The Bees of Bensham Podcast

Mattie Matter
The Bees of Bensham Podcast

Bees of Bensham, a two-year arts and citizen science project led by Gateshead based community arts organisation Dingy Butterflies CIC and artist and beekeeper Barbara Keating. Bees of Bensham worked across Bensham and Saltwell to re-enchant the resident humans with the local wild bees and pollinators. The project involved working with community groups, residents, environmental organisations and academics to collate data on bees in the local community, find out about them, what habitat needs they have, and how we benefit by supporting them. This podcast series, created by Mattie, includes interviews with a number of the creative people, artists, residents, experts, naturalists, ecologists and academics who were involved in the project over the two years. Bees of Bensham was funded by a National Lottery Community Fund grant. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episodes

  1. 13/07/2024

    The Bees of Bensham Symposium

    Mattie interviews some of the speakers and attendees of the Bees of Bensham symposium. This took place on Friday 26 April 2024 at the Café under the Spire in Gateshead.  Interviewees include key speaker and bee enthusiast Brigit Strawbridge; Dr Mark Goddard, from the department of Geography and Environmental Sciences, Northumbria University; Federica Paradiso, PhD researcher in Geography and Environmental Sciences, Northumbria University; and Maria Fury from Baltic Centre for Contemporary Art. Due to the nature of where some of the interviews took place, we apologise for the audio quality being variable. Some of the websites mentioned and further reading: https://www.dwellbeingshieldfield.org.uk/ https://colabsunderland.uk/projects/seascapes https://beestrawbridge.blogspot.com/ https://irecord.org.uk/ https://www.inaturalist.org/ https://ericnortheast.org.uk/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    31 min

  2. 13/07/2024

    Interview with Mark Welfare, Freelance Naturalist

    In this Bees of Bensham podcast, Mattie interviews Mark Welfare. Mark is a freelance naturalist who led a number of nature walks around Bensham & Saltwell and Thornley woods for Bees of Bensham, exploring both flora and fauna. Here they discuss, amongst other things, the merits of leaving things to grow with little management, hoverfly and bee identification and what online groups and sites are good to join; plus the problems with hedgerows and dandelions! Some of the websites mentioned: https://www.nhsn.org.uk/ https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/north-east/wallington https://knepp.co.uk/ https://irecord.org.uk/ https://www.inaturalist.org/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    44 min

  3. 13/07/2024

    Interview with Phil Macari: Ecology and Community Rewilding Director, Climate Action North and Director of Wildcraft

    Mattie interviews Phil Macari. Phil led on several nature and wellbeing walks around Bensham & Saltwell during the project and ran accredited training courses on nature and rewilding for Bensham residents. Phil and Mattie discuss--amongst other things--identifying and naming flora and fauna, nature and wellbeing, ways to explore nature and more about dandelions! Mattie also finds out about diapause and hibernation, and why it is important to know the difference. Some of the websites mentioned and further reading: https://www.climateactionnortheast.org.uk/ https://wildcrafty.co.uk/about/ https://www.buzzaboutbees.net/diapause-vs-hibernation.html Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    55 min

  4. 13/07/2024

    Interviews with members of the Bees of Bensham residents group

    Mattie interviewed a number of local people and residents who engaged with the project over the last two years, taking part in walks, talks, training and volunteering at events. The interviews cover the benefits of connecting to nature for health and wellbeing; the Bees of Bensham seed collecting events from Brownfield sites that took place in the community in late 2023; and the myths we are told about bees when growing up. Due to the nature of where some of the interviews took place, we apologise for the audio quality being variable. Some of the websites mentioned and further reading: https://www.otmg.co.uk/ https://www.england.nhs.uk/personalisedcare/social-prescribing/ https://thecomfreyproject.org.uk/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    56 min

  5. 13/07/2024

    Interview with Barbara Keating, Lead Artist of Bees of Bensham

    Mattie interviews artist and beekeeper Barbara Keating. Barbara was the lead artist on two-year arts and citizen science project Bees of Bensham, running workshops, walks and community events. They talk about Bees of Bensham, habitats and recording and all things bees! Some of the websites mentioned: https://www.dingybutterflies.org/bees-of-bensham/ https://irecord.org.uk/ https://www.inaturalist.org/ https://ericnortheast.org.uk/ Check out Barbara's work on Vimeo: https://vimeo.com/pmnogue Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    1h 10m

  6. 13/07/2024

    Interview with Ben Jones, Director of Dingy Butterflies CIC

    Mattie interviews Dr Ben Jones, Director of Gateshead-based community arts organisation Dingy Butterflies CIC. They discuss how Dingy Butterflies CIC came into being; how Bees of Bensham developed and took a number of years to come into fruition; and the community and creative sector in Gateshead and how austerity and various government localism policies over the last 14 years has affected the community in ways both good and bad. Some of the websites mentioned: https://www.dingybutterflies.org https://www.dingybutterflies.org/bees-of-bensham/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    49 min
  • 6 Episodes

About

Bees of Bensham, a two-year arts and citizen science project led by Gateshead based community arts organisation Dingy Butterflies CIC and artist and beekeeper Barbara Keating. Bees of Bensham worked across Bensham and Saltwell to re-enchant the resident humans with the local wild bees and pollinators. The project involved working with community groups, residents, environmental organisations and academics to collate data on bees in the local community, find out about them, what habitat needs they have, and how we benefit by supporting them. This podcast series, created by Mattie, includes interviews with a number of the creative people, artists, residents, experts, naturalists, ecologists and academics who were involved in the project over the two years. Bees of Bensham was funded by a National Lottery Community Fund grant. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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