Norfolk Festival of Nature
Through the Norfolk Festival for Nature we seek to empower our audiences to explore the creative impact of nature, its cultural importance and central place in their lives.
Now in its third year, Norfolk Festival of Nature celebrates the cultural relationships that exist between people and the natural world. The weekend of 21/22 April 2018 sees the first of our spring events, celebrating all things nature. The Norfolk Festival of Nature partnership brings many of the top Norfolk wildlife organisations together in the heart of the city, providing a day of free children’s activities and storytelling, a nature writers’ workshop for older teens & young adults, and talks from experts from around the county on our nature: past, present and future. We will also have the launch of a new nature book by awarding winning Norfolk naturalist, Mark Cocker, on the Saturday evening, and a panel-led debate for you to join in.
Partners
The Norfolk Festival of Nature is a partnership that brings together many organisations who are interested in wildlife and nature, including Norfolk Wildlife Trust, the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, the British Trust for Ornithology, Norfolk Museums Service, the University of East Anglia, Wild Days Conservation, The Writers’ Centre Norwich, and many others.
Events
The Weekend – General activities
Norfolk Festival of Nature 21st/22nd April 2018
The Forum in Norwich will be hosting an evening and a day of all things nature on 21st and 22nd April 2018. The Norfolk Festival of Nature partnership brings many of the top Norfolk wildlife organisations together in the heart of the city, providing a day of free children’s activities and storytelling, a nature writers’ workshop for older teens & young adults, and talks from experts from around Norfolk on our nature: past, present and future. We will also have the launch of a new nature book by awarding winning Norfolk naturalist, Mark Cocker, on the Saturday evening, and a panel-led debate for you to join in with on the role that nature writing has today, looking at what impact it can have alongside documentaries like Blue Planet and the social media campaigns of today.
Sunday Day
The Norfolk Festival of Nature partnership brings many of the top Norfolk wildlife organisations together in the heart of the city, providing a day of free children’s activities and storytelling, a nature writers’ workshop for older teens & young adults, and talks from experts from around Norfolk on our nature: past, present and future. There will be pond dipping, live camera feeds from the peregrines at Norwich Cathedral and NWT’s Cley reserve on the coast. You can take photos of yourself at our Broads selfie stand, make badges, collect stamps, follow the city centre tree trail and generally immerse yourself in all things wild!! Fun for all the family.
Fun at the Children’s Millenium Library in the Forum
For families and younger children there will be a storytelling trail in the library at 11.00 led by author in residence, Isabelle King. Isabelle will tell a story which takes everyone on an adventure through the ancient forests of Norfolk where they will meet lots of animals! Fun for all the family! At 14.00 there will be more stories from Isabelle and library staff and tables of crafts to get involved with.
Talks, events and discussions – Saturday 21st and Sunday 22nd April
Saturday Events
Sustainable UEA will be celebrating Earth Day 2018 by launching the UEA Tree Trail. Join local experts for guided walks through the various habitats on campus, and learn more about key trees and their stories. On Saturday evening come and join us at the Forum for an evening with some of the UK’s best nature writers at the Festival Debate The Fight for Nature: the role of conservation and nature writing in Britain today.
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UEA Earth Day Tree Trail
Saturday Day - UEA Earth Day Tree Trail Sustainable UEA will be celebrating Earth Day 2018 by launching the UEA Tree Trail. Join local experts for guided walks through the various habitats on campus, and learn more about key trees and their stories. UEA...
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The Festival Debate: Fighting for Nature
Saturday Night - The Festival Debate: Fighting for Nature On Saturday 21st April come and join us at the Forum for an evening with some of the UK’s best nature writers discussing The Fight for Nature: the role of conservation and nature writing in Britain...
read moreA Sunday of Talks
The Norfolk Festival of Nature brings you a Sunday of talks at the Forum in Norwich. Four personal accounts from individuals who are experts in their fields, who together cover some fascinating aspects of the past, present and future of the wildlife and countryside of Norfolk. 11am James Parry from Breckland Society will talk about the Edwardian naturalist and photographer, Emma Turner; 12.30pm David Waterhouse from Norfolk Museums’ Service will present on the pre-history of Norfolk, when mammoths and hippos roamed the County; 2pm Steve Rowland from the RSPB will give his gentle and humorous take on moving to, and discovering, the County with his family; and at 3.30pm David North, the Head of People and Wildlife at Norfolk Wildlife Trust, will round off the day with a talk and discussion on how much wildlife means to us today.
http://www.theforumnorwich.co.uk/norfolkfestivalofnature
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Jess French minibeasts
Sunday 22 April 2018 2.00 and 2.30 pm The Library - The Forum Jess French is a vet, zoologist and minibeast expert! She is also the presenter of 'Minibeast Adventure with Jess' on CBeebies. In her latest book she explores hundreds of mind-blowing...
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Sunday Tree Trails
Sunday Tree Trails - Norwich City Centre Join our expert from the Woodland Trust, John Fleetwood, to enjoy a 1 hour walking tree trail around a few of the notable trees of the centre of Norwich. Starting just inside the doors of The Forum in...
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The Lady of the Reeds: The Rediscovery of Norfolk’s Pioneering Bird Photographer Emma Turner.
Sunday 22 April 2018 11.00am to Midday The Auditorium - The Forum. Emma Turner was a pioneering Edwardian photographer and author who spent many years studying the birdlife of the Norfolk Broads, most famously at Hickling, where she lived on a house boat...
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Hippos are Native to Norfolk: The prehistory of Norfolk’s Nature
Sunday 22 April 2018 12.30am to 1.30pm The Auditorium - The Forum Join Dr David Waterhouse (Senior Curator of Natural History for Norfolk Museums Service), and explore the world of unusual and exotic sounding animals that lived in the county not so very...
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From Islington to the Norfolk Broads: Wild Norfolk and Me
Sunday 22 April 2018 2.00pm to 3.00pm The Auditorium - The Forum A look at how someone born and bred in north London moved to Norfolk over twenty years ago and never left. Steve will talk about how he ended up staying in Norfolk and share some of his and...
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Wildlife Matters: How much does our wildlife mean to us?
Sunday 22 April 2018 3.30pm to 4.30pm David North, Head of People and Wildlife at Norfolk Wildlife Trust, asks the questions – How much does wildlife really matter and can we do anything about the threats to it? David heads a team at Norfolk Wildlife Trust...
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Writing Workshop with UEA lecturer Jos Smith: Writing about Urban Nature; a workshop for young adults
Sunday in the Library Writing Workshop with UEA lecturer Jos Smith: Writing about Urban Nature. A workshop for young adults (aged 16 to 25): 11.00 – 13.30 “Writing well about a place often comes from looking at a place in fresh and interesting ways. This...
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New blog: Nature-writing as a tool for conservation practice in the age of TV and social media. The @NFOfNature debate, which took place on Saturday. https://t.co/G49oYiGhZg
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.@jjosmith1 launches @NFOfNature to a full house @TheForumNorwich #nfofnature2018
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