The Sea Pool is a truly inspiring example of Bude’s committed community spirit and shows what we are capable of when we care about something. The Sea Pool could have been condemned to Bude’s past, instead the community rallied to save and maintain it, and so it remains a thrumming heart of our town.

Nicky and Billy talk passionately about why the Sea Pool is important to them (in fact we’d have needed a feature length documentary to cover all the reasons!) and one of the things that kept coming up was community.

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Climate change presents a complex set of challenges, to our environment, our health systems, our food and energy security, and in the future our culture and heritage. These challenges are amplified by other factors such as poverty, poor health, inadequate infrastructure, and social isolation. As Nicky notes, the more aware and clued up we are on the challenges that climate change poses, the more likely we are to pull together and act. We each bring different skills, knowledge, and care to contribute to our communities. Whether it’s sweeping up pebbles, supporting fundraising events or simply lending a wheelbarrow to a cause. Small or big, these all contribute to a healthy and resilient community.

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Resilience is our ability to anticipate, prepare for, and respond to significant threats, like flooding, whilst also maintaining essential services, such as food distribution and caring for our most vulnerable. Communities that demonstrate the greatest resilience, are also the most socially equal and connected. Bude’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic demonstrates that we have great capacity to adapt, organise and look after each other. Over 3000 people and local businesses joined an online quarantine support group in our area, the Post Office stepped up and offered a home collection service, and food bundles were dropped to those most in need. We should be proud of these actions, as it is exactly this kind of camaraderie that will see our community thrive in the face of a changing climate.