by Andrew Guilford | Feb 22, 2022 | Features, Well-being Region
At 4theRegion our mission is to co-create a happier, healthier South West Wales with a thriving economy. And what do we mean by ‘thriving’? For us, in the truest sense of the word, thriving is about wellbeing.
What do we hope for? (Pic: Engin Akyurt)
We’ve been thinking a lot about the importance of hope. Amplifying hope is a big part of what we’re trying to do, because when people are hopeful about the future they are happier and healthier. We took the title for this article from a book by Shane J Lopez. Drawing on the largest study of hopeful people ever conducted, he argues that hope isn’t just an emotion, it’s an essential life tool!
We believe all conversations should start with what’s working well. We call this asset based community development, which we ground in social purpose and underpin with wellbeing. We engage with people, businesses and organisations who want to see South West Wales flourish.
So what do we hope for?
We want to see the region leading in making new ways of living, working, and organising our society and economy, so that it’s more visible, accessible and relevant to everyone who lives here. And there’s so much to feel positive about here in South West Wales! An amazing natural environment. Caring communities. A brilliant quality of life. We want to make South West Wales the UK’s first wellbeing region. Imagine if we made wellbeing our unique selling point, our regional identity, and our shared purpose?
So what can help us understand wellbeing?
Neo-liberalism has promoted the idea that we are in competition with one and other. This view leads to an increased sense of social isolation, which impacts on individual wellbeing. However, recent developments in wellbeing science have seen a move beyond just looking at ourselves as individuals, and instead taking a broader view that encompasses the wellbeing of people and planet.
The Covid-19 pandemic meant we all started to think more about wellbeing. It gave us increased opportunities to work from home, and gave us a greater awareness of how work stresses impacted employees than we had before the pandemic. And it showed our capacity for hope! Research shows we protected our wellbeing by learning to understand there can be hope and meaning in life even in the midst of pain and suffering. This is what psychologists call ‘tragic optimism’. Of course, this wasn’t all. Other things that protected our wellbeing included gratitude, our physical health, social cohesion and identity, and connecting with nature. At a biological level, there’s now compelling evidence for the interconnectedness of physical and mental health. Our wellbeing has a causal link with our health and longevity.
Academics at Swansea University have developed the GENIAL framework which explicitly links wellbeing and health. This covers individual wellbeing (including a balanced mind and a healthy body), collective wellbeing (social connectedness), and planetary wellbeing (connection with nature). It recognises that individuals must first understand how to care for themselves in order to then care for others and care for the environment. The capacity for individuals to promote their own wellbeing will be greater than their capacity to promote collective wellbeing, which is greater than the capacity to promote planetary wellbeing. Nevertheless, there is massive potential for us to promote our individual wellbeing alongside larger collaborative efforts such as community partnerships, collaborative working, and activism to address various societal challenges such as climate change.
So how are the academics doing this in practice?
They introduce their students to the concept of sustainable happiness and wellbeing. This is about placing happiness and wellbeing within the context of environmental sustainability. This means strategies to promote wellbeing that don’t involve the exploitation of other people, the environment or future generations.
They also recognise people living with chronic conditions have tremendous potential for wellbeing. Surf therapy, for example, brings together people with acquired brain injury and their families to engage with nature based exercise, facilitating wellbeing, and hopefully encouraging pro-environmental behaviour.
At 4theRegion we want to co-create a happier, healthier South West Wales, with a thriving economy in the truest sense of the word. Thriving is about wellbeing. Let’s make hope happen!
We think it’s important to be forward looking, which is why all our events and conversations start with what’s working well. We want people to appreciate the good things about South West Wales, and celebrate the beautiful corner of the world where we live! Positivity is at heart of everything we do, with the Swansea City Centre Conference being no different! We’re celebrating and showcasing what we love about the regional capital. Join us in Swansea Arena on March 17th. Register here for your free tickets.
by Andrew Guilford | Feb 2, 2022 | Buy Regional, Circular Economy, Development Investment, Features, Well-being Region
When the coronavirus pandemic hit global economies, governments pledged to rebuild, create jobs and spark growth. But many people recognised we can’t just go back to doing things the way we did before. So what would our rebuilt economy look like?
We need to think about the problem of “growth”. Traditional ideas of economic recovery have focussed on growth, but wouldn’t it be better for us to be aiming for wellbeing, whether or not the economy grows?
