THE BRISTOL COMMONS - COMMUNITY GATHERING
Community Power, Land Justice & Systemic Change
9.30am - 5.30pm, Saturday 27th April

There will also be an evening celebration and open mic, running from 5.30pm-10.30pm. Further details below!

The Bristol Commons is a growing movement rooted in Community Power, Land Justice & Systemic Change to support communities and community hubs across Bristol.
With a focus on joy and creativity, our aim is to nurture a culture of collaboration and cultivate a network of reciprocity between communities and organisations across Bristol. By rebuilding the commons, we can reclaim our collective power and strengthen resilience in the face of unfurling crises.

This gathering will focus on RECOMMONING OUR GREEN SPACES. We’ll be spotlighting some amazing local work and exploring how we can collaborate more effectively to protect these spaces that are vital for physical health, mental well being, and biodiversity. They are the lungs of our city and they belong to us all.

The invitation is to come and get involved. There will be speakers; music; a haven for movement and reflection; workshops; delicious food from the Coexist Community Kitchen; and a children's play space!


~ Timetable ~

9.30am: DOORS OPEN

9.30am - 10.00am: INDUCTION & ONBOARDING
Tea, Coffee and a short session specifically designed to give a bit of background to The Bristol Commons, supporting newcomers involvement and participation.

10.00am - 10.30am: WELCOME SESSION
Led by Coexist & Diverse Artists Network, a holistic and commoning welcome to everybody to ground everyone and call in the intentions for the day.

10.30am - 11.30am: BUILDING COMMUNITY
A whistle-stop tour of how we have been building our movement led by the commoners who have got stuck in and done it.

Over the year since its launch in March 2023, The Bristol Commons has been building a community of commoners and a culture of commoning. This session explores different aspects of the year’s journey including: Introducing the manifesto Rebuild The Commons!; Designing participatory, democratic governance; Art of Commoning; Defining our common language.

11.30am - 11.50am: BREAK

11.50am - 1.00pm: WORKING GROUP SESSIONS
A chance to experience a carousel of participatory workshops from the three main Bristol Commons Working Groups. There will be activities on: Strategy & Membership; Mapping & Resources; Storytelling & Communications.

1.00pm - 1.50pm: LUNCH
A delicious lunch provided by The Coexist Community Kitchen; Pay-What-You-Can.

1.50pm - 2pm: REGROUP
A creative community gathering activity to reconnect after lunch led by Diverse Artists Network.

2pm - 3pm: RECOMMON OUR GREEN SPACES (Discussion)
An opportunity to hear from 5 amazing people working to recommon our green spaces in a variety of different ways.

HAVEN SPACE
Alongside the Panel Discussion we will be holding a silent space for people to rest and reflect. (more details below)

3pm: BREAK

3.15pm - 3.30pm: CREATIVE COMMONING ACTIVITY led by Diverse Artists Network

3.30pm - 4.45pm: OPEN SPACE
A space for anyone to propose and lead a workshop, discussion, activity or exploration within the area of ‘commoning’, and a particular invitation to consider our relationship and responsibility towards green spaces. Expect creativity, emergent ideas, collaboration, games etc.

NIGHTINGALE VALLEY TOUR
As part of this session, there will be a tour of the Nightingale Valley, exploring this beautiful ecosystem and its history - PLEASE BRING SUITABLE FOOTWEAR/CLOTHING if you would like to join! (more details below)

4.45pm: BREAK

4.55pm - 5.15pm: OPEN SPACE FEEDBACK & NEXT STEPS
An opportunity to feedback from Open Space workshops and share emerging threads with the wider community. We will create actions and synthesise opportunities so there is a plan for ongoing collaboration where there is energy for it.

5.15pm - 5.30pm: CLOSING
A community closing led by Coexist and Diverse Artists Network.

5.30pm - 6.30pm: CHILL OUT AND SOCIAL SPACE
Some space for down-time and relaxation. There will be a bar stocked with a selection of locally brewed alcohol and fruit juices.

6.30pm - 7.30pm: DINNER

7.30pm - 10.30pm: OPEN MIC
Bring your songs and guitars, your stories and poems, or any other creations you would like to share. This will be an opportunity to express our personal and collective creativity and deepen our connection through sound!


Further Details:

HAVEN SPACE
Throughout the day there will be an area where you can go to reflect, re-connect and ground. A place to be with your feelings and thoughts.

