'Learning resource pack'

We have produced this little resource pack to share some of how we did what we did across the 10 weeks of this project. It gives suggestions and tools to explore places, make stories about these explorations, create blogs to share the stories and imagine futures based on these experiences. Feel free to download and use in your place.

We would be really interested in hearing how they work for you,and if you have suggestions for improvements.

'Story map'

After the last workshop, our stories and experiences were pulled together as a visual map. It is a collage of things we saw, stories we made, experiences we had and shared. We would like to share it with you.  Click on the image below to have a read, or follow this link -- let us know what you think.

'Places for young people'

What if we really tried to make places better for young people. What would they be like? Here are some ideas based on our experiences and discussions on Our Natural capital.

We can make places better for young people if they ...

1. recognise and value young people

It is important to recognise and value the contribution that young people make when they get involved in activities in the city. Being recognised for making an effort.

2. are engaging and open spaces for participation

It is important to feel you have the permission to be part of a place, to be allowed to explore, your way. It is helpful to have things that capture the imagination, intrigue.

3. invite honesty and negotiation

We all carry stories about how the world works, who we like, who we don’t. It can be hard to  understand differences, different people. We need spaces to work these things out, and spaces to negotiate our own understanding of things.

4. provide opportunities for all

Everybody should have a fair chance to do what they are good at, whether they are disabled or different. Some of these people are our brothers and sisters, our friends.

5. encourage mutual support, people caring for each other.

We all want to be part of something, and part of groups that care for us, and for others. We need to learn to care more, and take care.

6. feel valued

Spaces that look good and feel good are well looked after. This means people see them as important. You can tell what we value in how we care for places.

7. have colour

Colour makes places more attractive, and makes them feel real.

8. are not all about internalised experiences, not separated but accessible

It is important to have spaces to get out and meet people, inside spaces, outside spaces, spaces we can get to and feel part of things, welcoming spaces to feel good.

9. are not unhealthy

It is important to have spaces to feel healthy, to have the opportunities to be healthy, to feel alive, to feel good.

'A future for all....'

Talking about the future we talked about different people, able bodied people, people less able. It felt strange at times, but we could imagine how life could be better. This is what we came up with..

Good future

Our good future story was based on everyone being equal. We have stopped judging people on what they look like and are taking much better care of people who are disabled, making sure that they get all of the advantages that other people get. Every child, everywhere, can learn in school until 18 years, and then move on to a specialist schooling area that links in with their chosen career and with that help were guaranteed a job. More people will be working with people with special needs.

We will have created new green areas for people based on sensory gardens re-imagining the space around Wells O Wearie for example in Holyrood. Children and young people can learn about habitats and wildlife and enjoy them which will be good for their wellbeing. Because we are much better at looking after one another we also take care of where we live and know that the parks and open spaces, and natural environment, are important and should be treasured.

We have a philosophy of real equality  and positive discrimination, everyone knows first aid, everyone is public spirited, and people see everything in a different way from how they do now.

'If we don't care....'

We came up with two stories about the future of Edinburgh.One good.One bad. The bad future happens if we don't care about what we already have. Do you recognise this Edinburgh?

Bad Future

In fifty years time, people would move by treadmill. Obesity is common in Edinburgh. Every corner would have a building, a chip shop, cafes. Arthur’s seat would have cafes and a chippy. It would have a lift to the top. People would be charged money to use it. Edinburgh would be a temporary theme park. People would feel depressed, paranoid, scared, frustrated. Edinburgh would be colour blind. There would be less teaching, less art, less environment. The Botanic gardens would be a job centre.

'Places'

Home. Bakehouse Close, Holyrood Park, Arthur’s Seat, Wells of Wearie, Botanic Gardens, Princes Street, Edinburgh Castle, Bus stop on North bridge, Surgeons Hall, Calton Road, Holyrood Park resource centre, Student housing at Sugarhouse Close, The Royal Mile, Scottish Parliament, St. Anthony’s well, Waterloo Place, Edinburgh’s disgrace, Hibs stadium. Our imagination.


Monuments mark places. So do memories. Here is a map of monuments of places in Edinburgh that mean things to different people for different reasons. Where matters to you?

'Future Cities'

At the last workshop, we drew on what we learned about the city over the 10 weeks to think about the future. The future could be good. Or bad. It depends on the decisions people make and what we think is important.

To help us think about the future, we learned about a process called the 'Future City Game'. We used a version of this to think about aspects of the future; the things people might do for work [economics]; the things people might do together [social]; the music we listen to, the songs we write, the books we read [culture] and the environment around us.

