At the beginning of September we launched our Keep Forests, Don’t Deforest! project as part of our Planet Over Profit campaign. Through the project we wanted to engage people with the impacts of deforestation on the natural world and local communities.
On 28 October we held two creative workshops at the BRIG Cafe at the Warehouse – Lets Create a Rainforest and Activism Meets Arts. Our Lets Create a Rainforest workshop provided an ideal opportunity for children (and adults) to come together and learn about rainforests. BFoE volunteers worked hard to ensure the event had a rainforest vibe by decorating the venue with foliage and plants and handmaking decorations including palm trees and rainforest animals including an orangutan made out of material from the Scrap Store.
We started the event with a story written and illustrated by mix medium artist, Lucy, who is currently undertaking their placement with us. Lucy told the story from the viewpoint of a Tapanuli Orangutan. These wonderful animals alongside many others are at risk of decline and in some cases extinction due to deforestation from industries. However, the story is one of hope as the rainforest is restored!
Once the story had been told, we got stuck into making trees and animals for the rainforest. It was heartwarming to see all the creativity that went into making the rainforest and to see how much everyone cared about saving rainforests. We also learnt a lot from the children who told us all about the animals you can find in a rainforest.
Lots of people have asked when the next workshop will be….. keep an eye in the new year for more details!
Our second event – Activism Meets Arts Workshop – was a nice relaxing end to a busy day. Delia, our lead Planet Over Profit campaigner started the workshop with a powerful presentation, highlighting the terrible destruction and human rights abuses that occur as a result of damaging supply chains. We then spent an evening exploring deforestation through arts and crafts. This event provided an ideal opportunity to de-stress whilst caring for the planet and adding to the rainforest that was created earlier in the day.
A big thank you to everyone who attended our events and to BRIG Cafe for letting us host our workshops in their space.
