Great Big Green Week
On 7th June 2025, the Herbert Art Gallery and Museum delivered a family focused event, as part of the Great Big Green Week, welcoming 253 visitors across the day to engage in a heartfelt celebration of communities coming together to protect nature and act against climate change.
This event was part of a wider project funded by Art Fund inspired by THE HERDS. THE HERDS is the new project by the creators of The Walk, which saw Little Amal, a 12-foot-tall puppet of a Syrian refugee girl, travel from Turkey to the UK.
The Herbert was one of 44 museums around the country to be part of this, something that we can be proud of as Arts Council England have highlighted the importance of cultural organisations leading the way for environmental sustainability in their investment principles.
During this event, visitors had the opportunity to engage with activities that focused on natural habitats, local wildlife and calls to action around climate change. Activities included puppet making, seed planting and wildflower seeds bombs to take away. Children created their own windowsill gardens to encourage growing plants at home, and our visitors came together to build a bug hotel for the Herbert’s community garden, which will encourage local biodiversity to thrive in an urban landscape.
Additionally, older children, aged 11-16 took part in a full day animation workshop with Let’s Animate to develop a story about changes we can make in our lives to help protect the planet for the future. Young people are crucial in the fight against climate change, acting as catalysts for change through activism, innovation, and shifts in lifestyle and consumption patterns. The short film (see below) they have created showcases their ideas and calls to action for climate justice.
THE HERDS have travelled through Kinshasa, Lagos, Dakar, Marrakesh, Casablanca & Rabat, San Fernando, Venice, Madrid, Marseille and Arles, Venice and Paris, and are now in the UK until August.