Economist Kate Raworth has said “Mainstream economics views endless GDP growth as a must, but nothing in nature grows forever and the economic attempt to buck that trend is raising tough questions in high-income but low-growth countries. That’s because today we have economies that need to grow, whether or not they make us thrive. What we need are economies that make us thrive, whether or not they grow. That radical flip in perspective invites us to become agnostic about growth and to explore how our economies—which are currently financially, politically and socially addicted to growth—could learn to live with or without it.”
Green recovery means accelerating development along a more sustainable path. Natural Resources Wales says this means reducing carbon emissions, increasing resilience to climate change, reversing the decline in biodiversity, connecting people and nature and tackling unsustainable levels of production and consumption, while ensuring job creation, skills development, new markets and vulnerable groups are prioritised.
The region will need £4.3bn in investment by 2035 to tackle climate change. We’ll need to reduce carbon emissions by 58% in the domestic heat and power sector, 56% in the commercial and industrial sector and 51% in road transport. This means more wind and solar farms, more electric cars, a tidal lagoon, and the creation of around sixteen thousand new jobs!
Some of the most exciting proposals so far are in marine energy. The Blue Eden project, led by DST Innovations, would see a battery factory, data centre and thousands of homes powered by a new tidal lagoon. It would create two and half thousand permanent jobs. Meanwhile, Hiraeth Energy and Magnora Offshore Wind just announced proposals for two offshore windfarms in the Celtic Sea, which could power half the homes in Wales.
We need to move away from just making, using and disposing things, and instead conserve resources and ensure long term sustainability.
Ministry of Furniture recently fitted out the WLGA’s new offices with chairs made from recycled PET plastic bottles and desks, lockers and planters recycled from the WLGA’s legacy furniture! They also provided new 100% biodegradable bar stools made from hemp and resin.
The Welsh Government has pledged to use more Welsh wool as insulation, after it dropped in price during the pandemic. Wool insulation also forms part of a project by J.G. Hale Construction and SO Modular to build and retrofit flats in Aberavon. Using innovative insulation materials doesn’t stop with wool, they’re also using mushrooms and wood fibre!
Would you like your own tree?
Trees are great! They give us shade, clean our air, capture carbon and support biodiversity. They also provide timber, which is a more sustainable than traditional building materials like cement. The Welsh Government has announced that every household in Wales will get a free tree to plant. At 4theRegion, we welcome the commitment to more tree planting and recognise the importance of ensuring the right trees are planted in the right places.
And what about food?
We once had a thriving oyster trade, which gave Oystermouth its name. The population collapsed in the twentieth century, but now millions of oysters are being put on the seabed in Swansea Bay, in a process likened to growing a forest. In addition to being food, oysters store carbon and improve water quality.
New oyster bars are exciting, but we want to see affordable, nutritious, locally produced sustainable food available to everyone. Currently only 1% of urban green space is used for allotments, but research shows urban and under utilised green spaces could produce nearly 40% of the UK’s fresh fruit and vegetables! And urban food production is just as productive as conventional farming. Obviously we don’t want to see our parks ploughed up, but there is clearly land in towns and cities where we can grow useful amounts of fruit and vegetables. There are already plans to develop a “farm” near Morriston Hospital. Giving local people the opportunity to grow and eat healthy locally sourced food will help reduce pressures on the health service. It would also reduce the hospital’s carbon footprint, with fresh food literally coming from across the road!
What about jobs and skills?
Retrofitting, for example, requires electricians, plumbers, surveyors and builders. What if all contracts included a condition to take on apprenticeships? This would provide real life experience in areas like renewable energy, retrofitting, energy and water efficient technologies, and building techniques using non-traditional materials.
Last year, nearly six hundred and fifty homes in Swansea benefitted from the largest energy retrofit scheme of its kind in the UK, as part of a partnership between Pobl Group and Sero. It meant the community could generate up to 60% of its electricity requirements, reducing energy bills and carbon emissions! A wider roll out will see seven thousand homes retrofitted and three thousand three hundred homes built as “Homes as Power Stations”.
In the past, we have aimed at growth, whether it creates wellbeing or not. Instead we should be aiming for wellbeing (especially in light of the Well-being of Future Generations Act), whether or not the economy grows. Green recovery means we can reduce our carbon emissions, reverse the decline in biodiversity and tackle unsustainable levels of production and consumption while creating jobs, developing skills and protecting vulnerable groups and communities.
Keep your eyes peeled for an upcoming conference on green recovery! Join our mailing list to be the first to know.
by Andrew Guilford | Jan 20, 2022 | Buy Regional, Features
What can we do to keep more of our spending in the region? By this we mean both the money we spend as individuals and businesses, and the public money spent by local authorities and major organisations.
