Incredible Edible sparks debate in York

“If you eat, you’re in” Pam Warhurst, Co-Founder, Incredible Edible, Todmorden

We live in a changing world. Our institutions; financial, political, and social are in intensive care. Governments are floundering, faced with unprecedented demand for a level of leadership they are ill-equipped to provide. We need to radically change the way we do things, in a smaller, kinder way, letting ordinary people lead the way. To paraphrase Rob Hopkins of Transition Towns, there is no cavalry - we are the cavalry! We need to act locally within a global context developing flat structures, rather than hierarchies and driving big change through small acts.

Right now there is a lot happening; from The Transition Network to Incredible Edible and many others, with possibilities to scale up and scale out grass roots activity. The Incredible Movement  (TIM) in York, was started up earlier this year and is delivering the ambitious development plan with  RSA Yorkshire, working with other networks to drive the debate, inspiring and being inspired by others, and picking up on people’s growing insistence “ to do rather than be done to”. Inspired by Incredible Edible, our initial conversations are about food; growing, sharing, eating, selling and enjoying it, and as with any conversation, once it starts, it snowballs into other areas, gathering momentum and creating a new energy of its own.

Initial activity has focused on mapping grass roots groups and activity across York in partnership with York in Transition, with support from the Joseph Rowntree Foundation and the Innovate York team at Science City York. A new web platform is set to launch in September.  An Incredible Party, as part of the forthcoming York Festival of Food and Drink, is being organised, with a tour of growing beds, led by assorted performance artists, culminating in a celebration of local food at the New School House Gallery, on Thursday 26 September.  TIM is co-ordinating the event alongside Edible York and York United Multi-cultural Initiative (YUMI).

We’d love RSA Fellows to get involved, join the conversation and help us create change through small actions. The Incredible Tour and Party starts at on Thursday 26 September, at 4.30pm.

Book your place and come along to the beincredible conference in Todmorden.

You can follow TIM in York on Twitter @timinyork1 or on Facebook.