The Bicycle Film Festival is an annual, curated film festival focused on sharing a range of new bike films. Each festival offering is unique, and the films included are selected from submission and the final collection are then toured internationally to sell out crowds.
Brendt Barbur is the Founding Festival Director. He was inspired to create this event in 2001 after a traffic accident while cycling in New York City.
The Bicycle Film Festival is a platform to celebrate the bicycle through various forms of artistic expression, including music, art, and, notably, film and has significantly propelled the urban bike movement as well as promoting lesser-known types of bike riding.
Image: Bicycle Film Festival
This festival now spans 90 cities across the globe and the BFF has garnered a vast audience of over 1 million individuals. It has become one of the foremost art and cultural event advocating sustainability. The Bicycle Film Festival also has offshoot links with associated workshops, screenings, panel events, concert, food events and art exhibitions worldwide.
I really appreciate this event because it showcases new and original films that you cannot see anywhere else. the festival covers such a wide range of experiences, places and styles and it really gives you an insight into how important bicycles are to so many people. It is really a celebration of people, place and riding – it is affirming and heartwarming.
The Bicycle Film Festival’s YouTube channel is a testament to the range of interests, skills and quality of bike films being produced by enthusiasts. Here are a few of the offerings over the years:
The EA PD Fest is an excellent opportunity to engage with fellow educators and share ideas and experiences about teaching, learning and educational engagement. I always look forward to this event and have attended several times before. See more on the EA PD Fest 2017 here and the EA PD Fest 2018 here.
The session I am presenting will explore how some AI tools can be incorporated by English teachers into classrooms. I’ve been experimenting with using AI with my English language students for a while now and I’m looking forward to sharing my experiences with other teachers – and hearing their ideas as well.
Innovative AI Tools for English Language Teachers: The Future is Now by Nina Ginsberg
Attention all English teachers! Join us for an exciting session where you will learn how to harness the power of AI in your ELICOS classroom. In this session, we use some of the latest AI tools to engage students and reinforce English language skills. Not only will you leave with a better understanding of how AI can support language acquisition, but you will also gain practical tips and strategies for effectively integrating AI into your existing curriculum and classes. All demos are in real-time so you can see exactly how quick and easy it is to create unique and purposeful AI-supported ELICOS activities.
Bring a laptop or iPad if you want to follow along. All participants receive a handy take-home AI teacher’s resource pack. Suitable for new AI users and teachers who want to know more. This is an opportunity to stay ahead of the curve in education technology and bring some excitement to your English language classroom. So don’t wait any longer, embrace the future!!
Paint by Text is a free and simple AI image editor tool that allows users to create and edit images using natural language commands. Users can give simple instructions, such as “make the sky more blue” or “remove the background”. There are three stock images to edit or you can upload your own photo.
Start with simple instructions and check the basics
Get student suggestions and/or pre-teach some useful words
Start with one simple instruction
Use keywords not full sentences or complex instructions
Check spelling
Discuss ambiguity
AI takes things literally
Some good things to keep in mind from Re-Thought: Write positive prompts that describe what should be present, not what should be missing. “A man without a beard” will result in a bearded man. If it is in the prompt, it is likely to be mapped. So write “a clean-shaven man” for pictures with predictably clean-shaven man
Vocabulary: use concrete instead of abstract words. For example:
Concrete: koala, bicycle, sushi, spaghetti, fire truck (more predicable)
Abstract: hope, happy, success (more diverse results)
Build up instructions
Start with one word, then build up
Give students a few examples: night, Umbrella, Christmas, gift, purple ribbon, in Tokyo
Grammar: discuss different language features
Prepositions – above, next to, besides, from, in, out, under
number noun OR adjective + noun
Class Activity: Change the Picture
Give students a chance to explore the tool. Ask them to change a picture three times and record what prompts were used. Students can also upload their own picture to modify. In pairs or groups, use the four images to practice key English language features, such as
Compare and contrast
Vocab: clothing, colours, setting, time, objects
Past, present, future
Tell the story…
Predict what picture/will happen next
Discuss what worked and didn’t work with each photo edit
MURF AI is a text to speech tool that employs a versatile AI voice generator to produce natural-sounding speech from text inputs. MURF AI voice generator can customize the speech by selecting different voices, languages, and speech styles to suit specific needs. The free version offers a 300-word immediate voiceover recording and 10 mins in the studio and there is a massive range of voice selections.
