"We are a jury that represents the diversity of Blackburn with Darwen.
We are worried and frustrated about climate change. Time is running out."
About
We are a jury that represents the diversity of Blackburn with Darwen; different ages, genders, ethnicities and backgrounds and have all worked together to agree a way forward. We are multiple backgrounds with one message. From our journey, we are worried and frustrated about climate change. This issue has been ignored for far too long. Time is running out.
We are nervous that there are those who don’t see the urgency of the issue or understand, especially the government and those in power who have a duty of care. We are worried about how the changes that lie ahead will be paid for and the cost to the individual especially those struggling to make ends meet and this must be considered at every stage of what we do in our response.
However, we are hopeful. This process has shown us that if we break the problem down into smaller parts it is solvable. The opportunities for change is there, there are lots of things that people can do. We can all lead the change that must happen.
There is much we can do as individuals but we need those in power, such as the council, to put in place everything to make it easy for us to take this action. This must be the start of a continuous conversation.
We must not give up, for the sake of our future generations. All of us in Blackburn with Darwen are part of a chain supporting each other. All of us are an important link. To the council, councillors and other links in the chain, we say we must get the job done.
Our Journey
In July 2019 Blackburn with Darwen Council declared a climate emergency and set a goal for the borough to be carbon neutral by 2030. The roadmap to achieve this goal is outlined in the Climate Emergency Action Plan (CEAP).
As part of the Action Plan, the Council created a People’s Jury on the Climate Change Crisis. The Jury brought together 26 residents who could be seen as a mini-population of Blackburn with Darwen, mirroring local demographics in terms of age, gender, ethnicity, ward area and attitude towards climate change.
Jury members met for 30 hours between September and December of 2022, hearing from local experts, scientists and researchers, all giving them a different perspective on climate change. The aim of these sessions was to create a set of recommendations answering: What do we need to do in our homes, in business and in our local area to help tackle the climate change crisis?
You can read the People's Jury recommendations; a set of fifteen recommendations to help reduce our collective climate impact.
"Being part of this Jury has improved my knowledge about the current climate disaster we face and the small ways in which we can try to help our borough reach net zero by 2030. It's definitely placed me more deeply into the communities in our town and helped me bring up the topic more to remind people that this problem won't go away on it's own."
- Leah, People's Jury member
Our Creative Project
In April 2023, the National Festival of Making began working with the People’s Jury to co-design a brand new project, collectively sharing expertise and decision-making across the jury and festival. The artistic commission aimed to share the People’s Jury’s process and recommendations through an artistic commission, engage the public in conversations and collective action around climate change, and generate civic pride through creativity and culture.
Together the Festival team and People’s Jury wrote a brief and interviewed three artists, seeking a project that would be impactful, fun, simple, memorable, future thinking and for everyone. After a very close selection process, the People’s Jury chose to work with Get It Done, a Manchester-based community arts organisation.
Get It Done proposed an exciting piece of shadow public art installed on the side of a central building in Blackburn, bringing attention to the changes in weather and passing of time as we draw closer to a climate-unstable future.
Get It Done has been working with the People's Jury to co-design the artwork through a series of creative workshops, from mocking up the shadow art out of cardboard to drawing what a positive climate future looks like for the area. In July, Get It Done and the People’s Jury brought the project to the National Festival of Making to gather tips and tricks on their giant chalkboard plinth and prompt people to pledge their support for a positive climate future on smaller plinths. The weekend was a great success, discussing the effects of climate change and the actions we need to take with hundreds of local people.
Get It Done and National Festival of Making are now working on bringing the shadow art to life. Once installed, it will act as a gentle reminder of our need to take action.
If you would like to get in touch about this project, please email info@festivalofmaking.co.uk and we'll be able to direct you to the relevant contact.
