During 2019 we were holding relatively informal physical meetings in the Town Hall. They were on the 3rd Thursday of the month, started at 7.30 and lasted around 2 hours.
We also hosted occasional talks that were promoted around the town and brought more people in. Bit more structure. Often also on a Thursday but we've used other nights.
And then last year, just a year ago, everything changed. On 12th March we hosted a talk in the Town Hall by someone from the Dorset Waste Partnership. One week later on 19th March we had an online meeting on Zoom.
Since then there have been short, relatively informal Zoom meetings almost every Thursday. The number of people joining in has been perhaps half the number coming to the Town Hall on a regular basis - but as with those physical meetings, people vary from week to week.
Although lots of things seem to have stood still, there has been much change over the past year. There's a greater sense of urgency around responding to climate breakdown and the threats to nature. We've not remained inactive. We've kept in touch with one another in a variety of ways; some new people have joined in; there have been occasional carefully distanced events. And now we can start to think about how we want meetings to be when we can make them happen.
At some point we could restart the monthly meetings in the Town Hall. When?
We could arrange more public talks in the Town Hall ... or online? When?
We could keep the Zoom meetings going - weekly? Or occasionally? Or in weeks when there wasn't a Town Hall meeting?
We could have regular other meetings. A pub night - 'green drinks'? A cafe session - 'green teas'? A walk?
At last night's Zoom meeting we bandied these questions around without reaching any conclusions. What do you think? What would work best for you? Do you want to help to host / convene / facilitate / or otherwise support any of these? Let's assemble ideas over the next few weeks and take time to adjust slowly! Please comment here ...
Rachel