Day 1: Saturday, 13 January 2024
9:45 - 10 am: Welcome remarks by Bishop of St. Edmundsbury & Ipswich, Martin Seeley, and EA Sustain founder Joanne Ooi
Green Icon: Caroline Lucas, 10 - 10:40 am, £10
Speaker: Caroline Lucas Moderator: Sarah Langford
As the first and, still, only Green Party MP (Brighton Pavilion) to be elected in the UK, Caroline Lucas represents the front edge of environmental-political progress in the UK and is uniquely positioned to observe and comment on the potential for speeding up (or braking) Britain’s progress towards Net Zero. What can be done to give the environmental movement more political muscle, not to mention keep Net Zero on the rails? What are the biggest opportunities and threats to British environmentalism? Caroline will also talk about her personal career odyssey as both the avatar of environmental change and one of the nation's most prominent female leaders. In June 2023, Caroline announced that she will not be standing for re-election. She will tell us about what lies in store for the future, including plans for her forthcoming book.
Murky Waters, 11 - 11:45 am, £12
Speakers: Charles Watson & Neil Ward Moderator: Mark Cocker
In this crash course on water pollution -- why we should worry about it and what must be done about it -- two experts on the subject, founder and Chairman of River Action Charles Watson and Professor Neil Ward, will explain the principal industrial and agricultural causes of Britain's water pollution -- and the solutions.
“One Midsummer’s Day”, 12:05 - 12:45 pm, £10
Speaker: Mark Cocker Moderator: Joanne Ooi
Mark Cocker is undoubtedly one of this country’s top naturalists and nature writers. His staggering oeuvre of 13 books and over 1000 newspaper articles bears witness to his decades-long love and fascination with nature, especially birds. At EA Sustain, Mark will tell us about his latest acclaimed book, One Midsummer’s Day, at EA Festival 2023. The culmination of 16 years of thinking and two years of writing, the book is, on its face, about birds. But really, it is a masterful sum-up of all that is interconnected between nature and man – all perceived during a single day of watching swifts.
FREE Workshop: Landscape recovery, a joined up approach, 1:05 - 1:50 pm
Speakers: Emma Gray, Joe Gray, John Pawsey & Jenny Rawson
In this workshop led by John Pawsey of Wool Towns Farm Cluster, leaders of farmer clusters in Suffolk and Essex will explain how taking a coordinated approach to landscape recovery is desirable from every angle - biodiversity (especially habitat connectivity), economics and ELMS.
This event is free but ticketed, so please be sure to book your place on our ticketing page.
Reframing Education, 2:10 - 3:10 pm, £15
Speakers: Caroline Lucas, Mary Colwell, Tim Oates Moderator: Pamela Cox
In this wide-ranging panel discussion, the current educational system will be analysed from different perspectives of "sustainability". Environmental studies, vocational training, liberal arts, continuing education, technology and the importance (or not) of canonical knowledge are just some of the issues that will be touched upon. In short, how can schools prepare children to succeed in an age of environmental degradation, fake news and political polarisation?
Glocal Hero: William Kendall, 3:30 - 4:10 pm, £10
In this fireside-style chat, William Kendall will talk with his good friend, William Sieghart, about how the former parlayed the lessons learned from big-city brand-building to inspire new models of entrepreneurship in Suffolk, including projects like the hugely successful Aldeburgh Food Festival.
“Wishcycling” - a panel discussion about recycling, 4:30 - 5:30 pm, £15
Speakers: Adam Herriott, Torik Holmes, Miles Roberts Moderator: Joanne Ooi
There's a reason we termed this session "wishcycling": there's a radical disconnect between what we expect to happen when we place rubbish in the recycle bin and what actually happens to it, due to the byzantine and uncoordinated plastic and paper recycling regimes in the UK. Who's in charge of it? What are the mechanics? More important, what are the obstacles and solutions to increasing the UK's recycling rate? Three experts unpack the issues for us in this eye-opening session.
Master Lens: Mattias Klum, 5:50 - 6:30 pm, £10
One of the world's top photographers and filmmakers will share some of his favourite experiences -- and images -- from his storied and intrepid career, demonstrating why, when it comes to environmental campaigning, a picture really does speak a thousand words.
