Community action/Plymouth
| Map | |
|---|---|
| Location | Plymouth, United Kingdom |
| Coordinates | 50° 22' 16.56" N, 4° 8' 33.24" 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 Plymouth.
News
Plymouth’s iconic Millennium Building set for community ownership, thenews.coop (Sep 09, 2025) - Digitally mapping fertile spaces, teaching deep permaculture, all becoming co-stewards: Plymouth’s special social power at work, Daily Alternative (Mar 13, 2024)
- “I am a window of opportunity”: Plymouth’s innovative social enterprise sector comes up with Vacancy Atlas, redefining the high street, Daily Alternative (Feb 08, 2024)
- How community projects are building a brighter future for British farms, wickedleeks.riverford.co.uk (Nov 11, 2025)
- As pine martens are reintroduced to south-west England, a new study shows why local people need to be involved, theconversation.com (Sep 09, 2025) — "...more collaborative relationships can be developed when people are involved in making plans for reintroduction."
- ‘They’re beautiful’: 13-year-olds lead audacious project to save harvest mice in Devon, theguardian.com (Aug 28, 2025)
- One in nine new homes in England built between 2022 and 2024 were constructed in areas that could now be at risk of flooding, according to new data., theguardian.com (Feb 18, 2026) — between 2013 and 2022, one in 13 new homes were in potential flooding zones.
- Hedgerows the 'unsung heroes of the countryside', BBC News (Feb 16, 2026) — A group of Kent volunteers is aiming to provide vital habitat for wildlife by planting about 3,800 yards (3,500m) of hedgerows in the countryside this year.
- 'Serious climate breakdown' warning over filthy rivers and flooding, BBC News (Feb 15, 2026)
- Geothermal could replace almost half of the EU’s fossil fuel power, grist.org (Feb 10, 2026)
- I developed an app that uses drone footage to track plastic litter on beaches, theconversation.com (Jan 21, 2026)
- Europeans overwhelmingly support the social economy, poll finds, thenews.coop (Dec 12, 2025) — 93% of Europeans think businesses should be guided by social economy values, such as focusing on social and environmental goals, redistributing profits, and operating with democratic governance structures
- ‘They pushed so many lies about recycling’: the fight to stop big oil pumping billions more into plastics, theguardian.com (Feb 19, 2026)
- The world’s rainforests are vanishing. In this one country, they’re growing back., vox.com (Feb 19, 2026) — How did Costa Rica beat back deforestation and buck the global trend?
- Environmental defenders labeled ‘terrorists’ for bringing renewable power to Philippine communities, globalvoices.org/ (Feb 19, 2026)
Networks and sustainability initiatives
- The Village Hub, "providing opportunities that enable anyone in our community (the Electoral Wards of Stoke and Devonport) to connect through learning, signposting, cultural activities and having fun in a safe and caring environment." added 10:25, 15 November 2022 (UTC)
- Plymouth Octopus Project, cosmolocal CAN in action, combining local practicality and global perspective
- Hoe Neighbourhood Forum, added 15:17, 19 December 2020 (UTC)
- Environment Plymouth
- Sustainability with Plymouth University
- Transition Plymouth
Each week 3 different short videos from across the UK or world.
