Recording two decades of ecodyfi’s environmental work in Machynlleth

ecodyfi, the Machynlleth-based organisation for green energy and community development in the Dyfi valley, has changed its name to become the Dyfi Biosphere.

The name change coincide with a team of Aberystwyth University students sorting through ecodyfi’s records for donation to the National Library of Wales in Aberystwyth.

“The records cover an important period of the environmental movement in Wales and our students, who are all studying for our Master’s in Archives and Records Management, are gaining valuable professional experience by preparing them for permanent preservation,” said Dr Sarah Higgins, senior lecturer in the university’s Department of Information Studies.

ecodyfi was established in 1998 by representatives from Powys County Council, Dulas Ltd and many other partners with the aim of strengthening the local economy through a range of innovative activities.

These were to include sustainable tourism, sustainable energy and wellbeing, while bringing people together and developing a sense of place.

From 2009, ecodyfi also held the secretariat of the UNESCO Dyfi Biosphere, the only Biosphere in Wales and one of more than 700 across the world. This status covers a larger area from Tywyn to Llanymawddwy and from Carno to Aberystwyth.

Andy Rowland, ecodyfi’s managing director since the start, retired last year. At that point, the ecodyfi board decided to invest its reserves in employing staff to develop the Biosphere and the company changed its name to Biosffer Dyfi.

“We are very pleased that Andy’s years of service to the local community have left ecodyfi in a very good position and we look forward to building on that as we develop the Dyfi Biosphere,” said Martin Ashby, co-chair of the Biosphere board.

The Biosphere is a learning space for sustainable development and has inspired a range of projects which have explored how economic activity can work with environmental aims, many of them carried out by ecodyfi.

These have included social prescribing for outdoor health, citizen science, the visual arts and storytelling, tourism and farming. Its most recent project, Tyfu Dyfi, focused on developing the local food economy.

“We are the only Biosphere in Wales,” said Jane Powell, former chair of the Biosphere partnership who with James Cass has taken over the co-ordinating role. “These are challenging times and it is good to be part of UNESCO with its international network of learning and research.”

Last year, the Biosphere received a £30,000 grant from Welsh Government as well as consultancy from the UK Commission for UNESCO which allowed it to run public activities, upgrade its website and social media and start work on a fundraising plan.

This archiving exercise is expected to connect with a UK-wide project called Oral History of the Environmental Movement based at Royal Holloway University London.

The Biosphere website is at www.dyfibiosphere.wales and www.biosfferdyfi.cymru.