Walking Summit 2024

Workshop attendees with SEM CEO Maxwell Ayamba BEM, & Jenosn Grant. Photos Courtesy of Sam Wakeling @Living Streets.

On March 7th 2024, SEM founder and CEO Maxwell Ayamba BEM, was invited to lead a walk as part of the 2024 UK Walking Summit conference.

Workshop attendees look at the different types of Lichens growing on a tree branche. Photo Courtesy of Sam Wakeling @Living Streets.

Supported by Jenson Grant from SEM, Mawell took a group of conference attendees on a 60 minute walk that began at the conference venue and went along some of the city centres’ most congested roads. Attendees used citizen science air quality investigation methods to look for lichens growing on tree bark, which are indicators of air pollution. Trees that have large numbers of Nitrogen insensetive Lichens on their bark indicate that they may be growing in areas with high levels of air pollution.


Maxwell said; “SEM’s work using the Imperial College’s Open Air Laboratories (OPAL) is innovative and impactful in the sense that, unlike Sheffield City Council stationing air monitoring diffusion tubes to monitor the impact of air pollution in communities by taking readings however, this data is not visually shared and therefore difficult to evidence and communicate to educate communities in these polluted zones. However, in the case of SEM applying OPAL Explore Nature Air Quality Survey using natural indicators such as nitrogen-loving lichens it is able to demonstrate the impact of air pollution visually in the most polluted zone across the city”.

An Ash tree near Park Hill flats is covered in Nitrogen insensetive Lichen. Photo Courtesy of Sam Wakeling @Living Streets.
Workshop attendees with SEM CEO Maxwell Ayamba BEM, & Jenson Grant. Photo Courtesy of Sam Wakeling @Living Streets.

Living Streets is a UK based environmental charity whose mission is to: “achieve a better walking environment and inspire people to walk more.” Visit Living Streets UK to find out more about their work.

Sheffield College Staff Development Day

Maxine Greaves MBE and Maxwell Ayamba BEM from SEM gave an Environmental Sustainability presentation to Sheffield College staff.
Maxine Greaves, MBE, Activities and Operations Manager and Maxwell Ayamba BEM, CEO and founder of Sheffield Environmental Movement  were invited to give a presentation to over 1000 staff members at the Sheffield College staff development day event. This year the focus was on the critical importance of Environmental Sustainability .
 
Sheffield College intention for the day was to focus on sustainability as they were about to launch their new Environmental Sustainability Action Plan. In July the college focussed on the introduction to sustainability and what they as an organisation are currently doing across all campuses in relation to raising awareness and understanding of environmental sustainability.
The presentation was warmly received with a large number of the participants commenting on the importance of having representation from the African diaspora sharing their knowledge and expertise on the environmental discourse. 
Staff members also welcome the opportunity to have a space to share their thinking, concerns and acknowledged that there was a willingness to engage proactively with the new Plan. 

HLF Race Equity in Nature Report

Racial Equity in Nature: A guide to recruiting and nurturing'

The National Lottery Heritage Fund have published a report called ‘Racial Equity in Nature: A guide to recruiting and nurturing’.

Racial Equity in Nature: A guide to recruiting and nurturing'
The National Lottery Heritage Fund Racial Equity in Nature.

The 27 page report is a toolkit to help organisations in the natural
heritage sector recruit more young people from ethnically diverse communities to work in the sector.

Sheffield Environmental Movement contributed to the report.

You can download and read the report here.

Job Opportunity – Communities Engagement Ranger

The Peak District National Park

Job Opportunity – Communities Engagement Ranger

The Peak District National Park are looking for a Communities Engagement Ranger to help run its school visits and community engagement programmes.

For an informal discussion about the role, please contact Matthew Ross, Young People & Communities Engagement Ranger: matthew.ross@peakdistrict.gov.uk

The Peak District National Park was the first of Britain’s 15 national parks and is still enjoyed by millions, looking for both adventure and a breathing space to escape. It is also the most accessible due its proximity to four major cities of the UK and its 38,000 residents.