Everyone who joins Stories of Place is a co-creator. At the beginning of each gathering we choose a natural companion to have in our minds throughout the evening.
Dena Khan (Bumblebee) brings an imagination that centres young people and how they can shape and renew places through creativity, connecting with multiple generations. They are curious about buildings being perceived as waste, and how we can bring life to them again through care and connection.
Dionne Williams (African Migrant Butterfly) is a deep thinker and doer drawn to creativity and experimentation. Dionne has a gift for nurturing welcoming, safe and generous spaces, currently exploring how East African values might invite conversations and creativity that bring us closer to Nature-connected values in Dudley.
Holly Doron (Chiffchaff) favourite moments are watching people spark with others over a thought or idea so they try to create the conditions for this to happen while listening, note-taking and connecting learning and curiosities.
Jack Williams (Water Strider) brings their wildlife conservation knowledges from Dudley Zoo and is curious about what zoos might look in the future as spaces for community, nature connectedness and wellbeing.
Jan Norton (Robin) brings their creativity, stories with Nature, smiles and stunning skills and ideas with fabrics and stitching. Jan convenes Stitchers in Time who research and create beautiful pieces connecting textiles, fabrics, stitching and other media with Nature, place, stories with heritage and futures.
Lorna Prescott (Barn Owl) brings years of lessons from doing in Dudley alongside deep thinking around systemic issues behind our everyday interactions. Lorna is full of curiosity and wonder around anything more-than-human and deep time.
Rebekah (Ladybird) brings her gifts in creative making and thinking, with an extraordinary ability to weave deep reflections in the moment. Rebekah generously shares her experience in learning with and from Nature and Indigenous knowledges. She is also deeply inspired by play, and how experiential learning can enhance and guide the connections we make in our journeys of exploration and discovery.
Rick Sanders (Beaver) brings their do-it-together spirit, gifting inspiration from their practice in poetry and breathing creativity into upcycling furniture and textiles.
We begin each gathering transitioning from our days and grounding ourselves in place with an activity that opens up our senses and connects us with Dudley.
We travelled through time as our natural companions from 4.5 billion years ago when life emerged to 4.5 billions year into the future. We experienced happier habitats in the past, the pollution of the present, and hope of healthier futures (including Ladybird homes, African Migrant Butterflies flocking to Dudley Castle, cleaner air and water, and Beaver world domination).
