New seeds beneath the snow: Big Local neighbourhoods in action

This essay reports on the aspirations and achievements of Big Local areas in Merseyside, Lincoln and Telford, and places them in the context of previous experiences of community development, decline and revitalisation. Providing comparison, the author also reflects on the work of three other projects: the Peckham Health Centre, established more than 90 years ago, the Deighton and Brackenhall Initiative in Huddersfield, and Manor and Castle Development Trust in Sheffield

A part and yet apart: how third sector visions of carbon reduction are both welcomed and marginalised

The role of the third sector in promoting action on carbon reduction is often that of a third party, lobbying and working from the sidelines and occupying ‘green niches’ (Seyfang, 2010) without direct access to levers of power. This article examines how visions of low-carbon futures promoted by third sector actors are both integrated and marginalised at a wider institutional scale. Focusing on efforts to encourage environmental sustainability by organisations within three northern English cities, it highlights how a process of ‘integrative marginalisation’ may be observed, in which radical visions of a low-carbon future are simultaneously embraced and excluded at an institutional scale. Integrative marginalisation displays four salient features: initial welcome and acceptance; relatively small investments of support; the exclusion of substantial changes from mainstream decision making; and the assertion of institutional priorities that limit potential action. Integrative marginalisation thus raises questions about the conditions required to prompt more fundamental change

Achieving food equity : Access to good local food for all

© Henry Stewart Publications. The increasing use of emergency food aid in UK communities has highlighted growing social inequalities, exemplified by a rise in the use of food banks, while food waste remains a persistent challenge. Meanwhile the policy debate on food security remains focused on international trade and global risks. This paper examines the rise in community-based and place-based responses to questions of food justice and security, focusing on Incredible Edible Todmorden in the UK and the network of food projects that share the ‘incredible edible’ ethos and approach. Drawing on the experience of Todmorden, the author asks whether community-based food schemes should be given greater prominence in questions of resilience and ‘place-keeping’