Community action/Dorset

| Map | |
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| Location | Dorset, South West England |
| Coordinates | 51° 32' 49.76" N, 2° 24' 12.35" W |
The aim of this page is to recognise, celebrate and encourage the self-empowerment of community agency networks (CANs) and community groups' activism for climate, environment and many other sustainability topics across Dorset.
News
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How solar panels saved this local community leisure centre, goodenergy.co.uk (Dec 19, 2025)
'Nobody owns the sand': The 12-metre fence dividing an affluent beach town, BBC News (Nov 01, 2025)
Energy clubs offer chance to reduce electricity bills by up to 30%, theguardian.com (Oct 18, 2025)
Citizens’ Assembly to invest £100,000 in West’s culture, westofengland-ca.gov.uk (Jan 16, 2026)
‘We found 23,000 worms!’ The soil project bringing life back to the land, positive.news (Oct 22, 2025)
Mussel power: how an offshore shellfish farm is boosting marine life, theconversation.com (Jun 06, 2025)
WL Meets: Zoe Gilbertson who is refashioning textiles from the ground up, wickedleeks.riverford.co.uk (May 13, 2026) — Nick Easen meets designer Zoe Gilbertson who wants to revive the UK textile sector, with sustainability woven in from the start
‘A share in the delight’: the people investing in the UK’s first community-owned solar battery, theguardian.com (May 08, 2026) — Oxfordshire’s Ray Valley Solar already generates clean energy for 7,000 homes, and is now crowdfunding storage to marry daylight with evening demand
Fixing social care: Report highlights potential of co-op model in the UK, thenews.coop (May 08, 2026) — Commissioned by Co-operatives UK and Cwmpas, the study found co-ops provide ‘fairer, better quality, community-rooted care’
Rewilding giants: captive elephants rehomed in Europe’s first sanctuary, theguardian.com (May 07, 2026)
Sail-power offers passengers new crossing between England and France, reuters.com (Apr 28, 2026)
Europe needs affordable, low‑carbon homes – here’s how Barcelona is reimagining its housing system, theconversation.com (Apr 08, 2026)
How one Kenyan community is building a new future on reclaimed ground, globalvoices.org (May 14, 2026)
Data Centres Need a Social License to Operate, demnext.substack.com (May 13, 2026) — How lessons from citizens' assemblies are highly relevant for the future of AI infrastructure and data centres, Another Democratic Future and Claudia Chwalisz
Argentina’s co-operativas escolares: A case study in co-op education, thenews.coop (May 12, 2026) — In 1946, national legislation formally established the teaching of co-operativism and the creation of school co-operatives
Networks and sustainability initiatives
[edit | edit source]This section has been AI aided: AI Overview from a Google search, 09:36, 3 November 2025 (UTC)
- Langton Planet Action on dorsetcan.org, group in the Purbeck area that works with other local environmental groups to reduce environmental impact and promote sustainability. added 10:58, 3 November 2025 (UTC)
- Sustainable Dorset, website of Dorset Agenda 21, county wide sustainable development charity based in Dorchester
- Sustainable Bridport, Building a Resilient, Fair and Low Carbon Bridport, added 16:59, 10 April 2023 (UTC), link checked 11:01, 3 November 2025 (UTC)
- Transition Bournemouth
- Transition Town Dorchester
- Transition Town Christchurch
- Transition Town Poole
- Transition Towns Weymouth and Portland
CDC videos
[edit | edit source]Each week 3 different short videos from across the UK or world.
Rural sustainability UK, Community energy UK, Community action/Argyll and Bute / ...This week's featured Global videos / ... read more about Cosmolocalism
Events
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Mar 14, 2026 (Sat) — The Big Swim, Dorset, pinknicky.com
Regular events
see also: Dorset Eco Calendar, TTWP.NET
UK events
May 2026 — National Walking Month, livingstreets.org.uk
May 4 - 10, 2026 (Mon - Sun) — National Hedgerow Week, hedgelink.org.uk
May 11 - 17, 2026 (Mon - Sun) — Mental Health Awareness Week, mentalhealth.org.uk
Global or international events
May 1 - 3, 2026 (Fri - Sun) first weekend of May every year — Jane's Walk, How to Lead a Jane's Walk, Video, janeswalk.org
May 03, 2026 (Sun) — International dawn chorus day, first Sunday of May, wildlifetrusts.org
May 3 - 9, 2026 (Sun - Sat) — International Compost Awareness Week, compostfoundation.org
May 9 and Oct 10, 2026 — World Migratory Bird Day, worldmigratorybirdday.org
May 20, 2026 (Wed) — World Bee Day, May 20 each year, fao.org
May 21, 2026 (Thu) — Outdoor Classroom Day, celebrating and inspiring outdoor learning and play, outdoorclassroomday.com
May 22, 2026 (Fri) — International Day for Biological Diversity, May 22 every year, cbd.int
2021-2030, UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, International community action events
Dorset video
[edit | edit source]Community and voluntary action
[edit | edit source]- Community Action Network, Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole, added 08:22, 27 April 2021 (UTC)
Food activism
[edit | edit source]Research
Can you help with NuFEAST?: send us your top tips for eating sustainably research.bournemouth.ac.uk, (2016)
Community energy
[edit | edit source]This section has been AI aided: AI Overview from a Google search, 09:36, 3 November 2025 (UTC)
- Dorset Community Energy, not-for-profit society that finances and installs solar PV on schools and community buildings to provide them with low-cost electricity. It also offers local investment opportunities and has a community fund for projects that reduce carbon emissions.
