PDT and Westminster Libraries sweep leading sustainability awards in the UK!
On June 22nd, Lola May of the Paddington Development Trust and Eman Asir of Westminster Libraries and Archives attended the People Environmental Achievement awards, the leading sustainability and climate awards in the UK, winning the following three categories;
- Evolution of Sustainability
- Nature
- Best of the Year
Their project, North Paddington: the Natural Way, is a 6-mile-long walking pilgrimage through Westbourne, Queen’s Park and Harrow Road. Created with the Climate Champions, a project funded by Westminster City Council, the pilgrimage was designed to encourage connection to the local area, active travel, and ongoing, active, sustainability in people’s lives. A major goal was to highlight the amazing people, nature, and organisations in an area where news stories tend to focus on the negatives, and ensure local people were able to explore local places.
The route takes in 13 sites of interest, from urban studies centres to community hubs, from gardens to a Grade 1 listed Church, from a hidden sculpture garden to 4 libraries! At each site participants collect a stamp designed by local children to put in their Pilgrim’s Passport.
Lola May, Project Lead for the Climate Champions, said ‘The project has been so amazing to work on, especially as we’ve had the dual benefits of the pilgrimage being hyper-local and led entirely by residents, plus the amazing trainings and connections across Europe provided by the Europe Challenge. Residents of North Paddington love the Natural Way – within a month we had over 1000 Pilgrim Passports collected. Our Pilgrimage builds connection across divides, encourages pride and joy in the area, and aids in mental and physical health. It’s brilliant to have that rewarded by the P.E.A Awards!’
The collaboration was funded by the Europe Challenge.
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