“See Nature, rejoicing, has shown us the way” - a concert by Stevie Wishart, 7 - 7:45 pm, £15
Composer and musician Stevie Wishart sees music as a form of activism for the environment in terms of listening to it in a new way. That's why her chosen instrument is the hurdy gurdy - a fiddle-like instrument of unknown origin dating back to the 11th century which is, to her mind, classless and timeless, just like nature itself. Moreover, the hurdy gurdy is not susceptible to structured, defined composition. Rather it is sheer spontaneity. Stevie will play both composed and improvised medieval and contemporary music during the programme, interleaved with voice and violin.
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Day 2: Sunday, 14 January
Green Icon: Helen Browning, 10 - 10:40 am, £10
Speaker: Helen Browning Moderator: Sarah Langford
One of the great leaders in farming and agriculture, CEO of the Soil Association Helen Browning will tell us about her journey from a child obsessed with farming, to where she is now, and all the changes she's witnessed, in farming, nature, politics, enviromentalism and agri-business, during the past 40 years, not to mention what she's working on now.
Rewilding Dogger Bank - a panel discussion presented by Blue Marine Foundation and EA Sustain, 11 am - 12 pm, £15
Speakers: Charles Clover, Tom Appleby, Emilie Reuchlin, Vincent Gaffney Moderator: Joanne Ooi
In this panel discussion, members of the team that successfully pressured the UK Government to protect the UK portion of Dogger Bank will explain how they are parlaying their research and legal strategy into achieving similar protection for the European part of Dogger Bank, not least because it is the Atlantis of the North Sea, the flooded remnant of a land bridge to Continental Europe yielding invaluable archaeological evidence of ancient human civilisation, in addition to protecting endangered marine life.
The Elephant in the Room, 12:20 - 1 pm, £10
Speaker: Paul Morland Moderator: Joanne Ooi
In our preoccupation with climate catastrophe, we forget to talk about another ticking time bomb: the demography of the UK, specifically, that we're a comparatively old country. Just like climate change, this is not a crisis that we can outrun or sidestep by hope alone. Instead, we need to grapple with the facts -- and choices -- now, if we want to preserve our current standard of living through the generations. Paul Morland, arguably Britain's top demographer, will walk us through the issues, challenges, politics and solutions.
FREE workshop: Stockfree Organic Farming with Iain Tolhurst, 1:15 - 2:00 pm
Moderator: Mark Cocker
Iain Tolhurst, the pioneer of stockfree organic farming who was the first to achieve certification from the Vegan Organic Network in 2004, will explain how he's been able to achieve and maintain productivity on his farm without grazing animals or any animal inputs for the last 10 years, on top of running one of the oldest organic vegetable farms in England (30+ years).
The Future of Food, 2:20 - 3:20 pm, £15
Speakers: Alastair Cooper, Professor Tracy Lawson Moderator: Mark Cocker
A top investor in agritech and professor of plant science will tell us what we can expect on the shelves of tomorrow's grocery store. The touchstone of their research and investment is enhanced efficiency and productivity but from different, sometimes overlapping perspectives. Whereas synthesising foodstuffs in the lab is certainly one approach, another is working with the biomechanics of plants to increase the efficiency of their nutrient intake. But that's just scratching the surface of what's in the pipeline. Tune into this fascinating discussion to understand the latest cutting edge developments in food production.
The Leading Edge of Sustainable Fashion, 3:40 - 4:40 pm, £15
Speakers: Sara Grady, Dominic Jones, Patrick McDowell Moderator: Joanne Ooi
In this eye-opening session, Dominic Jones and Patrick McDowell, both critically acclaimed designers at the leading edge of sustainability (and creative acclaim), will tell us how their fashion brands are inspiring consumers and designers to rethink the way they make and buy clothes and jewellery, while Co-Founder of British Pasture Leather - Sara Grady, will explain how all the issues corresponding to humane and sustainable livestock farming apply equally to the leather industry.
Radical Rethink, 4:55 - 5:35 pm, £10
Speaker: Frances Morris Moderator: Joanne Ooi
Director Emerita of Tate Modern Frances Morris, who captained the museum from 2016-2023, will tell us how art industry business and behaviour models need to be reconfigured in order to make the art industry sustainable at all levels, from gallery practice to grassroots art-making.
Art & Environment, 5:55 - 6:55 pm, £15
Speakers: John Kenneth Paranada, Frances Morris and Heather Ackroyd Moderator: Veronica Sekules
In this panel discussion, art industry professionals at the forefront of environmental art, will talk about how art is a crucial lever of change in the campaign to mainstream environmentalism; how sustainabiility is not just an environmental concept; and the tools and technologies artists are utilising to maximise the impact of their art.
