An international conference celebrating how we live with woods and trees. A unique blending of art, practice, and science.
“Trees are sanctuaries. Whoever knows how to speak to them, whoever knows how to listen to them, can learn the truth. They do not preach learning and precepts, they preach, undeterred by particulars, the ancient law of life.” — Herman Hesse
Evolving the Forest is a three-day symposium drawing together a wide variety of voices to explore our wondrous heritage of woodland and forest. It marks 100 years of modern forestry in the UK and looks forward to the next hundred, incorporating the annual conference of the Royal Forestry Society. We hear the voices of foresters, environmental managers, policy-makers, scientists and other experts; we listen to artists and architects, writers, philosophers and others who wander and wonder in our varied British forests; and we learn from others around the world about their own cultural connections to trees, and the wood that produces some of the world’s most useful and most beautiful objects.
The event begins at 16.00 on Wednesday June 19 with an opening keynote address from Prof. Fiona Stafford who explores our cultural relationship to trees and woodland and Why Trees Matter. Later that evening is a public conversation with three individuals key to our future relationship with trees: Sir Harry Studholme, Chair of the Forestry Commission, Beccy Speight, CEO of the Woodland Trust, and broadcaster, author and architect Piers Taylor (CEO Invisible Studio, Presenter of The World’s Most Extraordinary Homes BBC2). These two events set out the key themes for the conference.
Before the second keynote address on Thursday June 20 at 14.30 by Prof Kathy Willis CBE, join us for the launch of Dartington’s Forest Charter.
Unusual in its breadth of voices and knowledges, key themes include investigations of our treed landscapes, working with and growing timber as a material, agro-forestry and forest gardens, policy development, forest and species management, trees and climate change mitigation, urban forests, art and narrative, and how we live with woods and trees.
This event is produced by art.earth, convened by art.earth, the Royal Forestry Society, and Timber Strategies, and hosted by Dartington.
Register for the entire three-day event or join us for some of the special sessions that are open to the general public. Full details and prices and booking can be found at evolvingtheforest.uk.