The two MURF features I’ve used are the free text to speech and the Studio.
1. Text to Speech
Access this online via the NUF website Product tab. It gives 200 words and have 3 voices to choose from. Once you paste your text, it will take a few second to covert. You cannot download this copy, just listen online.
2. The Studio
Upload any documents, Google Sheets, PDFs or web links and you get 10 mins free audio. Also has a great range of voices and functionality to change speed, share and export.
Also try Speechify which is the next step up in Text to Speech.
Teach Anything is a simple and easy to use free, open-source AI tool that allows users to ask a question which it then creates two different versions – easy or professional – of the same answer.
This tool can be used in a variety of ways:
a tool to quickly modify a topic introduction for upper/lower levels
exploring diverse perspectives
outlining oral presentation topics
comparing language registers
discussing vocab/language shifts from spoken/written
In pairs. Give one student the ‘easy’, the other student has the ‘professional’ answer. As a team look, for language shifts and changes. Then together, rewrite the answer again as a ‘new’ third version. I like to use the third as an ‘academic’ answer. This task practices and reinforces academic structures (topic sentences, TEEEL paragraphs, transition words, include examples, specific details and evidence, intext citations…etc). Or as a news report. Or as instructions.
Night Cafe is one of many AI Art Generators that uses Artificial Intelligence to create unique pieces of art in a matter of seconds. Users can input a prompt and/or select from a range of styles. Once you sign in, the interface is relatively straight forward and you can generate one free image at a time or get a set amount of free tokens per day.
In class, I usually show three different AI art generators (Night Cafe is one) and let students experiment and chose their favourite one to work with.
Student-created AI art can be used to in English language classes in several ways:
Speaking and Listening: Students work in pairs or small groups to describe the AI-generated artwork to their peers. This activity can help students develop their speaking and listening skills, as well as their ability to use of targeted language features like grammar, conjunctions, transitions phrases and who, what, when, where, how and why aspects.
Vocabulary Building: Elicit students’ own words, preteach or scaffold vocabulary. Use AI-generated art to reinforce and/or introduce new vocabulary words. Students identify objects, places or concepts within the artwork and practice using the new vocabulary in context.
Writing: Use AI-generated art as inspiration for the writing assignments. Students write a paragraph, short story, poem, or dialogue based on the image, and teachers can provide feedback on their writing skills, including grammar, vocabulary and style.
Paragraph/Essay Writing: Students write a paragraph or short essay (cause and effect, compare and contrast, advantages and disadvantages) about the image, focusing on developing vocabulary and grammar skills and applying language features learnt from class.
The example below is from a recent class. We had been working on the topics of climate change, animal extinction and social media to practice cause and effect writing. To end on a more positive note, I asked to students to reimagine a different, more positive future. I encouraged them to be as creative as they wanted. The students used Night Cafe to create an AI image and wrote a cause-effect explanation for their new vision which they then presented to the class. They love it! Here is one example (shared with student’s permission):
I went to Sierra Leone to do my bikes-for-education PhD fieldwork and got back in February 2020, 10 days before COVID ceased all international travel and pushed education online. It was a super hectic time for teachers, academics, students, parents and education administrators – which is why being awarded the Griffith Award for Excellence in Teaching (GAET) – 2021 Teacher of the Year (Sessional) was such an honour. I haven’t shared this news on this blog yet as it happened in July 2022 while I was on my blog break. But now I’m back, here are some details. Hooray! NG.
Regular reader of this blog know I love teaching.
