as a volunteer with the se5 forum in camberwell, an organization dedicated to supporting the development of the local area, i recently ran a pop-up at the camberwell farmers market. the event sparked conversations around the central theme: "what if growing food was an act of mutual care?" it was exciting to see such active participation from both locals and visitors, diving into discussions about climate, community and care.

we used speculative prompts to explore ideas, like, "if trees could send us a distress call about the changing climate, what form would it take?" this concept draws from robin wall kimmerer’s braiding sweetgrass, where she explains how trees communicate distress signals through chemical compounds to warn each other. she writes, "forewarned is forearmed. the trees warn each other and the invaders are repelled. the individual benefits, and so does the entire grove."

this formed the foundation for the tending together project.