Weirding Sustainability Festival

In June 2026, the Global Sustainability Institute's Sarah Royston and Emma Linford were co-organisers of the Weirding Sustainability Festival, with colleagues from ARU and LEAP Lab (Living Experiments in Arts-Science Practices to Re-imagine Sustainability).

The Festival was inspired by the idea that we’re experiencing ‘global weirding’, with the destabilisation of social-ecological worlds, yet much “sustainability” policy and research offers a green(washed) version of business-as-usual.

Events included the Weirding Land film festival and a brilliant open-mic night inspired by mediaeval collective nouns such as 'an exulting of larks'.

At the Weirding Sustainability Symposium, inspiring speakers included psychogeographer Justin Hopper; philosopher Patricia MacCormack; archaeologist Camila Alday; and geographer Ben Platt. Then, in a fantastic workshop facilitated by Ruth Webb of The Lost Giants, participants used recycled/foraged materials to create (and bring to life!) two puppets inspired by Cambridgeshire folklore.

The Festival was co-organised with Tim Jarvis and James Norton, in collaboration with the University of Cambridge.

• For more weird and wonderful experiments, check out LEAP Lab.
• To learn more or get involved in related work, contact Sarah Royston: [email protected]