12 months, 12 issues, 12 poems
12 camps and a whole lot of walking
At the heart of this project is an impulse to get a feel for places, to take ourselves into woodlands, along valley paths, across lakes, and into the high wind-swept fells, and get a physical sense of the land and the elements. We’ll be slow, and we’ll embrace time as we take note of things to celebrate – these may range from collections of rare flowers to seasonal traditions among local communities, from collective initiatives that bring people together and support wildlife, and from archeological remains of ancient communities to new projects such as hydropower.
Being outside regularly will allow us to record what we see and what we feel, and as we walk around the clock face of Cumbria we’ll be meeting people. We have just one point of view, and each village, valley and hill top has its own unique features – the real experts of each segment are the people who live there, who visit frequently, or have studied the regions. We’d love to hear from you if you have something to share (contact us here if you’d like to start a conversation), and we will be making a series of walks with local specialists.
As we stroll in each segment, we’ll post blogs, and we’ll be marking up the map with images, poetry and notes.
12 months, 12 issues
Each month we will turn our attention to a new ‘issue’. We’ll meet specialists in each field, and share the thoughts that we gain after talking to them and doing further research. Of course no one issue can be considered in isolation – they are all connected – but we like this way of seeing a single place from multiple perspectives. We’re looking forward to a year of learning …
- January: Complexity
- February: Natural and Cultural Heritage
- March: Soil
- April: Wellbeing – emotional, spiritual, physical
- May: Natural Capital
- June: Trees and Woodlands
- July: Community
- August: Hill Farming
- September: Tourism
- October: Biodiversity
- November: Water
- December: Adaptation
Canvas Poetry
Every month of 2019 we’ll be taking our canvas out to the hills and valleys of each 30-degree segment in turn. We don’t know in advance exactly when or where we’ll be doing this – a great deal depends on the weather – but you may see us out and about on a clear day. You can find out more about the journey of the canvas here.
Sense of Here 