In 2010, at a weekend camp, we dusted off the charity idea, with a view to widening our reach and impact.
One of the key ideas behind the charity model was recognition that The Green Gathering is more than just an amazing annual event - it is all the people and projects, working tirelessly throughout the year to create the festival and a better world... this sense of community, of shared values and dreams, is what makes The Green Gathering so special and inspirational.
The GG charity commissions the festival and any surplus funds from the festival are returned to the charity, to be invested in the charity's objectives and projects.
The charity's projects have included:
A sustainability networking event in Carmarthenshire
'Crock n Rock' - a crockery hire and washing up service at the GG festival
An autism friendly 'Serenpod' for use at events
Cleanstream's upcycling and water conserving station (found at the GG festival and Glastonbury Green Futures Field)
Free craft workshops for all ages
Training in Health & Safety and First Aid for festival crew
A race education workshop for festival organisers leading to funding for provision of the Crows Nest - a festival safe space created by and for people of colour
Filming in the GG festival's Speakers' Forum to enable a wider audience to hear the terrific talks
A research project in partnership with A Greener Future
Exploration around the idea of a Regional Partners project to link up like-minded groups of creative educators across the UK
The Green Gathering charity was set up with the intention to take forward the spirit of the old Big Green Gathering, while providing a new model for working collaboratively to host educational, sustainable events and to address social and environmental issues which demand our attention with increasing urgency.
The charity commissions the annual Green Gathering festival which is delivered on behalf of the charity by its trading arm – Optimistic Trout Productions, a Community Interest Company (CIC).
The charity uses any financial surplus generated by the event to further its wider educational and environmental objectives, for example by seeding other events and funding educational activities at and outside of the Gathering.
