The only Green in the village
The Green Party conference barely manages to fill Hove Town Hall. Compared to the stadium sized crowds Labour will bring to town later in the month the Greens feel more like a large family wedding reception.
But you shouldn't underestimate the influence of their ideas.
Since Greens became eligible for a seat on the Sussex police authority Councillor Ben Duncan has been raising the eco/peace/justice flag. One vote doesn't count for much alongside 17 others, he says, but if you can make a persuasive argument you can shape some important decisions.
"I have a more radical approach, and some of the independents are more responsive to Green thinking than on the City Council."
Ben (who blogs here) says a good example is the discussion over how to police the May Day protests.
He pressed the case that people ought to have confidence in their police - that they should do more to avoid headlines about police violence.
"Putting it that way convinced people who'd previsouly seen it as a lot more tribalistic."
Ben Duncan calls the effect "The only Green in the village" - sometimes lonely but with all the impact of the shock of the new.
Welcome to the hustings! I'm Peter Henley, the BBC's political reporter in the south of England. From parish councils in Sussex, to European politics in Oxford, this is the blog for you. 
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