Earth Moves: Inclusion Through Participation on the Land

This activity reflects on work through hands-on land-based activities to foster inclusion, dialogue, and shared decision-making in environmental projects. At Earth Moves, participants from a wide range of backgrounds come together to work on the land – gardening, land care, creative making, and site development and media projects – designed so that every voice matters, regardless of experience, education, confidence, or social position.

The environmental sector is often dominated by a single demographic, which can unintentionally create barriers to participation and silence other perspectives. This participatory talk directly addresses that imbalance by describing how to create welcoming, non-hierarchical spaces where people who are often excluded from environmental conversations — working-class communities, disabled people, neurodivergent people, LGBTQ+ communities, and those without formal environmental training — are not only invited in, but actively centred.

Through shared tasks on the land, conversations emerge naturally. People talk while they work, reflect together, and are supported to express opinions about environmental issues, land use, climate action, and community needs. We think it is important that discussion is not dominated by confident or professional voices. Decisions about the site and activities are shaped by those present, reinforcing a sense of ownership and agency.

Working with land breaks down social barriers, builds trust, and enables genuine discussion in ways that formal meetings often cannot. This activity strengthens environmental engagement by recognising that everyone has knowledge, lived experience, and insight, and that environmental action is more effective when shaped by diverse voices. The outcome is not only improved well-being and connection to land, but a more democratic, representative, and socially just approach to environmental participation.

For this talk, Earth Moves will show clips of their environmental films and lead a participatory discussion on unconscious bias, corporate influence and what people nowadays perceive environmentalism to be.

Garden Festival is a day of talks and activities celebrating gardens, growing and nature! We’ll be discussing right to grow, composting food waste, inclusive gardening, seed saving and queer ecology. See full programme at openeye.org.uk.

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Host or Publisher Open Eye Gallery