Food For Thought Festival Opening Day

Kick off a vibrant celebration of community and creativity with immersive installations, hands-on workshops, The Community Kitchen, interactive spaces for all ages and more.

Enjoy small plates from local groups' diverse community alongside film screenings, storytelling, and the Picturing Food Justice photography pop-up exhibition. Explore thought-provoking art, spark conversations about food, identity, and growth, and discover what helps a community garden thrive.

Whether you’re curious, hungry, or ready to get involved, our opening day offers ideas, inspiration, and hands-on experiences that nourish both body and community.

Come share, taste, and connect because food is where community begins!

What's On:

PICTURING FOOD JUSTICE Photography Exhibition | 11am - 8pm

Picturing Food Justice is a participatory photography exhibition exploring food justice in Nottingham’s NG7 area. It highlights the right to healthy food and the structural barriers that limit access, connecting issues of racial, economic, and social justice to the wider food system.

FOOD FOR THOUGHT INSTALLATION | 11am - 8pm

Created by Laura Decorum, this is an evocative installation exploring how food shapes identity and community. Through layered visuals, it invites reflection on nourishment, culture, memory, and the connections that help stories and gardens take root and grow.

SEEDS OF CHANGE | 11am - 4pm | Drop-in

This interactive area invites participants to interact with a miniature landscape comparing plastic lawns, grass, and wildflowers, exploring their impact on biodiversity, pesticide use, and the history of lawns. Through hands-on engagement, it encourages reflection on growth, renewal, and the power of small, thoughtful actions.

We Can Grow Food | 11am - 4pm | Drop-in

This interactive area explores simple, everyday ways things can take root. Using found containers and improvised structures, the activity invites participants to notice how growth can happen in unexpected places and in many forms.

Can We Dig It workshop | 1pm - 2pm

This workshop invites you into the hushed world of school gardens, a space where the soft cadence of children’s voices mingles with the rustle of leaves and the quiet pulse of growing things. It’s an intimate soundscape of curiosity, care, and the rhythms of nature unfolding

Community TEA Launch & Tasting | 2pm - 3pm

Join Micha and TK for the launch of Nottz Garden Project’s community-grown, non-for-profit herbal tea blend. This session invites participants to explore how plants, traditions, and shared stories come together in a cup of tea. Together we’ll imagine what the Hyson Green blend could be and discuss which herbs and culturally meaningful plants we might grow in our community’s herbal tea garden.

Local Food Voices | 6pm - 6.30pm

Facilitated by Heya, Angolan Women’s Voices, and Yello Yard, join us for a panel discussion that highlights how food shapes and strengthens their work, creativity, and community life in Nottingham. Showcasing small plates that represent them and stories of how hyson green shaped their journey. Hosted by Jowayne - Yello Yards founder.

The Community Kitchen – Nottz Garden Project Takeover | 5pm - 6pm

Join Salaam Shalom Kitchen, Yello Yard, Heya and Angolan Women Voice Association. and savour the essence of Hyson Green’s culinary culture. Delight in small plates and treats from local cooks and artisans, ignite conversations, share memories, and forge new connections. Come taste, mingle, and be part of the neighbourhood’s unfolding story. Book your ticket here.

Film Screening: Ron Finley- Urban Fruit | 6:30pm - 7:30pm

This film celebrates the visionary “Gangsta Gardener” (Ron Finley), whose bold approach to growing food transformed his LA community. After the film, share your own wishes for Nottingham’s urban fruit trees and imagine a greener, more edible city! Spaces are limited and tickets must be booked seperatley- book your ticket here.

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