Did you know if every individual and business in South West Wales spent an extra £100 a year with regional businesses we’d have an extra £108m circulating and multiplying in our economy? This doesn’t just keep more wealth in our local economy. Buying more from each other helps develop supply chains and creates more opportunities for people and businesses.
This principle is already well understand, for example the Well-being of Future Generations Act says public organisations should spend 95% of their budgets within Wales. But there remain a lot of barriers to buying locally. Local businesses struggle to compete against online shopping and out of town retail parks. Tendering processes are complicated and place a lot of pressure on suppliers.
So what’s working well in the region?
Swansea Council has been able to put out contracts worth under £140,000 to local businesses, and recently announced that firms in the Swansea Bay City Region benefitted from £34.6m from the construction of Copr Bay phase one, with £17.9m benefitting Swansea based businesses.
Community wealth building means local economies are reorganised so that more wealth is retained locally and income is recirculated. It’s emerged as a powerful approach to local economic development, with progressive procurement as one of its main pillars. Progressive procurement can develop dense local supply chains, SMEs, employee owned businesses, social enterprises and cooperatives and other forms of community business. These types of businesses are more likely to support local employment and to retain wealth and surplus locally.
Hywel Dda University Health Board want to adopt a more locally focused approach to procurement, driven by community wealth building principles. They recognise the potential of working with other anchor institutions (organisations which have an important local presence, such as councils and universities) in areas of common spending, such as food procurement and collaborative working, in order to maximise the local impact of £2.5bn in total spending in the Health Board area.
So what more can we do?
There are clearly some areas the government would need to lead on, for example taxation of big corporations to help create a level playing field for local businesses. But there are also things we can do as businesses, communities and individuals. It’s been great to see the creation of a directory like South Wales Food & Drink, which helps connect people with local food and drink producers! Food and drink are relatively easy to procure locally, but how do we improve procurement of other local goods and services such as clothes and stationery? Could they have their own directories to connect suppliers with customers? And what if we had local distribution centres for food, clothes and stationery, operating in a similar way to an Amazon Fulfilment Centre?
We also need to consider the environmental impact of what we buy. Natural Resources Wales estimates nearly 90% of our carbon emissions are from procurement. And this isn’t just an issue for the public sector. By producing, distributing and purchasing the things we need as locally as possible we can all help reduce carbon emissions. Think of all those empty offices. Imagine if they were vertical farms providing local communities with nutritious locally grown food!
At 4theRegion, we know that if businesses and organisations in South West Wales buy more from each other, we can keep more wealth here in our local economy, develop our supply chains, and create more opportunities for people and businesses.
If you agree that buying locally is important, and want to be part of an alliance that work proactively to enable more local sourcing at all levels, please join us! Subscribe to our newsletter, become a member, come along to our events, or get in touch!
by Andrew Guilford | Jan 19, 2022 | Development Investment, Well-being Region
Proposals for a new central Swansea location for the city’s main library and other key services have taken a big step forward.
How Swansea’s new city centre community hub could look. Pic: Austin-Smith:Lord Ltd
Plans for the hub reveal a striking fresh design just yards from a new-look Castle Square Gardens, Kingsway and Wind Street. It’ll be a short walk from the Quadrant bus station and other public transport services.
The plans, for Oxford Street’s former BHS/What! building, were given the go-ahead by planners.
Work can now start in earnest to convert the building to offer people convenient access to key services from across the council and other organisations.
Council leader Rob Stewart said: “The transformation of this building is hugely exciting.
“It will create a fantastic new library and local services hub in the city centre, right next to the new Castle Square Gardens.
“There will be tangible benefits for the community and the council through the relocation of the library as well as a number of other key public and third party support services into a single building with an open and welcoming environment.
“The project will be a fine example of sustainable city centre redevelopment, reinvigorating existing buildings, and reducing carbon use in the fight against climate change.”
How Swansea’s new city centre community hub could look. Pic: Austin-Smith:Lord Ltd
Designs by architects Austin-Smith:Lord Ltd – on behalf of Swansea Council – reveal a new look for the former BHS/What! building.
Designers say the appearance of the structure – built in the 1950s – will have impact appropriate to a public building, with open and active shop frontages to maintain vibrancy to Oxford St and Princess Way.
The ground floor exterior is largely windows and that upper floors feature large glazed openings to show activity and a welcoming ethos.
Cladding will give the building a more consistent look than at present. Translucent cladding could be backlit to act as a beacon to help attract visitors.
There will be a green wall and planting on a roof area.