At the discussion, Millie and Nicole created a plastecine model of a young person in a wheelchair. What kind of future will we create for her?


You can learn more about the Future City Game here

'Journeys'

Different journeys connect different people for different reasons. Here are a few of the journeys we had during Our Natural Capital. How easy is it to make the journey you want?

Islands in the sea and ships looking for the special place. Young people coming in on the bus. Anxiety. Circle staff meeting young people at the bus stop on the Bridges and walking down the Royal Mile to Bakehouse Close. Questions. Journeys when the evenings are light. Stories. JourneyThe Majestic Edinburgh city bus tour. Confidence.

s when the evenings are dark. 

'Mapping'

We talked about the journey we had been through across the 10 weeks of Our Natural Captial. We explored the city in different ways. We imagined, experienced,looked and listen. Making sense of things like how you see the city is like making a map. It makes sense when you re-tell the story of where you have been, and what it matters. Here is an extract of our discussion about mapping and our journies through the city

'Images'

We had fun making up more short stories with Claire Druett,thinking about places we had been. It was near Christmas. The city looked magical and mysterious.

We made up a story, using words in the story bag about a tunnel under Arthur’s seat, guarded by a dragon, that connected the Princess locked in the tower with the talking cat to the city centre. Clare Mills followed our story in her drawing. Here are some of the characters she drew, inspired by what we said...

'Drawing imaginings'

In December, Clare Mills called in. Clare draws conversations. People talk. Clare listens, and draws what she hears. Here is Clare drawing our storytelling session...

You can find out more about Clare here

'Imagining cities'

Imagine if. Just that.Imagine....

...about the stone oven used at the top of Arthur's seat and the bronze age person who lived in a tunnel underneath it....

What kind of story could he tell?

'Broken trees and magic carpets'

Building up our stories with Claire Druett, we talked about places we had been, and things we had seen, and wondered. Here is another little story:

"Once upon a time......

.......there was the girl who ate a hair ball.  The boy who sat on a tree branch but it was old and broke, he fell but got picked up by a magic carpet and ended up at the top of Arthurs' Seat"

'The Green Goblin'

After thinking about our experiences on Our Natural Capital, and talking about the World Forum on Natural Capital in Edinburgh, we made up some stories working with Claire Druett
. Here is one about how things get mixed up:

"Once upon a time....


......there was a boy who found a box of wishes under his pillow, he set out to help the world but tried to turn himself into a super hero but it went wrong and he became the green goblin"

'Story making'

Claire Druett is a storyteller in Edinburgh. She came along to help us create stories about the experiences we had been through over the Our Natural Programme.

Claire started with a general talk about Stories and why they are important and why Edinburgh specifically is a good place for making and telling stories.  Then, we made short stories ourselves. 

First, everyone was asked to contribute a good luck or bad luck idea to a story. Then we then moved on to taking words out of the story bag. Everyone had a word, and had to make a sentence with that word. The next person had to carry on the story and use their word. After this, we started building in the words/places/buildings/trees into the story that mirrored where we had visited over the last few weeks. 

You can find out more about Claire here.

'Valuing nature or selling nature?'

In November, we heard about the World Forum on Natural Capital. [http://www.naturalcapitalforum.com/]
 Some people think we should talk about the value of nature in financial language. Some people think this is like selling nature. What do you think? Our blog was tweeted by people at the Forum.

'Horrible Happenings'

At Halloween, we went to the Surgeons Hall. We created new 'patient stories' like this one:

"The patient had severe stomach upset and indigestion. On examination it was found she had a hairball due to chewing her (poundland) hair extensions. The student doctor was confused about which instrument to use, so played the saxophone – this did not help the patient. The patient made a full recovery and had her hair cut."

You can read all the stories here

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'Romans in Edinburgh?!'

I never knew that Romans lived in Edinburgh. I get a bus pass and it's fun to do these workshops.  The workshop that I enjoyed was when we dressed up in costumes at Holyrood Park, I was the Roman, it was embarassing! -- Jonnie

'We should fix it'

Something that shocked me is that some places are not in the best condition and we should fix it.  I also liked when we went on a bus tour around the town. We learnt about the Botanic Gardens: where they are and what they do. -- Courtney

'The boy with a third leg'

One of the things that surprised me was when we went to Surgeon's Hall and Emma told us about a boy born with a third leg and foot in 1940... I will find out what it's called!
 -- Nicole.