Hi Compassionates
I hope you’ve had a fab summer and have made lots of happy memories of time spent with nature over the past few months, that you can draw on well into the future. Only three weeks to go until the autumn equinox, when the sun passes the equator and heads South, waving goodbye to the Northern hemisphere. When we are blessed with the seasonal change of Autumn. A great opportunity to reflect on our experiences through the summer months, to guide us on the compassionate path.
It certainly has been a scorcher this summer with the UK temperatures reaching above 40 degrees, posing extra challenges for people and planetary well-being. I’m not sure about you, but my appreciation for trees and forests has definitely rocketed. Did you notice the difference in temperature between rural and urban areas, if you were brave enough to venture outside? I did. It was substantial. According to research it can be as much as 9 degrees!
But why so? Urban areas during periods of hot weather are described by National Geographic as ‘urban heat islands.’ This is where the energy created from human activity & technology, like vehicles and industry, is collected and trapped in the surrounding concrete, and asphalt, causing the build up of heat, which can’t escape to higher levels, causing temperatures to soar through both the day and night. Scientists are now researching urban heat islands and their relevance to global warming and climate change, and it’s no surprise to see they are drawing on nature based solutions.
I, for one, am extremely grateful for Epping Forest, London’s largest forest of over 5,900 acres, during the extreme weather. It would have undoubtedly have helped to stabilise temperatures over urban areas, whilst removing toxins from the atmosphere, and improving air quality. The forest’s geographical significance can best be seen from Pole Hill in Chingford, in the borough of Waltham Forest, where you can see the London city skyline over the top of the trees, several metres from the obelisk at the top of the hill. It’s a great place to not only admire the view but also to reflect on urban effects of climate change, and the forest’s importance for mitigating that.
I have been fortunate enough to visit and and explore the area twice over the past few weeks. My first visit was to watch the rising of the super moon over the city, the Sturgeon moon, the third and final super moon for 2022. Here I was lucky enough to witness bats performing acrobatics in the shadows of Epping forests ancient trees, whilst marvelling at the moon, with Jupiter and Saturn sat either side. But it wasn’t until my second visit that I discovered the Obelisk at the top of Pole Hill, and it’s astronomical significance. The obelisk was originally placed on the Greenwich Meridian to indicate the direction of true North from the transit telescope of the Royal observatory, which basically means that astronomers gazing through the telescope in Greenwich, used the obelisk to align it to a true 0 degrees bearing of longitude, to accurately track objects in space.
Although in later years it was decided that the actual meridian would be 19 feet to the east of the obelisk, it is still a great monument to help remind us of the importance of both nature and technology for helping us to navigate uncertain times with regards to climate change and our future. Surely if we take the time to connect with nature, and are mindful of the importance for people and planetary well-being, then we will work together to use technology in the right ways, to protect and preserve our planet, especially the green spaces that surround our towns and cities, to help mitigate and adapt to the effects climate change.
Having worked with Alderton Infants school in the Epping forest district through the summer term, helping them to set up their own forest school site, I am forever hopeful that more schools will follow suit and forestry education will form an integral part of the school curriculum so this can become a reality. It was also a pleasure to be involved with the Buckhurst Hill yoga event over the summer, helping to raise money for Epping Forest Heritage Trust.
Have a great autumn!
Little Miss Compassion x
planetcompassion.org 