brownfield land

burslem port, stoke-on-trent: 2016-present

A post-industrial wasteland reclaimed by nature and owned by a mis-match of utility companies and the City Council provided space and freedom for young people to explore, discover and create.  It also provided space and freedom for our co-director Laurel Gallagher to experiment, take risks and reflect on her developing practice with community groups, artists and academics.

children, wild spaces and wellbeing

Dr Jenny Hallam (Derby University) has qualified, verified, and disseminated the positive benefits that children have experienced as a result of engagement with our projects, helping us to access partners and funding.

Dr Ben Anderson (Keele University) has expanded our understanding of land rights; access and trespass. In 2018, Ben and Laurel co-created ‘Feral Futures’, an exhibition made with children mapping their connection with Burslem Port (Being Human Festival 2018).

feral spaces of Middleport: Arts council 2016

real life adventures: tnl community fund 2017

social spaces: canal and river trust: 2018

more than water: canal and river trust: 2019

Publications

Hallam, J., Gallagher, L., and Harvey, C. (2021). 'I don't wanna go . I'm staying. This is my home now.' Analysis of an intervention for connecting young people to nature. Urban Forestry and Urban Greening. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ufug.2021.127341

Hallam J., Gallagher, L. and Harvey (2019). ‘We’ve been exploring and adventuring.’ An investigation into young people’s engagement with a semi-wild, disused space. The Humanistic Psychologist. https://doi.org/10.1037/hum0000158 

Exploring wild spaces and wellbeing with young people

Connecting with nature the urban way

presentations

Hallam, J. and Gallagher, L. (2021). ‘How can co-creative community arts practices inspire nature connection in young people? A collaboration between arts and academic practice researchers’ Workshop presented at Young Nature, British Ecological Society 23rd June

Hallam, J. and Gallagher, L., (2019a). ‘I’m going to hug the tree’ Insights from a youth led intervention designed to facilitate a connection to nature with young people in a low SES area. Paper presented at the Valuing Nature conference, Royal Society, London 28th-29th October

Hallam, J. and Gallagher, L., (2019b). ‘If we don’t tidy this up where are people going to play?’ Insights from a youth-led, community based place making project. Paper presented at the Playful planet – For a child friendly world conference. Bristol 27th-29tth November.

Hallam, J., Gallagher, L., Harvey, C. (2019). ‘We’ve been exploring and adventuring.’ An investigation into young people’s engagement with a semi-wild, disused space. Paper presented at the Nature Connections conference, University of Derby 2nd July.

towards an urban commons

academics. artists. activists. community organisations.

The Urban Commons Network was established on 20th April 2020 to discuss the provocation of an Urban Commons Charter. Join the network to share ideas, projects and learning with a growing community of interest.

guiding principles and collaborative frameworks

We propose that Urban Commons be areas of brownfield land managed by and for the benefit of local communities.

academic research partnership. ben anderson. keele university

“Working with Urban Wilderness has led to an exciting opportunity for a new social compact on access to urban green spaces. We have long known about the environmental importance of brownfield sites; only recently have we begun to realise their social potential as well, and this project seeks to release that potential, for the benefit of some of the country’s poorest communities." Dr Ben Anderson ‘Exploring how brownfield land can benefit communities’