Introducing CREW MEMBERS: Morgan da silva and URBAN green SPACES

Introduction to Morgan da Silva

Hi, my name is Morgan da Silva and I am a member of CREW. My background stems from the desire to see everyone have access to electricity around the world. In some places, renewable energy can provide clean and accessible electricity where governments cannot afford to extend the grid. I began with a development project in Nicaragua that operated on this principle and installed pico solar systems in rural areas. I then went to California, USA where I worked with Tesla on their residential solar market for two years. On return to the UK, I did a masters focused on the social aspect of the energy transition, leading directly into what CREW does to alleviate energy poverty. I started as an energy advisor with CREW in my spare time and now run my own business, Yes Make London, building green spaces in public places and contributing to CREW where I can.  

​ What is the most understandable, easy-to-see and interactive way of communicating the Climate Emergency? 

I have asked myself this question for a long time now, and I have finally found an answer I am comfortable enough with. So much so that I started a company to do it! Our company is called Yes Make London and we make green spaces in public places so that everyone can enjoy them. ​

Small urban green spaces are a very powerful tool because they are located in the most densely populated areas of the world… cities. Cities have the largest carbon footprint, predominantly due to this concentration of people in them. Having this drastic contrast of concrete jungles and little green spaces helps to spark the individual's curiosity, just enough to investigate it themselves. Upon investigation we prepare these spaces with information signs and people who can communicate it to the curious.
Information is not the only aspect of communicating the Climate Emergency, we also need to be able to engage people. This happens to be a consequence of making our green spaces, however it is also an integral and conscious goal of ours. Community is a crucial aspect of mitigating the Climate Emergency as we are all in this together, whether we like it or not. Our process of ‘making’ in community spaces inadvertently creates engagement from the community, coming from a place of curiosity rather than needing to convince people to be interested in saving the planet. This eradicates the need to manufacture trust and instead fosters solidarity. Through building these conversations we turn spaces into places.

The science behind the Climate Emergency is clear, however the messages communicated about how to combat it are not. Especially in relation to who the power lies with in order truly mitigate the effects of it. The two main most prominent ones are:
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• That the consumer (general public) holds the key to changing things through their spending and voting 
• And the other is that the governments of the world hold the key.

At Yes Make, we aim to predominantly help the general public understand what the Climate Emergency is and what the effects of it are. We bridge two voids between these opposing views. One is bridging the gap between engaged government organisations that are keen to activate individuals and the other is engaged individuals that are trying to activate disengaged government organisations. 

This helps to create awareness, but I strongly believe that the onus should not burden us as individuals, this is something that the government should fight fiercely by creating fast acting policy directed at both public bodies and also the private industry. For this reason, we work with local authorities and charities to inform policy as best as possible to expedite this process.
We want to work with you. Especially if you like to make great things happen! Please reach out if you think we might be able to collaborate.

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