Turning Life’s Uncertainty Into Positive Action for the Planet
Helen Tandy, Founder, Eco Communities
My son is nearly 30 now. But the moment I became a mum, everything changed — including the way I looked at the future.
Climate change stopped being a distant issue discussed in reports and headlines. It became personal. I began thinking about the kind of world future generations would inherit, and whether we were doing enough to protect it.
What started as concern slowly became commitment.
But there is another part of this story too.
In 2001, after experiencing a mini stroke, I discovered I had Fabry disease — a rare genetic condition that can affect multiple organs in the body. It explained years of unexplained symptoms, nerve pain, exhaustion, and health problems that had never quite made sense.
Living with Fabry means living with uncertainty.
Treatments are still relatively new and long-term outcomes are not fully understood. The condition affects everyone differently, and for many families like mine, there has been heartbreak along the way. I’ve lost family members to Fabry disease, and that reality changes the way you think about time, purpose, and what really matters.
Every day I live with nerve pain and ongoing treatment. Managing that pain has become part of daily life — through medication, support from pain clinics, and learning ways to cope. One of the biggest things that helps me is keeping busy, creating things, and working with others toward something meaningful.
That’s where Eco Communities became more than environmental work for me. A friend and I set up Eco Communities a not for profit in 2018, after years as co-ordinator for Chester & District Friends of the Earth.
It became hope.
Throwing myself into climate projects, local initiatives, and community action gave me something I desperately needed: agency.
Fabry disease brings a huge amount of uncertainty. You cannot control how your body will respond, what symptoms will come next, or what the future looks like. Living with that uncertainty every day can feel overwhelming.
But through Eco Communities, I discovered something different. I may not be able to control my illness, but I can help create change in the world around me. I can help bring people together. I can help turn ideas into projects. I can help create spaces where communities feel connected, hopeful, and empowered.
That sense of purpose has become one of the ways I manage pain and keep moving forward.
Eco Communities is not just about sustainability. It’s about people. About connection. About creating healthier, kinder, more resilient places to live. It’s about proving that ordinary people can come together and make things happen.
And none of it happens alone.
I may commit a huge amount of time and energy to this work, but it would mean nothing without the
incredible team around me — the volunteers, organisers, supporters, partners, and residents who all bring ideas, compassion, and determination. Community is what makes change possible.
Living with a rare disease has taught me that time is precious.
It has taught me not to wait for “someday” to make a difference.
I don’t know what the future holds, but I do know this: while I am here, I want my life to contribute to something bigger than myself or my career. I want to help build communities that care for each other and for the planet. I want to leave behind projects, spaces, and connections that continue long after us.
That is what drives me.
And if there’s one thing I’ve learned through all of this, it’s that none of us has to change the world alone.
We simply have to start where we are…………..
Join Us
This kind of change doesn’t happen in boardrooms or government offices — it happens in communities, between people, one conversation at a time.
Whether you can volunteer an hour, support a local project, share an idea, or simply start a conversation in your own community — you are part of the change too.
Together, small actions become powerful movements.
And together, we can build communities that are healthier, greener, kinder, and stronger for future generations.
Want to support our projects- email me for a chat helentandy@sustainablecheshire.uk Or complete our Volunteer form.
