Poems in the Valleys: energy and climate change

Philippa Parry

16 April 2013

Poetry and climate change may seem like a strange combination. But as the charity Awel Aman Tawe (AAT) found, it can be incredibly powerful in conveying the realities of a changing climate to wider audiences.

I was able to visit ATT in January of this year, located in Cwmllynfell, in the beautiful valleys and hills of South Wales. This multiple award-winning community energy charity has worked on a diverse range of green projects. From solar panels to air-source heat pumps, it has been largely successful in bringing clean energy to the picturesque hills.

For me however, AAT's most unique asset is their approach to communicating their issues - using the arts as a medium to share thoughts and feelings on climate change.

ATT has launched a climate change poetry competition, appealing to young and old, as well as Welsh and English speakers. Co-founder Emily Hinshelwood, who is herself a poet and a dramatist explains that the competition allowed people to raise the issue of climate change outside of its usual science 'box' and address it on a more personal level. "For many, the reality of climate change is too harsh to find words for, and others cannot accept it at all."

The numerous entries - and winners - are inspiring. ATT enlisted poet laureate Carol-Ann Duffy and Elin ap Hywel, the Royal Literary Fund's first ever bilingual fellow at Aberystwyth University, as judges. They have since released two anthologies of the best poems.

Here are some lines from a poem written by 10-year old Leanne Thomas:

    What could human's activities mean
    to make our planet one big rubbish bin?
    No matter that you may be only a teen
    it's never too early or late to be green.

As well as appreciating Leanne's poetic prowess, I was also impressed by her combination of climate critique and a call to action in a few short lines. AAT's website cites the English Romantic poet Shelley, who called poets 'the unacknowledged legislators of the world'.

Don't let AAT's location in a quiet, South Wales village fool you - the organisation  is much more than a run-of-the-mill community energy project. You can buy an anthology of the best entries in AAT's competition here, and see more of the great work they're getting up to on their website here.

Community energy projects like the ones run by ATT are also important in protecting  people from escalating energy prices from the Big Six energy companies. Projects like these can help communities to profit from generating their own clean British energy. For information on Friends of the Earth's own Clean British Energy campaign, click here and join us in asking Ed Davey to switch our UK power supply to renewable energy.

Philippa Parry is a former volunteer on Friends of the Earth's Clean British Energy campaign.