I have been teaching for 17+ years and this is my 10th year at Griffith University.
I have worked hard to become the kind of inspirational teacher I wanted to have when I was a student at Uni.
In 2020, like every other educator, I was busy managing students, classes, and colleagues as we all responded to the educational and institutional disruptions due to COVID lockdowns and migrating everything online.
So, it is an absolute honour to be recognised for all that hard work with the 2021 Griffith University Award for Excellence in Teaching – Teacher of the Year (Sessional).
2021 GAET Teacher of the Year (Sessional)
I received this award for dedication to improving the quality of education and learning experience for Griffith students and my use of a strength-based approaches to promote lifelong learning through themes of community, care, confidence, and curiosity.
The panel feedback commended my ability to make students feel more valued, empowered, and connected to learning.
After such a hectic time – this award is a wonderful boost!
Thank you to all who have supported me over the years – to the countless students, colleagues and friends who encouraged, provoked and joked with me along the way.
What is the GAET Teacher of the Year (Sessional) Award?
Griffith University’s Awards in Excellence in Teaching is a prestigious, annual award that recognizes the outstanding contribution of sessional teachers who have demonstrated excellence in their teaching practices and have made a significant impact on their students’ learning outcomes. The award aims to promote and celebrate excellence in teaching, acknowledging the hard work and dedication of sessional teachers who play a vital role in the university’s academic community.
This award recognises teaching skills, innovative teaching practices, student engagement, and contribution to the enhancement of the learning experience of students.
Griffith University Awards Night. Image: Griffith University
Last week, I participated in Queensland’s premier all-female 3 hr Enduro (mountain bike) event – Chicks in the Sticks 2021.
…and I had a blast!
I was super excited this year to see for the first time, a new singlespeed-only category which I feel I had a small hand in encouraging over the years (see more below). So of course, I went to help populate the inaugural division and support the event.
This year I rode singlespeed as a solo 3-hr enduro.
It was great to see four other singlespeeders also doing solo 3hr. The singlespeed division was called ‘clipped wings’. While we were lined up at the start line, I turned on a mobile speaker I had attached to my bike and played a bike-themed, race-appropriate playlist – which was awesome! It got us all hyped and in the mood. Of course, I played Queen’s Bicycle Race while we were waiting for the starters gun. Then we were off!
My plan was to go out hard early for the first lap, then ease off and enjoy the rest. I was keen to see how I felt during the 3hrs as I hadn’t been riding a lot and it was a hot day – so I reminded myself I was riding, not racing.
At the start line, I shot out like a bat out of hell and gave the division a good run for their money. I pushed hard for the first lap and keep the tempo high. Just before the second lap, I was overtaken by a singlespeeder, which was my cue to ease off and get into a comfortable groove to cruise the rest of the event.
Having music keep my spirits high, and I made a point of chatting and encouraging other riders along the trail.
In time, Michelle from Pedal Inn (who is a friend) caught up to me. I asked her if she wanted to overtake, but she said no. Pedal Inn was sponsoring the event and she didn’t want to podium as it might look a little dodgy. Plus, like me, she was digging the tunes and just wanted to support the division!
So we ended up riding together for the rest of the event. Which was awesome!
By the fourth lap, I was getting a little tired from the heat and sugar overload, but I kept my head positive and legs moving. The track was made for singlespeed riding and although there were a few diversions around A lines I usually ride, I was happy with how it all unfolded.
A massive, big thanks to husband who was my event support and most especially to Michelle for her good company on track. What a superstar!
Congrats also to all the riders, friends and family who attended, as well as to the event organisers and volunteers.
Acknowledgment of country
race village
gearing up
friends with bike t-shirts
and we are off!
having too much fun
good trail times
Nina & Michelle pit stop
last lap
congrats all round
*Images by Nina Ginsberg and Official RATS Event Images by Element Photography.
Previous Chicks in the Sticks
I’ve been supporting this event for many years.
