Shaping the Future of Our Place – Bioregion East Kent Gathering

A gathering of people who are looking to the future of East/Mid Kent, with a bioregional framing as the catalyst for connection.
About this Event

We would love to invite you to join us for a Bioregion East Kent gathering on Friday 11 September, from 12.00pm at the Friends Meeting House, Canterbury.

This gathering is for people who care about the future of East Kent and Mid Kent, whether through local government, community leadership, farming, land management, ecology, business, health, education, culture, the voluntary sector, river catchments, sustainability, or local projects. If your work is rooted in this place, we'd love you to be part of the conversation.

Our purpose is simple: to bring people together, make new connections, and explore how we can work more effectively as a region by recognising that our communities, landscapes, rivers, economy and natural environment are all connected.

Across our area there are already hundreds of people and organisations doing inspiring work. Too often, however, these efforts happen in isolation. By coming together, we have an opportunity to better understand the systems that shape our region, identify our shared strengths and assets, and discover where collaboration could unlock even greater benefits for people, nature and the local economy.

The gathering will also introduce two exciting initiatives:

• Bioregion East Kent CIC, which has been established to help connect people, projects and ideas across the region.
• The emerging Bioregional Finance Facility, an innovative approach to attracting and directing investment into projects that restore nature, strengthen communities and support long-term regional resilience. While this initiative will operate across several bioregions, East Kent will play an important part in its development.

During the afternoon we'll explore questions such as:

• What makes our bioregion distinctive?
• What are the greatest opportunities for our place over the coming decades?
• Where are the connections that could help us achieve more together?
• How can we build a healthier, more resilient future for our communities, landscapes and local economy?

The session will include:

• An introduction to bioregional thinking and the growing movement in the UK and internationally.
• An introduction to the new Bioregion East Kent CIC.
• An overview of the emerging Bioregional Finance Facility and what it could mean for our region.
• Updates from the first Bioregion gathering in Romney Marsh and the developing regional asset map.
• Facilitated conversations about the opportunities and challenges across East Kent and Mid Kent.
• Shared lunch, networking and time to build new relationships.
• Identifying practical next steps for collaboration.

What is a bioregion?

Rather than starting with administrative boundaries, a bioregion begins with the natural systems that connect a place—its rivers, landscapes, coastlines, habitats, soils and communities. It asks how we can work with these systems to create a thriving future for both people and nature.

You can find out more here:

• https://bioregion.uk/
• https://bioregions.darkmatterlabs.org/

Please note: the Bioregion East Kent area is not the same as the proposed East Kent Unitary Authority. It includes all of the proposed East Kent area, together with much of Mid Kent.

Places are limited to around 48 participants. Please do feel free to share this invitation with colleagues or others who may be interested.