Videos
The Society continues to produce videos from time to time, especially now when webinars have had to replace our programme of free public talks. All our videos are on YouTube and are listed below; you can find the same on our YouTube channel.
The Society continues to produce videos from time to time, especially now when webinars have had to replace our programme of free public talks. All our videos are on YouTube and are listed below; you can find the same on our YouTube channel.
Following his talk to the Oxford Civic Society on the history of the railways of Oxfordshire last year, Laurence Waters turned his attention to some of the branch lines in the Vale, including the Abingdon Branch, Didcot Junction to Uffington, Faringdon and the Wantage Tramway. As photograph archivist for the Great Western archive at Didcot, Laurence brought an unparalleled insight into local railway history.
Learn more about the past, present and future of Oxford University’s ‘Laboratory with Leaves’, from Nigel Fisher, who has been the Conservator of Wytham Woods since 2000.
This is a slideshow with Nigel’s audio presentation on 7 October 2021 and the Q&A session which followed.
Otmoor is one of Oxfordshire’s greatest conservation success stories. Discover from David Wilding, the Otmoor Reserve Site Manager, how the RSPB has “transformed boring arable fields into an incredible wetland oasis in the heart of England”. Former wheat fields are now home to an impressive range of wetland species including bittern, marsh harrier and drumming snipe.
National and local government commitments to net zero CO2 emissions have major implications for energy, transport and heating. Professor Nick Eyre, recently appointed as Scientific Adviser to Oxford City Council, considers what needs to be done locally, what progress is being made and what more needs to be done.
Gordon Mitchell was Oxford City Council’s Chief Executive from May 2017 to April 2021. Gordon provided strong support to the city council, including the creation of council-owned businesses, managing its finances in very difficult circumstances, addressing climate change, Covid recovery and the need to tackle inclusivity. He describes how addressing these challenges will help us in the years ahead.
Imagine the whole county being powered by an interconnected series of smart micro-grids centred around multiple small-scale, community-controlled renewable energy schemes. That is the vision of the Low Carbon Hub, a social enterprise that aims to prove we can meet our energy needs in a way that is good for people and the planet. The Hub’s CEO, Barbara Hammond, describes how the Hub is playing a central role in developing a smarter, flexible electricity system fit for our future.
Bob Colenutt explains how today’s crisis in housing and the affordability of homes relates to the residential property development business and the behaviour of its participants. Bob, an OCS member and active member of the Housing Policy Group, is the author of a book described as ‘the perfect guide’ to the complexities of the housing market, The Property Lobby.
Thanks to a gift of £5,000 in 1621, Oxford acquired the first scientific garden in Great Britain which now hosts over 5,000 plant species. Gardeners’ Question Time panellist and Deputy Director of the Botanic Garden, Dr Chris Thorogood, explained its history and its role in research, conservation, education and public understanding. With accelerating global warming, what does the future hold?
A quarter of all our energy is used in transport but vehicle emissions are slowly killing us. The general approach to cleaning up the air is to go electric. But where does the energy come from? What does the future of mobility look like? Is it the end of the road for the car? Allan Hutchinson, Professor of Mechanical Engineering, Oxford Brookes University, took us through some of the challenges and exciting opportunities.
Railway historian Laurence Waters talked about the development of the railway from its opening in 1844 until the present day. The gradual decline in the post-war years was compounded by the Beeching cuts of the 1960s; at one point even the ‘Cotswold Line’ was under threat. The privatisation of the railways has resulted in a resurgence in rail use both locally and nationally and Oxford has once again become an important railway hub.
The lockdown during the spring and summer of 2020 gave Oxford the opportunity of seeing what the City could be like with far less traffic clogging the streets. This video shows ‘Lockdown Oxford’, with comments and thoughts from Oxford Civic Society’s Chairman.
Oxford Civic Society prepared a response to the Government’s White Paper of changes to the planning system. In this webinar Peter Thompson (OCS Planning Grouip) outlines the White Paper’s proposals and the Society’s proposed response. His presentation is followed by a Q&A session.
Olive Gibbs (born in 1918) was a redoubtable local Labour politician, peace campaigner and founding member of CND. During her long political career she helped to shape our city. Local historian Liz Woolley spoke about Olive’s extraordinary life and legacy.
The recording of Liz’s talk is no longer available, but for more information please contact Liz at www.lizwoolley.co.uk.
On Tuesday 15 September Dr Paul Jepson, Nature Recovery Lead at the environmental consultancy Ecosulis, gave an overview of rewilding from a European perspective. He discussed the potential for rewilding in and around Oxford.
On Tuesday 8 September Dr Scott Urban of Oxfordshire Liveable Streets, explained low-traffic neighbourhoods with successful examples from elsewhere. He discussed what we could do here to claim back our streets for the people who live in them.
Sara Fernandez, Director of Oxford Hub, spoke about Oxford through the lens of social action, relationships and community cohesion. It was an opportunity to explore what it means to live in Oxford from a different perspective.
The UK is now on track to be “nearly Zero Carbon” by 2050 and we really need to halve our CO2 emissions by 2030. Can we afford to keep building new houses that contribute to the problem and will need retrofitting? The Managing Director of Greencore Housing, Ian Pritchett, shows how Greencore has developed a way to build houses with zero embodied carbon and net-zero energy in use. He talks about the company’s innovative work and how housebuilding can and must change to help tackle the climate crisis.
Rylee, a young litter picking inspiration, has been sharing his top tips for litter picking ahead of OxClean’s big Spring Clean at the end of the month.
In the video, Rylee explains why litter picking is important and why people should get involved in the Spring Clean. As someone who has been litter picking for some time, young Rylee is well-placed to share his wisdom.
A Blue Plaque commemorating the launch of Oxford’s Park & Ride scheme in 1973 was unveiled at Redbridge on Friday 1st November 2019. Oxford Civic Society, celebrating its 50th anniversary in 2019, was instrumental in getting this milestone achievement implemented.
Sophie Law of BBC Radio Oxford interviews two volunteers from Oxford Civic Society who are active in the OxClean initiative.
Oxford Civic Society launched the report “Oxford Futures” by Nicholas Falk of URBED in March 2014. This is a short record of the launch.