31/12/2024
As 2024 is drawing to a close, I would like to thank the people and organisations who commissioned We Make Southampton Community Media to produce a variety of projects: from documentary films to curating nature walks in partnership with a nature walking app, to a 5-session community engagement project exploring Artificial intelligence and public good, to being invited to take part in events and film screenings organised by the University of Southampton's Public Engagement with Research Unit.We take pride in the versatility of our work and our curiosity about the world around us.
We Make Southampton Community Media is all about producing a wide range of high-end multi-media content types and engagement projects with institutions and individuals from a wide variety of backgrounds: academics, local change-makers, artists, musicians, local authorities, public health, local charities and research organisations.
Our public thanks go to:
~ Public Health Southampton for commissioning 'Discover the Greenways of Southampton' on Go Jauntly walking app (Hana Sutch and Claudette Anderson) and the local nature guardians who shared their insights: Bob Painton, Kim Emmery, Richard Pitt, Maria Moore, John Scammell as well as Dawn Champion from The British Pilgrimage Trust, and Nick Sutton for the photography.
~the Southampton Institute for Arts and Humanities (SIAH) at the University of Southampton, for commissioning two films about the work of seven Hampshire Artists and the local authority Culture Officers enabling cultural and artistic work in their area: Prof Will May, Dr Daniel Ashton, Dr Aiysha Jahan, Prof Stephanie Jones. We enjoyed working with the Diverse Capacities Project artists Miriam Coley, Julian Masson, Trudi Wilson, Anna Carr, Ellen Gillett, Alice Flynn, Liam Gifford, Gemma Gore and the Local Authority Officers Emalene Hickman At Wihcester City Council, Clare Liddell Portsmouth Central Library, Louisa Milburn, Business Director and Charlotte Hall Artistic Director at The Point Theatre
~ Dr Alan Wong and Danny Aldred from the University of Southampton for commissioning the filming of the Living Books Event on World Earth Day at the Wi******er School of Art
~ Dr Jessica Spurrel, Dr Ben Littlefield and Dr Rhonda Goiwland Pryde from the Public Engagement with Research Unit at the University of Southampton for making us community partners for a number of local events and the annual science festival
~ to the Ada Lovelace Institute for choosing us as one of the 6 English community partners to co-design and deliver the community engagement project focusing on Artificial Intelligence and Public Good with the Ada Lovelace Institute, in the company of 16 Southampton residents.
We also filmed with local changemakers: Isobel Howard ((The Wayne Howard Trust), with Samuel Reddy (From Leavers to Leaders), Debs Wilkes and Christopher Townsend from a Dead Good Day Out and Ri Baroche, a multi-talented Gender explorer actor, musician, writer, poet and drag artist.
Thank you for choosing us.
I've been happy to volunteer my time and skills to the two local charities I am a trustee for doing a fundraising stand-up comedy gig for Parent Support Link, and producing audio and video content for Safe New Futures about the brilliant work they do to get people back into work and volunteering with their blend of CBT and work skills online courses.
The spontaneous creative collaboration with the Hampshire Poet Laureate, Damian Kelly-Basher and Rae Turpin from Southampton National Park City resulted in a very popular 2-minute video poem dedicated to Maria Moore, 'guardian of the Shoresburs greenway'.
I was delighted to be invited to chair a Q&A following the screening of X-Trillion, an important feature documentary, produced by Verity Wislocki from Wislocki Films and Elleanor Church from Lark Rise Pictures, about ocean plastic pollution captured by an all-women expedition to the North Pacific Gyre. This gave me the opportunity to meet Lucy Gilliam, Co-founder of Exxpedition, environmental activist Katrina Ayling from Nurdle, and Dan Reading from Sporting Giants, previous co-chair of the UN's Sport for Climate Action Framework.
Thank you to the Woolston Community Association and to Friends of Portswood Library for screening our 20-minute documentary 'Is This Street Good Enough for Me?'
For me personally, an important part of my year has been the time I put into self-development, a total of 32 full days of training (out of the 240 working days in 2024), with the National Coordinating Centre for Public Engagement, with Community First regarding managing volunteers, and with Fareport Training for the excellent 14 weeks Digital Skills Bootcamp with the fabulous Amanda McCombie.
Thank you to our trustees, Chrissie Bainbridge and Parvin Damani for their support.
I'm pleased to end the year with visits to the nine Southampton pubs selected by the charity So Forward for their Pub Culture project, to do interviews with the key people who turned these venues into community hubs.
Never a dull moment!
Happy New Year to you all!
