Young people connecting with nature in Knowle West through arts, technology and care.
During Spring 2026 KWMC and OTR (Off the Record Bristol) collaborated on Nature Works: a series of workshops for young people (aged 11-14) in Springfield Community Allotments – a beautiful, community run local green space in Knowle West.
The programme was delivered as a collaboration between young people, KWMC, Off the Record (OTR), supported through Quartet Community Foundation.
What happened?
Nature Works invited participants to experience the allotments not just as a green space, but as a site for storytelling and making.
Young people were introduced to creative technologies. For many, it was a first step into combining tech with nature. They experimented with photography and videography, digital drawing, 3D scanning, and field-recording to build immersive soundscapes.
The young people also explored cyanotype, hapa zome (Japanese plant hammering) and gelli printing. These hands-on approaches encouraged close observation – noticing textures, shapes and patterns – and turning them into artworks shaped by the space around them.
Blending craft and digital tools is one of the ways we work at KWMC to make technology feel approachable, meeting people where they’re at. For the young people, these tools opened up new ways of seeing and reimagining their environment, while building confidence with technology in a light-touch way.
Space to Reflect and Connect
Each session also made room for grounding and reflection. Activities like wire sculpture burning, dream catcher making and pencil whittling offered slower, tactile ways to process experience and build confidence.
The young people documented their journeys in hand-bound sketchbooks, created on site. These became personal archives which captured ideas, experiments and moments of connection across the programme. Alongside this, many participants developed a real enthusiasm for photographing the natural environment around them. Using DSLR cameras – a resource not often available in OTR’s usual offer – they were able to experiment with using technology to slow down, observe closely and reframe their surroundings through a creative lens.
Every session closed with a shared campfire as a space to reflect together and celebrate the day. A buffet of s’mores, garlic twists, hot cross buns and cinnamon apples were cooked over the fire on whittled sticks from the site. The final session brought everyone together around the allotment’s pizza oven as a collective celebration of what had been built over six weeks.
What Changed?
The young people summarised their experience of Nature Works as feeling more ‘fulfilled’ and ‘appreciative’. They created new friendships and discovered new ways of connecting with and relaxing in nature through creativity and technology. Young people have since signed up to other programmes with KWMC and OTR.
The project took place at Springfield Community Allotment and was a great way of introducing young people to this community-led space. For KWMC and OTR this was a fantastic opportunity to exchanges practice and explore connections in each other’s work, closely working with the young people to shape the project.
Working Collaboratively
Nature Works was co-delivered by Abbi, KWMc’s Creative Community Coordinator, and Nicky Sweetland, OTR’s Nature Works Coordinator.
OTR is a mental health social movement by and for young people aged 11-25 living in Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire.
KWMC is a community hub, digital manufacturing space, and neighbourhood living lab rooted in Knowle West, Bristol. KWMC uses arts, technology, and making for people to create positive change in their lives and communities.
This collaborative approach is key to how we build programmes at KWMC: working with artists, partners and local communities to co-create experiences that are relevant, inclusive and rooted in care.
Nicky and Abbi both reflected on the successes of merging nature connection practice and creative technology. Nicky reflected ‘it was a real surprise to see how well technology supported the young people’s connection to nature’.
Shaping Fairer Futures
Collaborating on Nature Works was a great example of KWMC’s wider mission of shaping fairer futures together with arts, tech and care. Caring for the environment has always been a core part of our vision. When the climate is unstable, the effects ripple through everyday life, often hitting hardest where inequalities already exist. It becomes much harder to build fair futures when the environment is under pressure.
As the climate crisis grows, creating opportunities for young people to build real relationships with nature feels increasingly important. After all, how can you protect the environment if you don’t feel connected to it? In response, we co-create spaces for young people to explore, question and shape what comes next, building the confidence and skills to respond to the challenges ahead.
Once again, thank you to OTR for collaborating with us and to Quartet Community Foundation for their support of this project. As a registered charity, this work is made possible through the support of our funders and partners. If you’re interested in collaborating with KWMC, we’d love to hear from you: enquiries@kwmc.org.uk. We’re always grateful for any support, whether that’s ongoing or a one-off donation.