TRANSITION pioneer, Rob Hopkins, has received a prestigious Citizen of Honour award from the mayor of Liège, in recognition of the influence the movement he founded has had around the globe.

He received the honour from the mayor of the Belgium city, Wille Demeyer, at a special ceremony in Liège City Hall.

Rob founded Transition Town Totnes (TTT) in 2006 and since then the Transition model has spread to 50 countries, leading to thousands of communities around the world taking bold action to address the climate emergency.

Liège was first inspired by the Transition movement in 2013, when it formed the ‘Liège en Transition’. The following year, Rob and Fiona Ward of TTT visited the city to support the group and the launch of its pioneering initiative ‘Ceinture Alimenterre Liegoise’ (the Liège Food Belt) which consisted of an ambitious reimagining of the city’s food system based on growing produce locally.

Since its launch, the initiative has led to the creation of 27 new co-operatives and many jobs thanks to residents raising some €5million to set up new farms, vineyards and breweries plus shops in the city centre.

Today, the initiative is working with the city’s administration to help Liège’s schools, universities and hospitals source local food.

The Liège model is also spreading across Belgium to six other cities as well as into cities in neighbouring France.

Presenting the award to Rob, Mayor Demeyer said: “Thanks to your works and the many citizens of Liège that you’ve inspired, our city is nowadays involved in many promising projects for a better future for our population and for our planet.

“The Transition method is nowadays consistently implemented in all our projects, including in terms of urban development.”

Rob regularly meets up with community groups implementing the Transition model in towns, villages and cities across Europe, often returning with inspiring stories of community-led change.

Many of the places he visits see Totnes as a “Silicon Valley of community resilience” he said.

“Often when we live in Totnes it is easy to forget the regard in which this town is held, and that it is what is distinctive and quirky about this town that inspires so many people around the world.

“We should be proud to be different because the world needs inspiring stories of change, and during the lifetime of TTT we have created many of those.”

Totnes is proud of its reputation around the world for creativity and as the pioneer of the Transition movement, said its mayor Cllr Emily Price.

“This award recognises the people of Totnes’ famed innovation, imagination and alternative solutions, and we are delighted it has been received,” she added.

“As mayor it makes me very proud to see Totnes recognised in this way.”