Festival of Nature 2013: Exciting updates on our exhibitors!
Wednesday 08, May 2013
It is now less than six weeks to go until this year’s most exciting natural history festival! Here at the Bristol Natural History Consortium, we are extremely excited by these recent updates on what our partners have in store for us!
In the Millennium Square you will be able to find Bristol Zoo Gardens, who will be giving everybody the opportunity to get up close to some exotic insects. Not only this, but you can also find out which brilliant bugs live locally at the Avon Gorge and Downs! Visit the BBC Natural History Unit, where you can peek behind the scenes, have a go at presenting your own wildlife documentary, get in front of a thermal imaging camera and meet the presenters of some of your favourite shows!
In the Amphitheatre, the Bristol Aquarium will be teaching some important lessons about the damaging effects of discarded waste on our oceans and giving you the chance to fish for rubbish in their sand pit. Lucky you! Stop by at Westonbirt Arboretum and detect the hidden life of trees using microscopes and lenses, and even make your own mini-arboretum. Dig up fossils and handle real dinosaur bones with the Bristol Dinosaur Project, see the sun as you never have before with the Bristol Astronomical Society, and join the At-Bristol team to learn about sustainable buildings, cutting-edge green technology and meet Brian the robotic peregrine falcon!
That’s just a tiny snippet of what we have in the offing though, visit our festival website for more info, and come down on Saturday 15th and Sunday 16th of June for what’s looking set to be a nature-tastic weekend!
Bristol Festival of Nature celebrates a decade of discovery
Wednesday 01, May 2013
A new challenge to uncover Bristol’s hidden environmental hotspots is launching in May to celebrate Bristol Festival of Nature’s 10th anniversary.
Bristol99 will give the public the chance to discover the natural world in their own neighbourhood, with exciting wildlife events being held across the city’s 99 best sites for nature. It will encourage people to explore their local area and celebrate the wildlife in Bristol’s green spaces including everything from hidden gems to the city’s best known parks.
It begins with a ‘BioBlitz’ at Kings Weston Estate on May 3 and 4, where the festival team will seek the help of members of the public to discover as many species as possible in a designated area over 24 hours. The events will then continue over the next six weeks before culminating in the main Bristol Festival of Nature weekend.
The festival is the UK’s largest free natural history event and takes place at Bristol Harbourside on the weekend of 15-16. On June 14 the annual Festival of Nature Schools’ Day, supported by Clifton College will welcome over 1,000 primary school pupils to the site for a day of hands-on science and nature activities.
Giving wildlife enthusiasts of all ages the opportunity to explore and enjoy the natural world in the heart of the city, the public festival brings together over 150 organisations for a programme of interactive activities, live entertainment, hands-on experiences, a market packed with local produce and much more.
The highlights for the weekend include:
• The first screenings of new wildlife films produced by the next generation of natural history filmmakers, who are studying a new MA course in wildlife filmmaking run by UWE and the BBC.
• A pop-up butterfly garden run by North Somerset Butterfly House which will give visitors an immersive experience to learn about some of the world’s most beautiful butterflies.
• The Seeds of Change Garden which will connect the natural world to the city’s history of trade and migration through a ballast seed garden produced by Arnolfini and the University of Bristol.
More than 150,000 people have attended the festival since 2004, and the past 10 years have seen it grow significantly to become one of Bristol’s most popular festivals, helping to raise the profile of environmental issues and natural history in the city and across the UK.
Savita Custead, Chief Executive of Bristol Natural History Consortium which organises Bristol Festival of Nature, says:
“The Bristol99 challenge will help to take the Festival of Nature out into the city and directly to the people of Bristol. The Festival has always aimed to inspire people about the natural world and this is a fantastic new way to take the initiative and help the public to find nature on their doorsteps.
“Bristol is the home of natural history in the UK and we are proud of the contribution the Festival of Nature has played in developing that reputation. It is the only event that brings together all of the key environmental organisations in the city, and over the last 10 years we have seen these relationships go from strength to strength.
The festival was named “Tourism Event of the Year 2011” in the Bristol Tourism and Hospitality Industry Awards 2011, and was awarded Bronze in the Tourism Event of the Year category at the South West Tourism Excellence Awards 2011-2012.
The Bristol Festival of Nature takes place on the Bristol Harbourside and is open from 10 am – 6 pm on Saturday June 15, and 11 am – 5 pm on Sunday June 16. Admission is free.
Communicate 2013: Stories for Change - 6 & 7 November
Friday 05, April 2013
We are pleased to announce that Communicate 2013: Stories for Change, will be held on 6 and 7 November 2013 at Arnolfini, central Bristol. Delegate registrations will open in mid-April. Join our mailing list to keep up to date with the latest news.
