Bio: Guerrilla gardener, compulsive litter picker and evangelist for nature, Paul Jupp runs a Community Interest Company, promoting gardening for wildlife and biodiversity and providing seeds. From a long career in the garden industry, Paul now devotes his time to showing people how to create flower meadows for pollinators, in private gardens and public spaces, putting the colour back into our landscapes and counteracting the chronic loss in insect populations. He works closely with local groups and councils, advising on appropriate plant species for specific locations and demonstrating methods for success.

“Flowers have a seductive power that engages even the most sceptical onlooker. Every bloom is an uprising of hope in the face of the huge ecological and existential challenges we face. It can be a step towards realising our power to create a more beautiful and positive future.”

Summary: Since the start of our project in 2011 we have been travelling the length and breadth of the country to attend hundreds of garden shows and festivals (RHS Chelsea, Hampton Court, Chatsworth, Tatton Park, BBC Gardeners’ World, Glastonbury, Wilderness, Wood Festival, BBKA Conference, and the National Honey Show to name a few – to trade, give talks & demonstrations, and to attempt to educate, inspire and motivate. People growing seeds in their gardens or witnessing our community gardens, roundabouts and verges – a profusion of blooms supporting clouds of pollinating insects – will be moved, not just by the beauty, but I think by an awareness of the extinction of experience we have silently witnessed; the colour leached from the landscape in our lifetimes. And as a CIC, rooted in our Wiltshire community, but working across the UK, we can be more effective in breaking down barriers, always trying to practice kindness and generosity, and seeing the power in communities to take back control, often in very small increments, building momentum with each step. Our work does not just help people connect with nature in their gardens, it also leads to a greater sensitivity to the bigger picture (The UK is ranked 189th out of 218 countries for how we look after our nature) –

This webinar follows the journey towards harnessing the positive energy around growing seeds, and visualising the emerging seedlings as an uprising of optimism, a YES vote for a bee-friendly future!

BIBBA members will be able to see the webinar live, members of the public will be able to see the recording when released on the BIBBA YouTube Channel.