Event Details

Join us for the brand new 2021/2022 Lancaster University Public Lecture Series

Morecambe: The Eden of the North

The proposal to establish Eden Project North has gripped the imaginations of Morecambe, Lancashire and many of its surrounding areas. Join us in-person or online for a special evening with Sir Tim Smit KBE (Co-founder of the Eden Project) in the spectacular surroundings of the Morecambe Winter Gardens.

This event will begin with a talk by Sir Tim on how ‘the Green Enlightenment’ starts now:

Over the past twenty years, nature has revealed to us the beautiful, complex worlds of bacteria within the human form, and the vital relationships between green plants and fungi. Sir Tim will take us on a layman's journey to understand more about the beautiful efficiencies of the natural world, that will revolutionise the ways in which we imagine our futures as part of an interdependent natural world.

This talk will be followed by Sir Tim in conversation with Professor Vanessa Toulmin (Director of City and Culture at the University of Sheffield, and Chair of the Morecambe Winter Gardens Preservation Trust), discussing the attraction of Morecambe as a site for Eden Project North and much more.

This will be followed by a question and answer session and a wine reception for those joining us in person.

Accessibility: the venue is fully accessible to wheelchair users. For those joining us online automatically generated subtitles will be available. If you have any questions about accessibility please contact us directly at public-events@lancaster.ac.uk.

----------------------------------------------------------------

About the speakers

Sir Tim Smit KBE

Tim is a Trustee, Patron and Board Member of a number of statutory and voluntary bodies both locally and nationally. He has received a variety of national awards including The Royal Society of Arts Albert Medal (2003). In June 2012 Tim was appointed Knight Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (KBE) by Her Majesty the Queen.

Tim has taken part in many television and radio programmes and has been the subject of ‘This is Your Life’ and a guest on ‘Desert Island Discs’. He is a regular speaker at conferences, dinners, Awards Ceremonies and other events. Tim is the author of books about The Lost Gardens of Heligan (voted 'Book of the Year' in 1997 by the Sunday Times) and the Eden Project and he has contributed to publications on a wide variety of subjects. Tim is also Executive Chairman for Eden Project International which aims to have an Eden Project on every habited continent by 2025.

Professor Vanessa Toulmin

Vanessa is the Director of City and Culture at the University of Sheffield, a historian and international expert of Film & Popular Entertainment, and the Chair of The Morecambe Winter Gardens Preservation Trust. Vanessa was born into a fairground family which operated the Winter Gardens fairground, some of her fondest memories were watching her aunt perform on stage at the Winter Gardens Theatre as a contortionist. Vanessa is the author of 14 books on the history of Fairgrounds, Circus and Early Film and Popular Entertainment.

----------------------------------------------------------------

How to join

Please note that we are running this event in a hybrid format where attendees can join in person or online:

Register here to join in-person

Register here to join online

© Photo by Eden Project International