My first CITS event was in 2016 with a mate Corin and another friend Claire as support. We were Team Bicycles Create Change! Our approach was casual, relaxed and have fun. Corin rode her MTB and I was on my singlespeed. Completely unfazed by other riders in ‘full gear’, I rode in less than traditional MTB biking attire, including a flower-decorated bike, helmet, and stretch pants, with not a stitch of lycra or a camelback in sight – which raised quite a few eyebrows. Read more about the 2016 CITS here.
For my second CITS, in 2017, I went to support the event and cheer on the riders. Because I was not on the bike this time, I had more time to chat with riders, families, and event volunteers and get a whole new perspective on the event. Off the bike, I was able to help out and enjoy the color, costuming, and fun in a completely different way – like being able to ‘watch the start’ (which I videoed) as opposed to ‘be in the start’. Read more about the 2017 CITS here.
In 2018, I was back on the singlespeed doing the 3hr solo. It was quite a different experience doing the full 3hr by yourself: pacing, food, ride plan, and mindset played a big part in completing the ride well. As previously, I kept reminding myself that I was there to support the event and not race and so I made an effort to connect with others and enjoy the ride – and not get sucked into chasing and racing. It was a super hot day and that had a big impact on riders. But I drew on my experience, knowing these trails are built for singlespeeds -and (as usual) I had a blast! Read more about 2018 CITS here.
2019 saw a new singlespeed mate, Jen and I team as team and we were the only riders and team on singlespeeds. Somehow, I managed to talk Jen into team-theming as boogie boarders (feigning a sport event confusion, ‘but we are here now with our SS, so we might as well ride‘) dress-ups. Suffice to say, we had far too much fun! Bless you, Jen! We entered as a soft-boiled double yokers team called (again) Bicycles Create Change and even though we were cruising and ‘riding not racing’ we still ended up coming second in our division – wow! We also ended up receiving an on-the-spot award for being the only all-Singlespeed team of the day! A good way to promote singlespeeds at the event – as we saw in the 2021 reiteration in which the event had for the first time an official singlespeed division! Woohoo! And yes, I do feel like we had a small role to play in making this happen!! Read Jen’s guest post of how the 2019 CITS event went here.
The 2020 event was cancelled because of COVID.
So, 2021 was the event’s well-anticipated return! And it did not disappoint.
The annual Chicks in the Sticks event was coming up and I was registered. This year, I wanted to continue conversations about the unbearable whiteness of cycling and lack of support/inclusion of First Nations riders, decolonising MTB, celebrating First Nation experiences and better recognising First Nations connection to country at MTB events.
CITS is Queensland’s biggest, annual all-female 3hr Enduro mountain bike event. Those who know me know I like to bring the fun – so a theme bike and outfit was in order, but not anything mainstream.
Chicks in the Sticks – Annual All-female 3 hr Enduro Event
At this event, there is a big emphasis on fun, inclusion, and ‘giving it a go’, so there is lots of costumes and colour: – there is a profusion of ladybirds, bees, rainbow tutus, Where’s Wallys amongst the more ‘serious’ riders.
I wanted to continue the good vibes, but also raise awareness of First Nations experiences. But ‘Decolonise MTB’ was not the right approach for this event.
So I came up with an idea to promote First Nations experiences in a way that was positive and clear, but not confrontational. My idea consisted of a costume that was comfortable to ride it that matched a uniquely decorated bike highlighting my key theme.
To bring my vision to life, I enlisted the help of two incredible women to make my idea happen. A massive thank you to both Alison and Nix for their collaboration!
My Outfit
The outfit centred mainly on a custom-made T-shirt. This was the visually impactful piece and meant I could still ride safety and comfortably. Alison is a creative mate who I have collaborated with on a number of previous projects, including prepping for Bike Hack 19. Alison was integral in producing my T-shirt vision.
The T-shirt was a bright yellow and had connecting circles and indigenous artwork prints on the front and the words ‘celebrating’ over the same indigenous print panel on the back. I specifically chose ‘celebrating’ as a present verb (ie doing) and it was a positive message. The print was sourced from a First Nations art Collective (to support artists) and the other material (black spots and yellow T) were sourced from Opp Shops.