Community action/Surrey, Community action/West Midlands, Community action/North East England / ...This week's featured Global videos / ... read more about Cosmolocalism
Plymouth video
UK and international events
UK events
Mar 13 - 29, 2026 (Fri - Sun) — Great British Spring Clean and Great Big School Clean, Keep Britain Tidy call to help improve local environments, keepbritaintidy.org- Mar 16 - 27, 2026 (Mon - Fri) — Sustrans Big Walk and Wheel, cycling, walking and scooting challenge for schools from Sustrans, bigwalkandwheel.org.uk
Global or international events
- Feb 02, 2026 (Mon) — World Wetlands Day, Feb 2, annually, worldwetlandsday.org
- Feb 20, 2026 (Fri) — World Day of Social Justice, Feb 20 each year, un.org
- February 21 - March 1, 2026 (Sat - Sun) — Real Bread Week, annual, international celebration of additive-free bread and the people behind its rise, sustainweb.org
2021-2030, UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, International community action events
Community and voluntary action
- Whitleigh Big Local, added 15:12, 19 December 2020 (UTC)
Food activism
- All Ways Apples, community apple festival held in Devonport, Plymouth, in the Autumn of each year
- Diggin it! organic gardening project in Plymouth
- Food Plymouth, city-wide food partnership which works to support the aims of the Plymouth Food Charter and Sustainable Food City Plymouth Action Plan, promoting a vibrant and resilient local food economy for a more healthy and sustainable city...foodplymouth.org
Maps: Plymouth Good Food Map, foodplymouth.org, link not found
Past event
- June 10 -14, 2014, Plymouth Big Food Event, foodplymouth.org, link not found
Community energy
Plymouth Energy Community, charity and a social enterprise, with a cooperative ethos. "We empower our community to create a fair, affordable, zero carbon energy system with local people at its heart." added 10:49, 12 November 2021 (UTC)
Towards sustainable economies
- Plymouth Social Enterprise Network, added 19:20, 19 December 2020 (UTC)
Community resources
- Plymouth FabLab
- Borrow Don't Buy, 'library of things' in Plymouth
Citizens data initiative
Arts, sport and culture
- Fotonow CIC, Visual culture for social change
- Take a Part, arts project for Plymouth communities
Climate action
- The Climate Hub, "flagship Climate Hub in the old Waterstones building (New George St) will be one of the first city centre Climate Hubs in the world." added 16:30, 4 August 2022 (UTC)
Cycling activism
Plymouth is at the southern end of the 99-mile (159 km) long Devon Coast to Coast Cycle Route (National Cycle Route 27). The route runs mostly traffic free on off-road sections between Ilfracombe and Plymouth. The route uses former railway lines, though there are some stretches on public roads.
Urban sustainability
- Nudge Community Builders, set up in 2017 by local people living in Stonehouse, Plymouth.
Open spaces
Parks, nature and green spaces, information from Plymouth City Council
Plymouth is home to 28 parks with an average size of 45,638 square metres (491,240 sq ft).[66] Its largest park is Central Park, with other sizeable green spaces including Victoria Park, Freedom Fields Park, Alexandra Park, Devonport Park and the Hoe.
Community river action
- River Keepers, information from bioregion.org.uk (South Devon / Plymouth)
News archive
- The climate crisis leaves students feeling helpless – what universities can do to empower them, theconversation.com (Jul 24, 2023)
- A CAN at work... Look at the convening of energy and initiative going on in the Plymouth Octopus Newsletter, The Daily Alternative (Jun 06, 2023)
- The Guardian view on Plymouth’s lost trees: an act of vandalism, Editorial, The Guardian (Mar 27, 2023) — The protesters are right. Felling more than 100 trees at night was disrespectful to both local people and nature
- ‘A disgrace’: more than 100 trees cut down in Plymouth despite local opposition, The Guardian (Mar 15, 2023)
- Plymouth residents fight to save trees, Wicked Leeks (Feb 08, 2023)
- Plymouth Octopus is a cosmolocal CAN in action, combining local practicality and global perspective, The Dailty Alternative (Dec 01, 2021)
- "The State of Us" event revealed the mulitple forms of agency within municipalism, Daily Alternative (Nov 12, 2021)
- The Political Opportunity, Alternative Editorial (Jul 25, 2021)
- Ocean rewilding: England's largest seagrass restoration project begins, Apr 21, 2021...positive.news
- Building on "a foundation of self-managing enterprise", Plymouth's empowered communities ask: What is "The State of Us"? Apr 6, 2021...thealternative.org.uk
- A "fab city" aims to produce everything - energy, commodities, food - that it consumes. And Plymouth is one of them. Nov 25, 2019...thealternative.org.uk
- Plymouth becomes the UK's first Fab City, Jul 1, 2019...University of Plymouth
- What kind of space can welcome a diverse community? Apr 28, 2018...The Alternative UK
News sources
- Posts in PLYMOUTH LAB, from The Daily Alternative, thealternative.org.uk/dailyalternative
About Plymouth
Plymouth is a city situated on the south coast of Devon, England, approximately 37 miles (60 km) south-west of Exeter and 190 miles (310 km) west-south-west of London. Enclosing the city are the mouths of the river Plym and river Tamar, which are naturally incorporated into Plymouth Sound to form a boundary with Cornwall.
The city is home to 262,100 (mid-2019 est.) people, making it the 30th-most populous built-up area in the United Kingdom and the second-largest city in the South West, after Bristol. It is governed locally by Plymouth City Council and home to the University of Plymouth. It has ferry links to Brittany (Roscoff and St Malo) and to Spain (Santander).
Near you
| Authors | Phil Green |
|---|---|
| License | CC-BY-SA-3.0 |
| Cite as | Phil Green (2018–2025). "Community action/Plymouth". Appropedia. Retrieved February 26, 2026. |