The Hub

In Orkney we have added challenges with regards to waste being on an island. Waste is also very costly to dispose of by way of shipping to Shetland for incineration at their Energy from Waste (EFW) plant. To address the high tonnages of waste on Orkney and as part of our work towards a greener lifestyle a community group has been in discussions to set up a re-use facility in Kirkwall to provide a place for members of the community to bring items they no longer want or need or that may need repair or refurbishment. These items can then be fixed or upcycled as required and find new homes, which helps to keep them out of waste.

This facility would also provide information and help with recycling and re-use as well as holding and attending events and workshops at the faclity and around Orkney to provide education and information and to teach repair and upcycling skills to members of the community.

This project would be run by the community, for the community, to enable us to take charge of carbon footprint and be more aware of the effects our daily lives have on our Islands. It will provide 3 paid positions at start-up and several volunteer positions also, both of which are of benefit to the community.

As part of the set-up of the facility we have submitted a draft application to the Climate Challenge Fund (CCF) for funding over a two year period to begin the project and allow for full start-up and running of The Hub. We have just received feedback on the application, which is overall very positive with only a few relatively moonei alterations and explanations to be made which is very promising. The final bid will be submitted in early December, though we still have some work to complete on additional attachements to help strenghten our application further, therefore we are asking our community if anyone have some time to offer to help, no matter how little, that would be most appreciated and would also help in the developing of the Management Committee.

We are still looking for more members of the community to join the committee and help in any way they can and we would very much appreciate feedback and suggestions from more community members. If you would like to know more or get involved please email GreenerOrkney@gmail.com

You can have a look at the Climate Challenge Fund website if you wish to know more about the funding we are applying for.