Nix is a proud Quandamooka woman who is highly creative. I had the idea of decorating my bike in a way that combined the approaches of my previous Art Bike Projects CONS_U_Me Blues with the Kids Bikes are Hard Work …but also it needed to be lightweight, snag-free, and still easy to ride during the event.
We used recycled clothes from Opp Shops to decorate the bike in the colours of the Australian Aboriginal flag (red, black, and yellow) by strapping the frame in red and black with yellow hanging tassels (emulating the flag’s yellow sun) in the middle.
We added a large ball under the seat in the Torres Strait Islander colors.
On the handlebars we had a hint of the theme colous for front-facing reference.
We then decorated the helmet to match.
See the stages of development below.
Archie ‘helping’
Before shot
frame wrapping
Torres Strait decoration
In-progress
helmet decoration
helmet test
It was a great project to collaborate with others and it ticked all the important boxes for me like being based on recycling and sustainable principles, increasing awareness for First Nation experiences, creating a new and original outfit to ride in, supporting the event by dressing up and bringing the good vibes, creating something we collectively made that was low-cost, sustainable, and low-tech, and I got to share quality creative time with people I admire.
A massive, big thank you to Alison and Nix – I love what we co-created!
In the next post, I’ll let you know how the event went.
and what does gender and sexuality have to do with it?
We were very excited to have guest presenter Assoc. Prof. Alyson Campbell from the School of Theatre, Victorian College of the Arts (University of Melbourne) to lead us on this curious and provocative journey.
Artist-scholar-makers: Thinking about affect work to queer performance.
My understanding of affect draws on Brian Massumi and cultural theorist Jeremy Gilbert. I’ve built on this general line of thinking to explore more particularly concepts and strategies for queering performance. This all springs from working with Reza Abdoh in Los Angeles in the early 1990s, where I encountered live performance in a way I never had before. Abdoh’s play Bogeyman was dealing with the AIDS pandemic and it has taken me many years to try to find ways to articulate how its queerness was based on something far beyond its content; it was the experience of it, or, in other words, its affect. I’m still trying to understand that interrelationship in my own and others’ work. One strand of this links directly back to Reza in thinking about affect as viral (Viral Dramaturgies, co-edited with Dirk Gindt, 2018) and another strand is as erotohistoriography (Freeman, 2010; e.g. Campbell 2015). As an artist-scholar the whole thing converges in trying to find specificity in language for this (e.g. through musicology/musical thinking, e.g. Campbell 2012) and rehearsal/making strategies.
My question for the session is: What are the gaps in the discourse around affect in performance?
What we did in this session…
… er… how to summarise this session … is very hard… we did so much!
It is so hard to explain all we covered and what stuck for each of us. I loved how Alyson took the time to just think-out-aloud her ideas and explain her motivations, musings, work, and connections – for me, that was so interesting and inspiring (we so rarely have those personal insights as to the process-thinking that goes into academic and performance work!).
I did capture some of what we did, discussed, thought-with, and activated in this session in a few 100-word worldings I wrote from this session. Here are my worldings:
Seek the Affect mechanism.
Freefalling with A/P Alyson Campbell’s Queer Dramaturies. Director process(es) unfolding: pertinent theatre movements, Phenomenology, Massumi’s ‘Affect’, Gormley’s ‘body’s first way of knowing’, Gilbert’s ‘affective specificity’, and Epstein’s ‘shaping affect’. More important than describing affect (as end point), is seeking the mechanism by which it is structured. Not ‘supposed’ to talk about the ‘real’ journey/process/practice. Various maker book think-throughs: Practice-as-research (Practitioners), Affect Explorations (Theory), or Queer Encounters (Personal). More on intersectionality, form and hybridity… maybe queer hybridity? How long does it take for language to move? Pondering practice-theory as contagion or miasma. A juggernaut of multiple threads.
