An account, written on Easter Sunday, of my arrest in London during the climate change protest :
‘It’s 8.30am and I’ve just got home after being arrested yesterday on Waterloo Bridge at about 4.00pm – yes, I was part of the Extinction Rebellion London occupation! Continue reading TAKING ACTION ABOUT CLIMATE CHANGE: MY ARREST
I interviewed Tania Clarke therapeutic coach, psychotherapist and hypnotherapist. Tania says about these three methods she uses, “All three have the same goal: ‘helping you make the changes you want in your life’. They’re just different approaches to reach that goal. The methods overlap, and each client is an individual, so we bring in whatever the client needs as appropriate.”
Leslie: So how does each approach work, please?
Tania: Coaching uses our conscious learning ability. Generally, we focus on changes in the top layer of the brain, the prefrontal cortex, helping people to take in new information and practise new skills and new behaviour. Continue reading TANIA CLARKE THERAPIST – WAYS TO CHANGE OUR LIVES
I interviewed feminist researcher Rachel Thain-Gray about Glasgow Women’s Library, a collection of iconic publications and objects testifying to the importance of women in history. Glasgow Women’s Library has won no less than seven awards. It began from events run by feminist artists and activists during Glasgow’s year as the European City of Culture in 1990.
Rachel Thain-Grey, whose doctorate examines feminist museums across the world, describes how GWL continues to put on exhibitions and events that showcase the full range of women’s history while informing the struggle for gender equality today.
Leslie: In a nutshell, what does the Glasgow Women’s Library display, how does it display it, and what’s your role there? Continue reading SOCIAL JUSTICE & GLASGOW WOMEN’S LIBRARY
I asked Chris Gribble, the Chief Executive of the National Centre for Writing in Norwich, about his wide-ranging work promoting the arts. Chris is chair of ICORN (the International Cities of Refuge Network), and sits on the Boards of Carcanet Press and Modern Poetry in Translation and the New Anglia LEP Culture Board. He is a Fellow of the RSA.
Leslie: Could you tell us about your job as an arts administrator at the National Centre for Writing? Continue reading CHRIS GRIBBLE – SUPPORTING AND DEVELOPING THE ARTS
I talked to film maker Nicolette Burford about her documentary tracing the remarkable life of Ada Salter – environmentalist, peace activist, and first woman councillor in London. Nicolette’s film Remembering Ada, connects Ada’s legacy to the recent upsurge in non-violent resistance to climate change and ecological breakdown.
Leslie: How did your Remembering Ada documentary begin, grow and develop?
Nicolette: I first heard of Ada a couple of years ago when I went on a guided tour about her life in Bermondsey. I was awestruck by the number of trees she had planted in Bermondsey, over 9,000 before World War Two. I was amazed. How come I had never heard of her? Later I came to realise that hardly anyone outside Bermondsey had heard of her. Continue reading REMEMBERING ADA SALTER
If it was a piece of music, The Dream Speaks Back, would be a jazz number, passing the lead between different soloists. Written by Sue Hampton, Cy Henty and Leslie Tate, it’s a triple autobiography.
So how do you go about putting together a book written by three authors? In the case of The Dream Speaks Back, it came together, in Lautréamont’s famous phrase, ‘like the chance encounter on an ironing board of a sewing machine and an umbrella’. But behind the surreal adventures and personal stories was my organising work as an editor.
I structured the book so it moves back and forth between a succession of scenes that cue each other. And as the three of us write very differently Continue reading THE DREAM SPEAKS BACK
I interviewed poet and artist David Coldwell about Marsden village, a centre for poetry, art, festivals and walking. I asked David to describe the people of Marsden and the cultural organisations he’s involved in including The Poetry Village, Marsden Walkers are Welcome, and Maytree Press.
David says about Marsden: “The reason why we have the Jazz Festival, The Cuckoo Festival, The Poetry Village, Imbolc, The Walking Festival, The Park and many other events and buildings is because people make it happen. ” Continue reading CULTURE AT MARSDEN: HOW PEOPLE MAKE IT HAPPEN
I interviewed Rebecca Lawton, scientist, river guide and prize-winning author, about her expertise in nature, conservation, water, and climate. Rebecca has directed research at a community watershed organization in northern California and designed and managed numerous stream studies and projects in citizen science. She is currently Executive Director of PLAYA Summer Lake, Oregon, a residency program for artists and scientists.
Between the data and policy change is where the arts live.– Bill Fox
Leslie: Tell us about the artist and scientist residency program at PLAYA in Summer Lake, Oregon, that you direct. What’s special about how it works as a creative retreat? Continue reading BETWEEN THE DATA AND THE POLICY CHANGE IS WHERE THE ARTS LIVE
I interviewed artist Carla Winterbottom, whose visionary work has a deep connection with climate change and extinction.
Leslie: What have been the phases in your approach to art, and what caused those changes? Continue reading ART AGAINST EXTINCTION
