About
‘Place is a meaningful location; a space people are attached to in one way or another’
Tim Cresswell
Reigniting our connection to the land
Place is more than landscape or geography – it’s a story we tell about the land. An engagement that carries meaning and memory. Where people, community, land and all users of any space meet and interact.
Some places inspire endless hope – stories and legends, exemplars of ecological restoration, community innovation and sustainable solutions. Or maybe they are simply your home or favourite refuge. Others, both urban and rural, require us to confront different realities, ones of overuse, inequality or neglect, where we have become more distant from the land and from nature, despite well observed benefits. Places where we see ourselves as separate from, or even above, the natural world, despite the simple reality that every time we breathe out, a plant breaths in.
exploring.place invites you to look more closely at, or maybe even rediscover, your own sense of place. To ask how nature, community, economy and society intersect. Ultimately, with studies showing that reconnecting with place can heal both people and planet, it seeks to spark reflection and ‘create new thinking that generates joyful curiosity, leading to positive futures’. [source: Accidental Gods]
Join the conversation
Our hope is to spark reflection and stimulate action. When you look at the land, ask yourself: “What do I see that is good, what is bad, what is ugly?” Notice how nature (in all it’s forms including flora, fauna, weather, the elements), community, economy and society intersect, collide and communicate. By observing the land carefully and talking about it openly, we can all learn together, be comforted and empowered. We invite you to engage with exploring.place – read, reflect, share and contribute.
Whether you change a habit, volunteer locally, or speak up for better policies, we can all make a difference. Together, by nurturing the deep love of place we all share, we can create a future that generations to come will thank us for.
Who is exploring.place for?
Everyone is welcome to join any conversation, as we can all ‘be the change’. Individual projects on the site are often focussed towards specific audiences, however, as communication differs depending on who it is intended for. These audiences include
- ‘The Inheritors’ – the young people who will inherit the land and climate we shape today.
- ‘The Stewards’ – from farmers and foresters to community and interest groups, park and estate managers, developers and town planners to land trusts – those who make decisions on the ground and decide the extent to which all users of place coexist in harmony & balance on individual areas of land
- ‘The Change Makers’ – we can all be part of the change, but these are the politicians, planners, organisations, corporations and decision-makers who have the ability and responsibility to deliver structural, behavioural and policy change
- ‘The Emitters’ – the top 20% of people on Earth (those who earn in excess of £41,000 per annum) who are responsible for 50% of human carbon emissions – and by consequence, biodiversity collapse
About the artist
Hi. My name is Ted Leeming.
exploring.place is centred around my creative journey towards reconnecting with place and the more than human, as I question the competition and tensions between nature, community, climate, society, owners and commercial needs. Where are the tensions, where do they align, and where do we go from here?
Drawing inspiration from the countless shining lights in positive thinking, proactive collaborations, and exemplars of future hope, I invite the viewer to engage with and challenge convention, imagining and helping deliver new possibilities.