives, visiting schools and community groups have received a better reception than local government officers ‘preaching’ to local people. Additionally, the use of social media and the internet is vital if councils are to implement an effective Big Green Society. In short, councils should look at how to make residents feel that they are part of the solution through effective communication and by choosing effective mediums through which to communicate this message.
Local businesses both big and small can also make a vital contribution to tackling waste. Across the country, businesses such as Greggs and McDonalds are already doing their bit for their local environments, especially when it comes to dealing with litter. The emphasis on corporate responsibility amongst local businesses is something that councils should try to harness as part of their green strategy. Alternatively councils can look to advertise schemes and promote green messages and behaviours through local businesses; McDonalds will be advertising Keep Britain Tidy’s ‘Love Where You Live’ campaign in their restaurants, for example. The key here is to build upon the clear incentive the private sector has to engage with the Big Green Society ? and, in so doing, reduce the burden on the public sector. That such initiatives are more carrot than stick is no bad thing.
Finally, local government should look to other branches of the public sector and create innovative and mutually-supportive relationships to build a bigger, green society. Durham and Darlington PCT gave Durham County Council 1m over two years to purchase grit to combat snow and ice on roads and pavements. This funding was used as a preventative measure against residents slipping and injuring themselves ? a problem the PCT saw as being costly to the local health services. The money also helped to provide a long term solution as tractors and other heavy machinery were purchased to deal with harsh winter conditions in the years to come. This example of how early intervention initiatives can and the use of joined-up government to achieve it has, for obvious long term financial reasons, become a key component of governmental policy. Joining up green policy with other strands of government spending should remain an important objective.
‘The Big Green Society’ covers the above areas in more detail, offering practical suggestions for reforming and improving the way in which waste management and cleansing is carried out in local government.And if there is a key strand that runs through the research it is that for each local authority the Big Green Society will be achieved in a different way. Whether through dealing with the snow and ice or, in less chilly times, keeping the streets free of litter, the locality-specific approach to creating environmentally responsible communities and creating greener neighbourhoods is the essence of any Big Green Society.
The Big Green Society is available for free download on our website www.localis.org.uk