The
Kent Community Foundation (KCF) brought together members of the Charity Sector at a Green Impact Forum recently at the Three Hills Sports Park, in Folkestone.
More than 90 attendees listened to speeches from community groups. Speakers included representatives from
Allington Millennium Green,
Sunken Garden Society,
Rainham Eco Hub and
Mutual Aid Road Reps CIC (MARR), who have taken steps towards eco-sustainability.
Those who attended then enjoyed lively discussions about the environment, what it means to local communities, and what could be learnt from one another.
This event, the first of its kind, concluded with a resounding call for everyone to take just one positive step and see the optimism in a healthy environment for a healthy society.
The chief executive of
Kent Community Foundation, Josephine McCartney, was encouraged by the response to this unique event.
She shared that The Foundation knows the natural environment offers
boundless possibilities for driving social change, including fostering mental wellbeing and offering spaces for communal activities.
She went on to express the natural environment “..provides children and young people with opportunities for engagement and self-development, and creating avenues for employment and involvement for those most vulnerable..”
Through the Foundation’s
Environmental Strategy, they are helping to facilitate change through positive steps at a local level; and they say they are doing this to deliver a better outcome for the environment.
In turn, The Foundation say this can offer better outcomes for local communities in many different ways; from green spaces which provide opportunities for everyone, including the most vulnerable, to cleaner air quality, food security and greater local food production, flood defences and prevention.
The activities at this Forum truly showcased success stories from groups that represented how individuals can be catalysts for a group effort, and reflecting the Foundation's belief in thinking globally, acting locally.
To find out
more about the Green Impact Forum, visit the KCF
website.