The Norton Energy Community
 

About Us

Sustainable living is more than just buying green products and recycling waste. Sustainable living is having regard for the whole continuum of society, past, present and future and its place in the natural environment. To search for a more sustainable life-style means that we believe that living prosperously is possible within the resources available to us. It encompasses all our activities, hopes and dreams for the future.

To believe that a sustainable life-syle exists means that we believe it is for everyone: sustainability means prosperity for everyone. In this respect, community is our connectedness through our actions for a shared prosperity. Community implies that what we can do together is of more benefit than what we can do individually.

Studies have shown that democratic structures and procedure in all areas of society, not only in the political system, are preconditions for effective environmental policy. The fundamental driver of sustainable development must be democratic debate - decisions reached through open discussion, consensus based on shared goals and trust. Sustainable development needs representative democracy that is trusted and vibrant, and new forms of participatory democracy to compliment it that can inspire greater engagement by citizens in creating a better world.

Alongside the concept of capacity building is the idea of social capital. This factor tries to describe the importance of collective community intelligence and the links between different sectors of a community. And perhaps of over-riding importance is the observation that in order to be successful, communities need access to resources.

Origin Energy was established as a Community Interest Company whose aim is to help communities and local governments in Yorkshire and Humberside to live a more prosperous and sustainable life-style.

Its strategy is to raise funds on behalf of communities through the sale of renewable energy and to establish ways in which this revenue can be spent to promote longer term prosperity for the community. In relation to the initiatives outlined above, it aims to promote participatory democracy in environmental mattters and make available to communities the resources that they may need to achieve their aims.

Please download the full company vision document for a detailed description of our motives, tools, and the company structure.