What’s missing in Affect.
With a new artist-scholar friend, we discuss what is missing in Affect. Thoughts disperse and range from uncomfortable school-based moments, to performance making, to the inescapable hard lines of capitalism, to points of deficit in myriad forms. A strong conversational start. Body sameness and what (im)presses. Someone mentions ‘anti-lack-thinking’. I like that idea. I settle into queering beyond what I think and know – and I’m excited by new viral suggestions. We talk of the joys of popping fuchsias and what is learned from migrating bodies. The importance of ‘accepting your in-thereness’ and of (missing) laughter. ‘Not just’ embodied jerks.
Bound up with affect.
I’m leaning into intense inquiries of somatic means and translations. Being led, hand-held, through body-emotion(s) that disregard mental training. I’m ‘bound up’ with affect, constipated by shifting ‘pulling a(part)s’. I’m intrigued by In your face theatre as an attempt to synthesize smaller audiences, funding, and affective capacities – and the aesthetics of what that might mean and do. I see inchoate segregised resistance, near-Punk tendencies, and pre-queering workings (t)here. Not just relying on arguments between characters or choreographies to drive dramatic interest. Activating experiential theatrics and what that actually means when working through ideas, bodies, and hearts.
Grokking 4:48 psychosis.
Moving within/without a binarized sociality bites. Invitations to re(un)see Amelia Carvello’s extraordinary bodies. Being crossed out and knowing the marginalia is where it is at. Meeting a lang-scape for the first time. Considering body-affect as thinking-of-performative ‘affect’, or as queer dramaturgy applied to worlding and how to shape it all. The ‘roomness’ of the room stands out. Grokking 4:48 psychosis. Theories only get you so far, but new meanings and makings lead naturally into methodological spaces, processes, loops, actions, ambiguities, openness and speculations. Uncovering universal ‘truth(s)’ of research-making becomings seasoned with psychological implications and pre-intentional purpose.
Alyson’s main areas of research and supervision are in gender and queer theory/performance, directing and dramaturgy, phenomenological approaches to performance, social justice and disability in the arts. Alyson’s focus is around the representation of women and the nexus of queer theories and feminism. She is committed to developing modes of practice led/as research throughout her teaching at all levels. Alyson is a freelance director and dramaturg with an astounding 30-year career, and teaching credits that feature the School of Creative Arts, the University of Melbourne, Queen’s University Belfast and Brunel University, London.
August 9th is the UN International Day of World Indigenous People.
Recognition for Indigenous people needs far more work.
This year, the UN is highlighting the marginalization of Indigenous Peoples by demanding a ‘social contact’ that better recognizes the social and economic inclusion, participation, and approval for all involved.
This post outlines 2021 the UN International Day of Indigenous Peoples and this year’s central theme.
I’ve also included a curated list of resources and links for those who want more at the end.
Image: UN
This year’s theme is:
Leaving no one behind:
Indigenous Peoples and the call for a new social contract
Here’s what the UN has to say:
Indigenous peoples & a new social contract
There are over 476 million indigenous peoples living in 90 countries across the world, accounting for 6.2 per cent of the global population. Indigenous peoples are the holders of a vast diversity of unique cultures, traditions, languages and knowledge systems. They have a special relationship with their lands and hold diverse concepts of development based on their own worldviews and priorities.
Although numerous indigenous peoples worldwide are self-governing and some have been successful in establishing autonomy in varying forms, many indigenous peoples still come under the ultimate authority of central governments who exercise control over their lands, territories and resources. Despite that reality, indigenous peoples have demonstrated extraordinary examples of good governance, ranging from the Haudenosaunee to the existing Sámi parliaments in Finland, Sweden, and Norway.
The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed and exacerbated many existing inequalities, disproportionately affecting populations all over the world that were already suffering from poverty, illness, discrimination, institutional instability or financial insecurity. From the perspective of indigenous peoples, the contrast is even starker. In many of our societies, the social contract, at the very least, needs some revision.
