Making beautiful things by hand is a fight against the disposable culture which is damaging the environment.
As a riposte to the increasing damage to the planet, this year’s Craft Area at Nozstock is dedicated to a sustainable future, with fun activities to nurture the soul while saving our world. As much as the festival is about its special guests – including Rudimental (DJ Set), Sleaford Mods, Soul II Soul, David Rodigan, DJ Zinc, Reginald D Hunter and many more – the team are working harder than ever to make Nozstock as green as it can be.
Taking place across the weekend of July 18th – 21st, the long-running family-friendly festival has released details of its most innovative and ambitious environmental planning to date as it reaches its momentous 21st anniversary this summer.
The pioneering and establishment-challenging Extinction Rebellion will be holding daily workshops on Non-Violent Direct Action, and host talks about the climate emergency at Nozstock. This could not come at a more important time, with an ever-increasing amount of stories emerging about the climate emergency happening all over the world.
Nozstock’s Craft Area will include:
- Workshops and Demonstrations
- Stitch and Bitch – learning to upcycle clothes, crochet or knit with Jessie and Jess
- Repair a Sharper Future – traditional tinkering, fixing and sharpening
- Slippery Slope Stage powered by the sun from Rob Power
- Blacksmiths will be making a life size Tin Man, and giving everyone a chance to win their money back from last year’s Nail Game!
- Visitors can help build a giant cob chimney monster and come watch it burn by night, with fire performances
- Gardening advice and magic seed workshops with Sam
- Mosaic tiles by Liz Hatter
- Cornerwood Green wood workshops
- Mushroom Paul’s fungal fun
- Willow weaving with Bonnie
- Japanese bookbinding workshops
- Tile-painting with Janie
- Make masquerade masks using recycled materials
- Pedal-powered smoothie and energy cocktail bar
Bands at the Craft Area performing across the weekend include Vaginapocalipse, Stoned Cherries, Slippery Slope, Viv and Huw, Knellor Family band, and Kidjam. Entertainment comes from Wye Circus.
These new activities support Nozstock’s existing green schemes including: a clean campsite competition to incentivise campers to stay litter free; the ‘drastic on plastic’ campaign championing the lessening of single-use plastics; ‘love your tent’ reminding visitors to keep their tents and take them home; and tree-planting fun with an eco-friendly act on ‘Celebritree Avenue.’
During the weekend, Herefordshire Green Network are leading sustainability workshops, while letter artist Richie + co will be producing a mural for guests to add their pledges to for creating a sustainable future.
Ella Nosworthy, one of the festival’s co-founders, explains: “We have always been committed to being as green as possible at the festival. In the recent years the issue has become paramount, the way the planet is being affected. There are lots of green initiatives across the site, and this very much includes the Craft Area which is going to be by far the most environmentally friendly it has ever been. On top of this, we hope to make everyone aware and educate our guests as to what is happening and what can be done, for example some of Extinction Rebellion’s guys will be at Nozstock which is really big for us.”
