Women's Institute near Banbury will make their voices heard at mass climate lobby

Cropredy Women’s Institute, which is 100 years old, will be joining thousands of other activists at the 'Act Now, Change Forever' lobby.

The lobby has been organised by the Climate Coalition charity, of which the WI is a part.

Sue Smith, president of Cropredy WI and a climate ambassador, says: “We are currently experiencing some of the hottest days of the year in Oxfordshire.

“But of course, globally, women are more adversely affected by intense heat. So, there is an even greater urgency from WI members – and the public generally – to get our voices heard amongst policy and decision makers.

“For 110 years the WI has led the way on improving the environment. From keeping Britain Tidy to saving the honeybees, nationally, the WI are around 200,000 very capable women. Our members lead by example, encouraging others to adopt low-carbon behaviours.

“We still need to work on relatively high levels of air travel, but our behaviours show that adapting to climate change does not come overnight, and it is not about getting it all right all at once. We are all capable of small changes and compromises that can make a huge difference.”

In recent years the Cropredy WI has met with Banbury MP Sean Woodcock to discuss pollution of the River Cherwell; the group has also secured funding to run a series of workshops, titled ‘Ask a Capable Woman’, to help other Oxfordshire WI groups reduce their carbon footprint.