Image: UN
What is a social contract?
This August 9, International Day of Indigenous Peoples, we must demand indigenous peoples’ inclusion, participation and approval in the constitution of a system with social and economic benefits for all.
That is why the 2021 theme is ““Leaving no one behind: Indigenous peoples and the call for a new social contract.” But, what does it mean?
A social contract is an unwritten agreement that societies make to cooperate for social and economic benefits. In many countries, where indigenous peoples were driven from their lands, their cultures and languages denigrated and their people marginalized from political and economic activities, they were never included in the social contract to begin with. The social contract was made among the dominant populations.
Over recent years and decades, various societies have sought to address this, including through apologies, truth and reconciliation efforts, legislative reforms, as well as constitutional reforms, while at the international level, these efforts have included the adoption of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and advisory bodies such as the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues.
Image: UN/Rick Bajornas
Despite the existence of international instruments to respond these inequalities, not all are embarked on the collective journey to ensure that no one is left behind, including indigenous peoples. Therefore, the building and redesigning of a new social contract as an expression of cooperation for social interest and common good for humanity and nature, is needed.
The new social contract must be based on genuine participation and partnership that fosters equal opportunities and respects the rights, dignity and freedoms of all. Indigenous peoples’ right to participate in decision-making is a key component in achieving reconciliation between indigenous peoples and States.
Cultural Survival is an organization committed to advancing indigenous peoples’ rights and cultures worldwide. They have a well-curated list of 12 things to do ranging from articles, podcasts, interactive maps, and other links to learn more about indigenous people around the world. It is well worth a look – check it out here.
Dom is a (former) mechanic and (go)karter who lives in the UK.
Five months ago, Dom posted his first Drum & Bass on the bike video.
Dom has a DJ deck set up over the handlebars of his bike, then he turns on his speakers, streams his live set (including him talking on a mic), and cruises around his local surroundings.
He has ridden Cambridge, Uxbridge, Manchester, Marlos, Windsor, Cardiff, Brighton, and several other English cities.
And each time, he is being joined by more and more people for the party ride-along.
Events like this make me happy.
*BOILER ROOM ON BIKES* Drum & Bass On The Bike 10 – LONDON CENTRAL
In a world that is increasingly divisive and exclusionary, having free, public events that people of all ages and stages can enjoy is critical.
While I acknowledge initiatives like this are not perfect and come with issues, I also appreciate the effort and work that goes into making these rides happen.
I love the grassroots, quasi-critical mass, flash mob, bicycle-focused, positive vibe of Dom’s rides.
Kids, families, dogs, and all kinds of people going for a ride together.
Yup – big smiles.
One of my favs is his start of the London Hyde Park Special.
This is one of his earlier ones. Just Dom…. going for a cruise.
I like the gentle lead-in (see video above) where he starts out by himself. He takes his time setting up his gear, he has a chat to a passer-by and then pushes off for an ‘off-the cuff’ roll around London.
So instead of having our usual guest presenter, we thought we’d use the recent conference to hold a Popcorn Session.
Popcorn Sessions are where we watch and discuss NM ‘research clips’ such as conference recordings (15-20 mins long each) to think-with creative and cutting-edge NM ideas and experiences.
These research clips explore a range of different ideas and approaches and are lead by some of the world’s leading posthumanist and NM scholars/researchers – so we are very lucky!
The focus for this popcorn session is taken from the ICQI session called Entanglements in the World Becomings.
July Popcorn Theme: Entanglements in the World Becomings.
Recognition, Creative-Rationality, Writing and the Excess of Inquiry – Jon Wyatt (Uni of Edinburgh).
Crafting a New Materialist Becoming – Lise Jean Claiborne (Uni of Waikato).
Slow Dancing and kinship. The Holly Oak, the horse chestnut, Bronwyn and Jane. Jane Speedy (Uni of Bristol) & Bronwyn Davis (Uni of Melb. and Western Sydney Uni).
