On Saturday 14th June beneath the trees in the Outwoods, something quietly powerful took root. This day-long ‘camp’ was no ordinary gathering – it brought together women to reflect, create, and imagine new ways of relating to the natural world through storytelling, activism, and shared experience. Led by artists Shelley Castle, Anne-Marie Culhane, Lucy Neal, and Jo Mackie as part of Walking Forest — a 10-year public artwork exploring the intersection of art, ecology, and activism — the event offered space for deep listening, creative collaboration, and rich conversation.
A powerful thread woven through the day was the recovery and celebration of women’s hidden legacies in environmental and political activism. Stories from across time and continents sparked conversations about courage, care, and the many ways women can — and do — stand on behalf of the Earth. These discussions gained poignant depth with the gifting of seeds from the last surviving Suffragette Tree, originally planted over 110 years ago by Rose Lamartine Yates. This tree once stood among many in the Suffragette Arboretum at Eagle House in Batheaston — a haven created by the Blathwayt family for politically active women seeking rest and renewal. Most of those trees were lost to a housing development in the 1960s, but the legacy lives on in this one survivor.
Amid moments of collective discussion and quiet reflection under the woodland canopy, many found something they hadn’t expected — a renewed sense of purpose, connection, and calm. The forest became a space not only for remembrance but for imagining the futures we want to plant and grow together.
The event was supported by the National Forest Arts Grant, Charnwood Forest Geopark, and the National Lottery Heritage Fund.