23/01/2025
Andy Leake writing in the independent Bristol paper B247 reports on a new foraging group, promoting food for free and respect for wildlife for LGBTQIA+ people and allies. Nature Queerdos, co-founded in 2022 by clinical psychologist Jen Attwood and arts facilitator and professional forager El O’Connell. The group was born out of their shared passion for foraging, nature and creating space for queer people. The group offers creative foraging workshops which include: fermentation, sap tapping, safely and sustainably preparing herbal medicines, green woodwork, mindfulness and collective outdoor cooking. In addition, something rare for a foraging group, is that Nature Queerdos have built their events around being wheelchair accessible. Foraging workshops can be expensive but Nature Queerdos operates on a not-for-profit basis, with sliding scale tickets and free options so no-one is turned away for lack of funds. El explained “They can walk along a hedgerow and identify a number of plants. It helps them feel more connected to nature.” Jen added: “People told us they were in a real rut, disengaged with food, and foraging helped them change this. Some tell us they use plants to help treat their own health issues.” Jen and El hope to eventually increase the frequency of their events and offer weekend retreats. In the immediate future, Nature Queerdos will be offering a foraged ink workshop, with queer natural ink artist Ione Maria Rojas, on Saturday October 5. There are other planned workshops on foraged cosmetics, natural dyes and underwater photography. Nature Queerdos can be contacted via Instagram or Facebook. Tickets to upcoming workshops can be purchased through Headfirst. https://www.facebook.com/groups/726369635244853