NM SIG Discussion points and lines of flight
..if we only write for ourselves (or for other NMs) is that limiting?
….what is the purpose?
…….delighting in ‘swerving off course’
………….human ‘desire lines’
…………….a picture I drew about my PhD research
…………………I couldn’t stay longer
…………………….contact – what is your ‘best’ contact?
…………………………the importance of …(more).. thoughtful relationally
……………………………I don’t mind staying
………………………………..Does NM work best when it is unseen and hidden?
……the Holly Oak …….. the horse chestnut ……. the table top……
Below are two 100-word wordings I wrote based on my discussion notes and reflections from participating and thinking-with this NM SIG Popcorn Session.
Coextensions swerving off course
Births of practicality. Limitations of relations, power and ethics. Does ‘anything’ really ‘go’? Using ‘swamps’ to describe things. Leaving marks and theory debt. The uncomfortable possibility that what we reject, we have actually adopted. Discovering Rautio’s four balancing arts. Interweaving the academic and the everyday. Audacious engagements are more-than-method. We are crafting a New Materialist Becoming. Ethical propositions transforming behaviour. The delights of swerving off course. Human desire lines and co-extensions. Considering how to make our work ‘speak to’ other-than scholars. The performativity of being and academic. People want to stay later – there is so much more! Nothing is ordinary.
Slow Dance and Kinship
We’re in the private world of two scholarly lovers: a voyeuristic delight of intellect and intimacy. Slow dance and kinship. Paramours from opposite sides of the world exchange thoughts, writing, photos, drawings, and poetry. They sit under special trees, thinking deeply about each other and the world. Intraspecies tree empathy, tabletops, and hospitalisation for a stroke. Frothy entanglements with nomadic feminist scholars, grainy wood(ly) figures, solitude, ‘eyeless’ gazes and being bodily compromised. Our ancients believe. Vulnerability and the interconnectedness of all things. Pink and purple lines with green dots trace the hidden, yet (un)known. Mycorrhizal assemblages of love.
I appreciate the sentiment of Mother’s Day (and Father’s Day) in taking time to recognise and celebrate the hard work parents do.
I like to think that mums are always appreciated as much as they are on Mother’s Day (ie for the other 364 days of the year as well) – not just one day a year … I hope …
Traditionally Mother’s Day is celebrated with breakfast in bed, flowers or lunches out with loved ones.
With much work needed to address systemic gender inequities, I’m proposing that this Mother’s Day is an opportunity to recognize such issues and think more carefully about how we celebrate mums and other (female) carers.
Mother’s Day is an opportunity to consider more critically the presence and presents we are giving to mums and what these ‘gifts’ communicate, expect and perpetuate.
Keep in mind that Mother’s Day (and other similar commemorative events) are overwhelmingly driven by corporate advertising and marketers who don’t give a shit about mums – they just want to sell more crap.
Such ‘gifts’ are not very honouring, nor are they particularly thoughtful.
So for Mother’s Day 2021, consider doing things a little differently.
Consider talking to a mother (key person) in your life – and dig a little deeper. Have a D & M (deep and meaningful). Be curious about their life (if they are willing to share) listening to what they have to say – and take your time. Go beyond the superficial and every day. Ask them more probing questions and listen to their experiences. Take time to really listen to what life is like for them – to be a mum/carer and a woman-person in the world. Ask them what their life is like – all the ups and downs. Tell them you notice all the small, thankless, important things they do – and that you know there are thousands of other hidden things that you are not aware of, but you know they do anyway, to make your life easier. Explain how you are aware of how hard they work – for you, in the home, at work, in the world.
A conversation like this is something a box of chocolates can’t achieve.
Oh… and if you do want to get them a present, ask them what they really want. Something just for them – and when they tell you what it is, don’t question it, discuss it or negotiate it- just do it.
And maybe you might want to add in something else – something more thoughtful and personal. Something just from you – that you think is an adequate tribute to that special person in your life.
