Typed by Gemma

Some of the thoughts and musings here about why here for me, and maybe for the co-directors are work in-progress, and always uncovering additional layers of our history, our present and ambition for the future to build and connect to.

When writing the words and meaning for the website, I was keen to share the brilliance and hope that working with bamboo since 2020 has given to me and many of our artists, communities and partners. It was also to qualify that the idea is not wild, that it is happening globally and with our neighbours in Europe.

Of course, there is ambitions and the ambition and scope is relevant/transferrable to other places in the UK, however, fundamentally this was grown from the connection we have for this place, its history and the contribution to a positive future that we would like to make. Brilliant Bamboo is shaped by Stoke and more broadly our place in North Staffs and Staffordshire. This though is my personal account of why here.

Before the people here were potters, they were farmers, still today the city edges weave into the countryside where farmers still work with the land, cows and crops. This life is a part of every day as much as town or city routines. This is not separate from our connection to clay and pottery: one of our historic sites and companies Spode had a meadow in the early days: it grew grass and fed sheep for the wool and hay to pack the ware.

They were coal miners, steel workers were working outside or with hands, hearts and bodies. People using raw materials to build the nation.

Some of our story is from the Industrial Revolution, where innovation and ambition for the best of our work could be shared with the world. Those new processes would shape more than one industry; that innovation was shaped by our landscapes and people would be changed by that very ambition, innovation and capitalism. This is akin to what has happened around the world. Those pioneers from this place used their resources to care for families during war-times and influence change internationally. Of course, that is also a privilege. You can’t be an industrial heartland of Britain without considering the impact on people and planet. Some of our story is about the power and politics of that. Many, many proud working class people who were exploited, and, who came together as a collective to raise their voices to power. From Chartists to Miners Strikes to the ongoing action of trade unions still here.

Art, craft, science, nature, people power.

Lots of the perception of this place is still of the decline and deprivation. Many who are living and working here are realistic about those truths but also know about the others too. The difference that community organisations of all forms, the impact of creating common ground and support systems for those who need it most and for everybody in every place to thrive.

There are lots of forces for good here already and there is space for everyone. There is also a chance to build it ourselves: respectfully on the foundations of what we have.

Our resilience, our skills, our opportunity to build, create and grow things from the ground we stand is the “why here?”.

We can create space to value not only the economic: but to value it all culture, people and environment.