Communicate 2013: Stories for Change
As environmental communicators, we are both storytellers and story-liberators. Our role is to help find the ways that people and nature can co-exist, and to reconnect people with the natural world.
There is a spectrum, with some people just beginning to make that connection, and others who have made great progress. Yet many remain sceptical, hostile, unable or unwilling to start that journey. From the outside, it is difficult to determine where someone is on that spectrum, and how best to help them take the next step. We can use many methods to try to establish their place on this journey; appearances, demographics, surveys and monitoring tools.
But to truly understand where our audience is, we have to liberate a particular story
We are also storytellers. We use the media, campaigns, images, exhibitions and event to construct narratives, convey messages, and to tell stories about the natural world that capture the imagination and engage, persuade, and empower. To make more of a difference, we strive to improve our skills. We work in partnership, and organisations have stories too – to be liberated, but also to be shared.
Communicate 2013 is a training session, and a discussion opportunity on these themes, with plenary sessions and debates on liberating stories, and practical workshops focused on telling stories.
Communicate 2013: Stories for Change
Tuesday 29, January 2013
Communicate 2013: Stories for Change will be held this Autumn in Bristol. Sign up to our mailing list now to keep up to date with all the latest news from the conference and the Communicate community.
Festival of Nature 2013: Exhibitor registration now open
Tuesday 08, January 2013
Exhibitor registration is now open for the Bristol Festival of Nature 2013 on the 15th and 16th June. Join us for our tenth anniversary with a stall in the Green Forum, or a main Festival marquee. Find out more and register now
2012 was a big year for BioBlitz!
Monday 07, January 2013
Last year there were more than 65 BioBlitz events across the UK - twice as many as 2011, getting a huge number of people out discovering and monitoring their local wildlife. More events are being planned for 2013 right now so watch this space!
Find a BioBlitz near you or keep up with the latest BioBlitz news on Facebook and Twitter
Communicate 2012 Videos and Presentations now online
Monday 07, January 2013
Videos and presentations from Communicate 2012: Breaking Boundaries are now online at the newly updated Communicate Toolkit.
Dates confirmed for Festival of Nature 2013
Friday 14, December 2012
We are pleased to announce that the 10th Bristol Festival of Nature will be held on the 15th and 16th June 2013, with our annual Schools' Day on Friday 14th. Watch this space for further details of our 10th anniversary celebrations, including our new outreach project, Bristol.99.
Communicate 2012 - Registration is now closed
Tuesday 23, October 2012
Communicate 2012 Registration is now open
Friday 17, August 2012
Join us at Communicate 2012 – Breaking Boundaries: The Next Ten Years for People and Nature
24/25 October, Brunel’s Old Station, Central Bristol
Communicate is the UK’s leading conference for environmental communicators, bringing together a blend of NGOs, media professionals, green business leaders, academics and policy makers. With over 100 different organisations represented each year, Communicate gives delegates the opportunity to stay informed on the crucial current debates in the sector, share best practice, hear from inspirational speakers, and get direct feedback on their own communication campaigns.
Join us for our tenth anniversary as we break the boundaries of environmental communication – crossing the barriers to engagement; challenging the boundaries between sectors; overcoming the gap between awareness and action – and look ahead to the next ten years for people and nature.
• Reaching new audiences and breaking down the barriers to engagement – including naturalist and author of the National Trust’s Natural Childhood report Stephen Moss on engaging the next generation.
• Head versus Heart Changing Behaviour or Influencing Core Values – our expert panel debate different approaches to environmental communication, from behavioural economics to engagement with intrinsic values, with panellists including Theresa Marteau and Ed Gillespie.
• Keynote speech from marine biologist and BBC presenter Monty Halls.
• Relationship Counselling for Conservation - we examine the opportunities and the difficulties of stepping outside the conservation bubble and working productively in partnership with business.
• The Next Ten Years for People and Nature – think ahead as we consider the most pressing upcoming conservation issues, and the latest communications strategies. Hear visions from the future from inspirational speakers including Chris Baines.
• People Engagement Group – an opportunity to directly influence government policy through Defra’s People Engagement Group.
• The Delegate Showcase – Hear practical case studies from leading communicators and share your own innovative campaign with an expert audience.
Register now to secure your place at this annual event, or take a look at last year's conference summary.
We look forward to welcoming you to Bristol in October. For further details visit contact Ben Connor, Project Manager on Turn on JavaScript!, 0117 317 8751.
