climate changelife in the UK

My Experience Distributing Green Party Flyers: Understanding What the Party Stands For



Hi, it’s konkaz (@konkazuk).


Last year, influenced by reading extensively about environmental destruction and climate change, as well as the alarming news that the 1.5°C threshold outlined in the Paris Agreement has been exceeded, my wife and I occasionally discussed what actions we could take.

One of the suggestions we came up with was volunteering for the Green Party.


When I checked the website of the local Green Party in Hackney, I found they were looking for volunteers to help distribute flyers, followed by a tea break at a café. So, my wife and I decided to join them early in the new year.



Therefore, this article covers my experience and some topics related to the Green Party.

スポンサーリンク

The pink fringe emerging from inside the hat

image by samuel-regan-asante

First of all, Hackney, a borough in London, is divided into 21 wards, and the flyer distribution took place in one of those wards, Dalston, which is a neighborhood I have previously lived in.


While the Labour Party is dominant in most of London, Hackney is often regarded as one of the areas where the party holds particularly strong power.

Hackney has a total of 57 councillors (with 2 to 3 councillors in each ward), out of which 45 are members of the Labour Party, while only 3 are from the Green Party.




One of those three is Zoë Garbett, who represents the Dalston ward.

The flyers we distributed this time


Zoë has been the councillor for the Dalston ward since May 2022, and from 2024, she has also been serving as a member of the London Assembly, representing all of London—quite an impressive achievement ー a real powerhouse.



To strengthen its position in Hackney, where Labour Party support is dominant, the Green Party, as a minority, must capture the attention of young residents who are highly concerned about environmental issues, put forward candidates in targeted areas, and work to increase the number of seats.

Therefore, the flyer distribution is not just a New Year’s greeting, but also the “kickoff” for the upcoming activities in preparation for the local council elections in 2026, which happen once every four years.



While waiting in the library, I looked outside for a moment and noticed someone in a blue coat among the group in front of me slightly adjusting their hat, which was pulled low over their head.

Just then, a bright pink fringe appeared, and that’s when I recognised it was Zoë.

Flyer distribution

image by jonathan-formento

Since it was the beginning of the new year, there were about seven of us, including myself.

After we introduced ourselves briefly, Zoë gave a short explanation, and we were divided into three groups.


Usually, people act in pairs, but because my wife and I were new to this, we were fortunate to join Alfred, an Austrian with 10 years of experience in the Green Party, as a group of three.

Dalston, with its rapid urban development, is full of new buildings with double-layered security. As a result, you first need to interact with the residents through the gate’s intercom.



But Alfred, with his experience, knew exactly what to do. His explanations usually convinced people to let us into the building without any trouble.

Of course, there were some grumpy residents or those who, if you weren’t directly related to them, simply turned you away. But by waiting for the right moment when people were coming and going, or by employing a few tricks I can’t share, we managed to complete our task without issue.


It was an enjoyable experience to step into a building I would never normally have the chance to enter, and to discover an area behind the bustling buildings on the main street, which had a charming atmosphere and an aura of another world.


In the end, we all gathered at a café for some casual conversation.


Everyone was so kind, cheerful, and full of positive energy. It felt like we, the participants, ended up getting a whole day’s worth of motivation and energy from them.

Thank you for the valuable experience.

What is the Green Party, and what do they stand for?

image by Nik

Among the many political parties in the UK, the “Green Party” is one that, just by hearing its name, you can probably get a rough idea of what kind of party it is. However, I’ll briefly summarise it here.


First, the Green Party I helped distribute flyers for is called the “Green Party of England and Wales,” and it is literally an organization where both England and Wales are working together.

(Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own parliaments, so each has its own separate Green Party.)



The Green Party was established in 1973, and the party’s original name was, believe it or not,

theHuman Ecology Party!!!



In 1985, the party changed its name to the ‘Green Party’ to place a stronger emphasis on its core values of environmental protection, social justice, and sustainable economic development.


Among the party’s main policies are:

Tackling climate change
⚫ Promoting renewable energy
⚫ Strengthening public transportation
⚫ Increasing taxes on the wealthy



The Green Party is positioned on the left side of the political spectrum, and in addition to its climate change policies, it also supports the introduction of a universal basic income, the acceptance of immigrants and refugees, and the expansion of LGBTQ+ rights.

This makes it even further left than the Labour Party.



Caroline Lucas was elected for the first time in the 2010 general election and has been the only Green Party MP since.

But in the 2024 general election, four new members of the party were elected, marking a significant step forward.



Therefore, with growing concern over environmental issues, it is a party that is expected to grow in the future.

Summary

image by damesophie

I like the Labour Party as well, as it is a left-wing party that supports the lives of ordinary citizens, but recently, I’ve felt increasingly drawn to supporting the Green Party.

One reason is that the Green Party’s policy of raising taxes on the wealthy matches the urgent call made by economist and activist Gary Stevenson, whom I follow.

This isn’t about choosing between the Labour Party and the Green Party, but I personally think that as the Green Party grows stronger, it will help strengthen the entire left-wing movement, leading society as a whole – including environmental issues – in a healthier direction.



For these reasons, I would like to support the Green Party.


So, this was an article about the “Green Party”.

Bye now.


konkaz

*You can read this blog post in Japanese from the link below.
👉 緑の党とは?初めてのフライヤー配布体験 in ダルストン!

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