Resilience

Retrofitting (making changes to an existing structure) your community building or office provides many options and ways to increase energy efficiency and comfort. Once you understand how energy is used in your building you may consider some of the following options:

• Firstly, look at areas of essential maintenence that will increase your energy efficiency e.g. do your old windows let draughts in or do your doors not close properly?
• Low risk ways to improve heating efficiency such as stopping draughts with heavy curtains at windows and installing draught excluding tape around doors
• Review and improve your building insulation
• Upgrade your heating system for an energy efficient, low carbon alternative
• Improve your ventilation that can cause damp and health issues, consider opening windows, trickle vents, extractor fans or air regulators

It's so important to engage and involve your staff, volunteers and trustees in what you are doing.

Add sustainability/ environmental actions to your team/ board/ volunteer meetings, encourage staff and volunteers to becoming green champions and collectively discuss and agree the changes you could make to reduce your carbon emissions.

Encourage your team to come up with and action ideas, eco-activities and challenges. Some ideas to get you started:

• hold an ethical bake off
• organise an office book/ clothes/unwanted gifts swap shop
• create monthly green challenges for employees and volunteers e.g. wear the same clothes week/ veggie or vegan no waste lunch/ no car day/week.

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Check for the risks of flooding in your area and how this will increase in the coming years, including signing up to a flood warning system.

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There are ways to reduce flood damage and prepare your building for floods. Think about protection and barriers for your low lying windows and doors, installing non return valves, increasing water capture systems (e.g. water butts) and increasing absorbant areas and planting in your outdoor spaces.

Ways to improve your organisation's resilience to heatwaves and drought in the coming years may include:

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• Ensuring good insulation in your building, which will also keep the indoors cool in the summer
• Create shade indoors with window shutters or blinds
• Investigate and improve ventilation in your building
• Plant trees to provide shade and cool spaces outside to shelter in green space
• Plant drought resistant plants in your outdoor spaces

Many communities across the UK are taking the step to produce their own energy supply. This involves the installation, distribution, and often, storage, of renewable energy to benefit the community. This can take many forms such as solar panels, air source heat pumps and wind turbines. In turn, communities can benefit from energy independence, reductions in fuel poverty, potential income generation, local carbon reduction and community cohesion.

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There is great opportunity for community energy, with lots of support available in your area. Look out for energy advisors, funding opportunities and workshops to get you up to speed on how this could benefit your organisation and community.