Let us transport you for a hour of silent wellbeing. A haven away from the busyness of the day, a space to simply relax and be still. For this hour the room will be a place beyond words. Here we will have a free flowing mediative movement inspired by the martial art Qigong. Qigong uses exercises to optimise energy within the body, mind, and spirit, with the goal of improving and maintaining health and well-being. There will a chance to explore the themes from the day through free writing and a figure of 8 structure to explore more deeply our feelings and what it's like to move in-between them. Connecting, listening and allowing.

NIGHTINGALE VALLEY WALK
Join local resident Jo Chalkblack for a walk in the lesser known woodland valley of St Anne's Woods leading on to Nightingale valley. This valley pathway, which follows a route alongside Brislington Brook, holds rich layers of story; ecological, social and sacred. As we walk we'll have our senses and imaginations stirred by wild garlic and bluebells, heritage and local knowledge. Jo has been working on a community led process of mapping where the community map themselves - what they love, what is missing and what the barriers are to local people accessing this beautiful natural landscape of St Anne's Wood and Nightingale Valley. She is a social practice artist and a core member of the local conservation group Friends of Brislington Brook who look after the valley. FoBB are passionate about it becoming a place for all to find connection, value and care for the ecology of this unique woodland and for each other as they find common purpose through their love of place. The walk will be an hour long with a few stops, includes steep steps and will be muddy underfoot. Come prepared for a wet but wonderful filled wander! Not pushchair or wheelchair friendly sadly (yet!). Numbers limited so sign up on the day.

~ Values ~
We value everybody. That includes ourselves, each other, our city, our natural world, our relationships, our communities, our planet. This may sound silly or obvious, but we want to be explicit.

This event and this movement is rooted in social and ecological justice. We want to co-create fairer, more engaging, more creative, more effective ways to look after the spaces, places and shared resources that we all need to thrive.

We are a mixed-race, multi-faith, LGBQTI+ friendly movement, and we work in solidarity with people who are marginalised by our society. We practise tolerance, but stand opposed to discrimination of any kind. We strive to create safe and brave spaces where we can express our authentic opinions and concerns respectfully - so that we are careful not to harm or negatively impact others.

We take collective responsibility for this, and Coexist and the volunteer team will be on hand to help hold the space in a caring and proactive way.

~ Accessibility ~
We want to make sure that this event and movement is accessible and inclusive as possible. BRICKS have put a lot of work into ensuring St Anne's House is a welcoming and accessible venue for all. For more details please visit: https://stanneshouse.org/visit-us/accessibility/

There are bursaries for those who need childcare support (such as after-school pickup) and pet-care for vehicle dwellers.

We want to emphasise that children and babies are absolutely welcome and we will have a specific space curated for children. There will be creative play activities throughout the day for young people to engage with!

~ Cost ~
As well as physical accessibility, we wanted to make certain that no-one would be financially excluded from the event. We have therefore decided to host on a donation basis - with a suggested donation rate for individuals (£5) and those coming on behalf of organisations (£10). No-one will be excluded due to lack of finance. The lunchtime meal will also be by donation - ensuring everyone has something warm and tasty for their bellies!

~ Background ~
This project has been initiated and supported by Coexist. Since the eviction from our flagship project Hamilton House in 2018, Coexist has been reimagining its purpose. In this transitory phase we opted to take a supportive role in nurturing community spaces as opposed to offering front-line services involved in running a community hub. This included assisting the set-up and running of the mutual-aid network that emerged during the Covid-19 pandemic, as well as re-launching the Coexist Community Kitchen in Easton. In addition, over the last few years Coexist has supported various community organisations including: Bricks (St. Anne’s House), PRSC, Docklands, St. Pauls Learning Centre and All Hallows Hall with resources, mentoring and advice.

This work has informed a new strategy - to protect, champion and nurture Bristol’s cultural and community assets. This involves safeguarding vital spaces and places - as well as organisations and community projects - from the multiple crises we currently face. Austerity, rising energy costs, the cost-of-living crisis, climate change, community trauma, poor mental health, staff burn-out, the education crisis, lack of youth services, the housing crisis - the list of pressures is a seemingly endless and painful reality to many people and organisations in our community.

Neither Bristol City Council or the government has been able to mitigate these issues. They are systemic, endemic and intersectional: Many converge and affect the most marginalised people in our city. We need a new, strategic, dynamic and collaborative movement to solve these problems. We need people and organisations working together - not competing with each other - to create a culture and build a movement for change. Most of all, we need the space and resources to be able to create a bright future - and to do this we must Rebuild The Commons!

Entry requirements: no age restrictions — Read more — Read less