A workshop from last year’s festival [Creators Media]

A SPECIAL climate festival which aims to match creativity with climate action is taking place in Camden this weekend.

Camden Inspire 2025 – free to visit – will be at the Camden Collective buildings in Buck Street, close to the tube station and opposite the Boxpark market from 11am on Saturday.

Bringing together dozens of organisations, artists, designers, makers, chefs, activists and musicians, a full day of activities explores reuse, zero waste and imagines bold new creative ways of living with less.

It is organised by business group Camden Town Unlimited, which is describing it as the ‘Green Loop Takeover’ in reference to its ongoing neighbourhood strategy.

Lord Simon Pitkeathley, chief executive of Camden Town Unlimited and Euston Town, said: “I’m incredibly proud of our team for delivering such a powerful and inspiring event. This festival is a celebration of what can happen when creativity meets climate action, built on months of work from both our BIDs and the consistent support of the local business community.”

[Ben Sage]

He added: “We’ve always believed that local communities hold the key to genuine, grassroots solutions to the climate emergency. The reception to our call-to-action proves that belief. It’s also been a privilege to host so many climate tech startups in the Collective Climate School workspace and see firsthand how innovation and sustainability can thrive side by side.

“This festival is a clear example of the leadership BIDs can bring in uniting business, creativity, and sustainability for lasting impact.”

Here are the festival highlights to look out for:

• World-renowned Camden organisations will host a full range of hands-on workshops including: The British Library have appointed Alain Fusion Clapham to host a transformational storytelling workshop for young people, podcasting interviews around waste and climate change with Roundhouse, HvH arts host a nature photography workshop, design plant pots with Rochester Square Gardens, take part in Wayward Architecture’s plant rescue scheme and learn to repair your electricals with The Fixing Factory
• In addition, other creative workshops will be held throughout the day: Things Matter CIC will host creative fashion upcycling, Protest Placard Design sessions by artist Molly Hankinson, a kintsugi session by Dotty by Design, Studio Kuhu revitalising fashion with a fabric dying workshop and EcoArtivist Francesca Busca will turn discarded materials into artworks. Insight into plastic recycling will be provided by Are You Mad?, while STORE explores experimental techniques and creative collaborations with artists and designers.
• A pop-up cinema will host screenings of local project films and documentaries to be confirmed, as well as performances by musicians Alice Boyd and more to be confirmed.A midday food waste panel discussion including Taz Khan of the London Community Kitchen will be followed by a special community feast by Caribbean and African kitchen Garden of Afruika.
• The day will conclude with a panel discussion Less is More: The Future of Design with Longevity with Studio Bark, Nina + Co, Studio Tip and Debika Ray.
• UnBroken Exhibition and Auction: At the heart of the festival is a show-stopping exhibition of salvaged furniture, saved from landfill and transformed by celebrated designers into one-of-a-kind creations. The show will give new life to old materials donated by Camden based PropUp Project. Showcasing the power of design to inspire change, guests are invited to an exclusive auction and will have the chance to bid for the furniture, with all proceeds supporting local climate causes. Following Camden Inspire the UnBroken exhibition will run into the evening of Saturday 20th September.

Alain ‘Fusion’ Clapham, the festival’s creative Producer, in partnership with the British Library, said: I’m honoured to be part of the Camden Inspire festival this year, appointed by the British Library, who are partnering on the programme. I’ll be hosting a transformational storytelling workshop, empowering young people to take a creative journey exploring sustainability, consumption and their own agency.

“We have very exciting plans to continue working with those participants and build a growing network of young people who really care about the future. This event is not a one-off, it’s about building something with longevity – and I’m excited to see where it leads to.”

Marcus Davey, chief executive at the Roundhouse, added: “At the Roundhouse, we believe in the power of young voices to shape the future. We are hosting sessions at Camden Inspire that will give a real insight to the art of podcasting, whilst amplifying fresh perspectives from young people on climate change and waste – issues that urgently demand creative and courageous thinking. We’re proud to support a festival that is dedicated to platforming new ideas, empowering communities, and placing young creators at the heart of the conversation”

[Sam Rockman]

Orla Daisy, a Camden Inspire Young Ambassador, saiid: ‘ “I’ve been waiting for an opportunity like this to come into my radar. As an artist, I’ve found it difficult to feel motivated due to being distracted by world affairs, harbouring a sense that I should be helping in some way. Community and creativity tied to an important theme is needed right now, at a time where there is a general feeling of disconnect and destruction

“I think this festival is the start for more such collectives that address the issues we are facing as a community. As an ambassador, I’m excited and pleased to be running my own workshops leading up to the September festival and hope to bring together likeminded people who have – like me –been waiting for an open community that prioritizes the wellbeing of ourselves and the environment and the arts.’”

You can find the full programme of events here: www.camdeninspire.com