Case Study: Diamonds in the Community Leading the Way with the Community Climate Pledge

We are thrilled to announce that Diamonds in the Community has become the first organisation in North Lanarkshire to embrace our Community Climate Pledge!

Diamonds in the Community has been dedicated to improving social inclusion and promoting better physical and mental health through a variety of projects for the past decade. Their commitment to the principles of reduce, reuse and recycling has been at the core of their philosophy, demonstrating a sustainable approach to community development.

Julie Mcphee, chairperson of the charity, and a Senior Sustainable development project officer by day, told us how the charity have been reusing items for over 10 years, not only to save landfill, but to assist the vulnerable locally and globally.

“The 1st project we undertook was working with the amazing KitAid charity, who take unwanted football strips and send them to some of the poorest countries in the world. KitAid recently had its millionth piece of kit donated, with DITC contributing 50000 pieces towards that total. We are now the Scottish Hub for the charity and through a network of contacts and volunteers, take strips from all over Scotland. These strips would have headed for landfill but have now given many of people in some of the Poorest Countries in the world the chance to play sport”.

“This alone stopped 260kg of CO2 going into atmosphere which is equivalent to 8367 trees absorbing CO2 in one day…or 29 less cars on the road each day”

“From small acorns grow trees, and from taking unwanted strips for Africa, we now have a charity which offers a variety of projects supporting the vulnerable in our community, and recycling is still at the heart of what we do.”

“During the height of COVID, we were approached to set up a Baby Bank to support young families in need. We extended this to include clothing for adults, and then again to include a Home Comforts Project. We take donations of absolutely everything – from cutlery and crockery to suites and white goods. Clothes from size newborn to Adults Sizes. Toys and books, to beds and wardrobes. All items which would have been sent to landfill, which are reused for families in need.”

“More recently we have started a Football Boot Swap Shop, a winter Jacket giveaway, and in recent months, a Digital Recycling Project. Digital Inclusion is a huge issue for many in our society, and we have a skilled volunteer who takes old laptops and computers and upcycles them to be given out to families or individuals need”.

“This is all done through the generosity of people donating, and our small army of volunteers who give up their time to recycle and reuse. Everyone buys into the ethos of what we are doing and the need to do whatever we can do to help people in need but also save our planet.”

By taking the Community Climate Pledge, Diamonds in the Community can continue to foster a healthier and more inclusive community while taking actionable steps towards climate action.

If you’re inspired by Diamonds in the Community and want to join us in taking the Community Climate Pledge, we would love to hear from you. Together, we can build a better future for our communities.

For more information and to get involved, please get in touch with us today!