- Energy Local Bridport on dorsetcommunityenergy.org.uk. The first Energy Local Club in England, this group allows residents to buy electricity at a lower cost directly from local renewable sources, such as the 50kW wind turbine at Salway Ash.
Community resources
[edit | edit source]- The Power House, Poole, added 08:21, 27 April 2021 (UTC)
- Help And Kindness, for Dorset, added 08:49, 27 April 2021 (UTC)
Climate action
[edit | edit source]This section has been AI aided: AI Overview from a Google search, 09:36, 3 November 2025 (UTC)
- DorsetCAN, Dorset Climate Action Network. Network of community groups and individuals across Dorset that works toward a sustainable future. It supports local groups and actions aimed at climate change.
Cycling activism
[edit | edit source]Maps:
- Interactive cycle maps, dorsetforyou.com
Biodiversity
[edit | edit source]Rewilding
[edit | edit source]- Beavers at Little Sea, Studland, project of nationaltrust.org.uk, added 10:32, 1 March 2025 (UTC)
- Wild Woodbury, dorsetwildlifetrust.org.uk, community rewilding project at Bere Regis. added 16:03, 11 March 2024 (UTC)
- Wilder Dorset, project of Dorset Wildlife Trust: "plans for transforming the landscape from being intensively managed to letting nature take the lead will be developed in conjunction with the surrounding community, giving local people more opportunities to connect with nature while also benefitting local wildlife."...wildlifetrusts.org.
Trees, woodland and forest
[edit | edit source]- Wareham Forest on forestryengland.uk, added 15:11, 16 April 2024 (UTC)
News archive
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The ‘bin-novative’ approach to rubbish that’s slashing beach litter, positive.news (Feb 16, 2023)
Hundreds march in Dorchester in protest at housing plans, BBC News (Apr 03, 2022) — protest at plans to build 4,000 houses on open land and "desecrate" the Thomas Hardy countryside
- England's first community rewilding project launches in Dorset, Sep 6, 2021...wildlifetrusts.org
- The activist entrepreneurs running zero-waste shops, Aug 6, 2021...bbc.co.uk/news
- Support growing for National Park bid (which could bring £90m funding to Dorset), May 18, 2017...dorsetecho.co.uk
- Dorset organisation wins national award for innovative health project, Nov 10, 2016...dorsetecho.co.uk
- Bournemouth is a step closer to becoming world leader in green economy, Oct 6, 2016...bournemouth.gov.uk
- New seafront recycling campaign launched, Aug 2, 2016...bournemouth.gov.uk
- Bournemouth's getting a weekly food market... sort of, Jul 13, 2016...bournemouthecho.co.uk
- Bournemouth's first ever Street Kitchen to help town's homeless, May 14, 2016...bournemouthecho.co.uk
- Bournemouth and Poole become the world's first Sustainable Fish City, April 17, 2015...Sustain
- Test run for Poole Harbour heat project, July 21, 2016...Transition Free Press
About Dorset
[edit | edit source]Dorset ( DOR-sit; archaically: Dorsetshire DOR-sit-sheer, -shər) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by Somerset to the north-west, Wiltshire to the north and the north-east, Hampshire to the east, the Isle of Wight across the Solent to the south-east, the English Channel to the south, and Devon to the west. The largest settlement is Bournemouth.
Over half the county is designated as an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
| Authors | Phil Green |
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| License | CC-BY-SA-3.0 |
| Cite as | Philralph (2014–2026). "Community action/Dorset". Appropedia. Retrieved May 29, 2026. |




