Platform. The everyday portal for sharing knowledge and intelligence on sustainability across Greater Manchester.

Ellenroad Ring Mill

Ellenroad steams ahead with biomass

The Alternative? Mike Hodson profiles the installation of a biomass boiler in a 19th Century engine house.

Main image is an outtake from a film about Fallowfield Secret Garden

Proving by doing with AFSL

The Alternative? Mike Hodson profiles effective, bottom-up sustainable living and how this is organised.

Andreas Demmelbauer, Solar Panel

The Sunshine of St John's community generation project

The Alternative? Mike Hodson profiles St John's Sunshine, an innovative project to bring together church, community and energy generation.

Revaluing wood waste

The Alternative? Mike Hodson profiles Tree Station, a member-based approach to sustainable woodland management in Greater Manchester.

Bridge 5 Mill

The Alternative? Mike Hodson profiles Bridge 5 Mill and the rich, historical process of its retrofitting.

The Fallowfield Loopline

The Alternative? Mike Hodson profiles the 21st Century relevance of 19th Century urban infrastructure.

Bee Sustainable

The Alternative? Mike Hodson profiles the Bury-based renewable energy co-operative seeking to bring community energy generation and community ownership together.

Ancoats Canal Project

The Alternative? Mike Hodson profiles efforts to revitalize an old industrial infrastructure in Ancoats.

Energy Academy Pilot

The Alternative? Mike Hodson profiles the Energy Academy Pilot, a Greater Manchester pilot project to develop a volunteer network to engage with householders through energy advice and understanding of energy usage.

Developing a carbon neutral community venue

The Alternative? Mike Hodson profiles the Affetside Millennium Green Trust Community Venue.

Greater Manchester Hydrogen Partnership

Greater Manchester Hydrogen Partnership

The Alternative? Mike Hodson profiles efforts in Greater Manchester to promote an old technology to address current ecological and economic problems.

Hough Lane Community Garden

The Alternative? Mike Hodson profiles not 'just another’ community garden. 

Millgate Theatre by Flickr user Jim Grady

Millgate Arts Centre

The Alternative? Mike Hodson profiles the Millgate Arts Centre and an example of how a volunteer-run arts centre builds capacity to install solar panels.

Improving Davyhulme’s Environmental Awareness

The Alternative? Mike Hodson profiles a long-term biography of a community-based environmental awareness initiative in Davyhulme.

Chorlton Refurb

The Alternative? Mike Hodson profiles Chorlton Refurb’s efforts to find ways of local people working together on reducing energy usage.

Saddleworth Community Hydro

The Alternative? Mike Hodson profiles a social investment to re-vitalise pre-existing technologies and assets.

It Wasn't Built in a Day

Why transforming the material fabric of cities matters

Decarbonising cities has become an increasingly important policy and research challenge. Debates usually focus on the role of cities as producers and reducers of CO2; city-level policy responses to decarbonisation; and the strengths and weaknesses of these responses. Mike Hodson and Alex Wharton summarise these issues and the role of policy, practice and research in enhancing city responses in Greater Manchester; and set out future work to enhance responses.