Inside, the library will act as a “spine” and there’ll be a feature grand central staircase.
The Swansea city centre building being transformed into a community hub. Pic: Swansea Council
Contractors began preparatory work on site in October – and the building could open in its new guise next year.
It will offer easy access to council services, including the library that’s set to move from the Civic Centre. It’ll be joined by a range of other services.
The hub, along with other city centre work hubs, is designed by the council to protect or create jobs and increase footfall in the city centre over the coming years. It will be visited by thousands of people every week.
The over-arching vision for the hub project is to:
- create an innovative, flexible and sustainable community hub promoting community cohesion, opportunities for self-development and growth, support digital inclusion, improve well-being and unite and strengthen the city’s diverse community;
- achieve access to all and provide a range of services in a welcoming environment where people can meet and participate in social activities, learning and support groups;
- encourage a coordinated approach in supporting the community in finding and delivering solutions to improve quality of life.
The public have been consulted on the project.
Swansea Council has also revealed some of its services that could soon be accessed by the public at the city centre’s planned community hub.
How Swansea’s new city centre community hub could look. Pic: Austin-Smith:Lord Ltd
The aim is for the building – which could open in 2023 at the heart of the city centre – to be a welcoming base for services delivered by the council and other organisations.
Council services being considered to relocate there include Swansea Library, the West Glamorgan Archive Service and the Contact Centre.
All are now accessed by the public at the Civic Centre which is due to be redeveloped as part of the city’s council-driven £1bn regeneration.
Other services due to move to the hub include the council’s Revenue and Benefits service, Housing Options and Tenancy Support Unit (TSU), Employability, Life-long Learning and Local Studies and Family History services.
Staff have been told. They and the public will be kept up to date on plans. The council continues to consider options for their future locations of other Civic-based services.
Council leader Rob Stewart said: “This announcement is an important step for our community hub plan.
“This first group of customer-facing services illustrates how useful the hub will be to the public.
“Many services will be easier to access in a more welcoming environment – and no services will be lost in the move.
“The development will bring increased footfall for city centre businesses, creating and maintaining city centre jobs; it’s a key factor in our aim to regenerate Swansea.”
Inside the Swansea city centre building being transformed into a community hub. Pic: Swansea Council
Swansea Council
by Andrew Guilford | Jan 4, 2022 | Development Investment, Travel Transport Tourism
The Library and Learning Resources department at the University of Wales Trinity Saint David has launched a new special collections exhibition both on campus and online to kick start the University’s bicentenary celebrations.
Bishop Thomas Burgess and his vision for a Welsh College
The bicentenary commemorates the establishment of St David’s College, Lampeter on 12 August 1822 through the laying the foundation stone which marks the beginning of higher education in Wales. From the seeds sown in Lampeter over two centuries ago and the development of our campuses, we have grown into a multi-campus, dual-sector University providing vocationally relevant programmes in partnership with employers.
The exhibition ‘Bishop Thomas Burgess and his vision for a Welsh College’ looks back at Bishop Burgess’s vision to create a higher education institution in west Wales. He established St David’s College, Lampeter to provide local Welsh-speaking men who wanted to join the priesthood an education.
The first half of the exhibition describes Burgess’ vision for a college in West Wales and how for over twenty years Bishop Burgess was committed to the vision. The archives hold a large number of letters and documents that reveal the tremendous work he undertook to achieve the vision.
The second half of the exhibition talks about Bishop Burgess’ own sizeable collection of books which he bequeathed to Lampeter. The collection includes a magnificent 1279 manuscript of the Vulgate, and a copy of The Golden Legend, describing the lives of saints, printed by Williams Caxton’s successor Wynkyn de Worde.
Alison Harding, Executive Head of Library and Learning Resources said: “I’d like to welcome everyone to our first Special Collections and Archives exhibition of 2022. Bishop Thomas Burgess was committed in his vision to create a higher education institution in west Wales, so it is fitting that we celebrate here the life and work of Bishop Burgess as the university enters its bicentenary year.
“The University Archives hold a large number of letters and documents which reveal the tremendous work he undertook to achieve this vision. They tell a story of a man dedicated to his role as Bishop of St David’s, who was also committed to the provision of educational opportunities in his diocese. Through this exhibition we can be inspired by this remarkable individual and be motivated to continue to build on his legacy to transform education and transform lives.”
The exhibition will be on show from January 4th until the end of the month at the Lampeter campus Library, and in the Fforwm Library on the Swansea Waterfront campus. The exhibition also will be available to view online too.
University of Wales Trinity Saint David
