DOZENS of community groups and members of local businesses gathered at The Courtyard in Hereford on Saturday to show visitors to the Schumacher lectures the wealth of environmentally friendly goods and services which are readily available to people in the county.

Participants found that as well as being inspired by the ideas put forward by expert speakers such as Satish Kumar and Helena Norberg-Hodge, they had easy access to a variety of ways to put these ideas into practice.

Information on nature conservation, recycling, solar energy and complementary healthcare filled the foyer, alongside work by local artists, fashion designers and a theatre group.

Diana Palmer was voted Herefordshire Schumacher Award winner for her work with Foodlinks. Runner-up, Paul Benham, of the Primrose Earth Awareness Trust, said: "It was very encouraging to meet so many people who are interested in the work we are doing in education."

The Trust is an education centre for schools and community groups, linked to organic vegetable production and creating a link between education and healthy food.

Knighton-based GP Dr Sarah Myhill provided a wealth of detail on how many common health problems from cancer to dyslexia are caused by lack of minerals and vitamins in our food because they have been depleted from soils in the UK.

She emphasised how easy it is to cure many of these illnesses by taking the appropriate mineral supplements, and explained how she is developing special minerals, called 'Myhill's Magic Minerals' which can be added to gardens to re-instate the correct mineral balance in vegetables and fruit.

Gaia Cooperative, which organised the Schumacher Lectures, is following-up Dr Myhill's research with a course on May 16 on the everyday use of herbs for cooking and health. This will include more information on the 'Magic Minerals' and how everyone can get the benefits through herbs which are easy to grow and use at home. For more information, email info@gaiacooperative.org; 0845 458 4718.