A call has gone out to York residents to take control and shape the city they live in.
It comes as a group of creatives launch York Design Week 2020 – bigger, bolder and more innovative than the original.
They are leading the way in designing a positive future through a series of exciting and interactive events.
One of the organisers, Rebecca Carr of Kaizen Arts Agency, said: “We are a group of activists, of diverse creative minds, driven by a collective vision of a more environmentally and socially just future for our city.
“We believe that to enable good change we need to create a population of activists, people who make space to do what they love, for the right reasons.
“We want to see York’s citizens take control of their local environment and communities to help shape the city they want to live in. York Design Week is one of those opportunities for people to start making their mark.”
That theme of activism runs throughout the 70 events in the festival, which is on from 26th October to 1st November.
Five themes
There are five themes running across the week: ‘Re-Wild’ ‘Play’ ‘Share’ ‘Make Space’ and ‘Trust’.
Festival co-founder and owner of United By Design Owen Turner said: “As a group, we are committed to doing our part to realise the vision of York receiving Zero Carbon City status by 2030, and to do this we need to design a city fit for the future.
“We have committed the closing weekend of York Design Week to a series of re-wilding events and workshops that explore the concept in a way that is accessible to all, where participants can explore how to re-think the way we live.”
Given the strange circumstances, the festival has been designed with safety in mind.
It will mix in-person events, with social distancing measures in place, and a jam-packed online programme of workshops, seminars and talks.
Some highlights
The Wild Weekend!
Sat 31st Oct to Sun 1st Nov
Curated by Wild Streets and SEED, this series of workshops and talks will showcase the concept of York as a permaculture city – learn about no-dig gardening, beekeeping, growing houses, edible cities and designing with nature. Participants will be invited to roll up their sleeves and become a ‘rewilder’ at a specially installed Wild Weekend geodesic dome in York Museum Gardens, online and through a Nature + Design exhibition trail.
A Place for Me
Mon 26th to Fri 30th Oct
A unique experiment bringing homeless people together with architects and designers to co-produce a blueprint for a transition accommodation within the city. Marking a significant departure from traditional approaches to consultation, this project places those with lived experience of homelessness at the heart of the creative design and planning process to reimagine emergency shelters, temporary accommodation and supported housing. The emergent plan will then be shared for others to build upon.
How to Be More Pirate!
Thurs 29th Oct
Presented by Sam Conniff, acclaimed author of Be More Pirate – this is an interactive and immersive experience that will showcase how innovation is driven by ordinary people. Challenging the cliched image of peg legs and parrots, explore what we can learn from the golden age of piracy in an age where rule breaking is now the most socially responsible thing to do. Join the mutiny!
York Design Week x Drawsome x Young Thugs x Skint
Sat 31st Oct
A celebration of York’s finest Recording Studio and Label, Young Thugs. There will be a special talk from Skint Skateboards, charting their story so far and how they work with local and national illustrators. Young Thugs will share how they went from a grassroots organisation a few years back to being a partner label with EMI, culminating most recently in signing York band, Bull, to the global label. To finish attendees will be treated to a night of live music from York’s finest musicians and bands.