Curious and Wild Soup Project

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PROJECT UPDATE

We have had some fantastic donations from Vegware, Fruutbox, the real junk food project plymouth, Morrisons in Bodmin and M&S.  Our crowdfunder has ended and we have already been out making soup with groups and hope to do so through winter.  A number of communities have contacted us to ask for some soup support and we a re glad to help.  We are also putting together some online soup materials for those communities further away. 

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The Curious and Wild Food Project is designed to support communities to make connections safely outdoors.  During covid restrictions it has become clear that there are some psycological effects from loosing some of the connections that now we are encouraged to avoid.

 

One of my favourite folk tales, the stone soup story, reminds us that sharing and connecting with your community ensures the nourishment, and in times of hardship, maybe even the survival of everyone.  These are themes that are  unfortunately very current.

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We are experiencing times of hardship right now, covid restrictions mean a lack of many things but also a lack of connection.  Connection has become the thing we are all anxious about.   I am beginning to see and witness the fallout of the lack of connection that people are experiencing and some significant mental health problems as a result.  I have been thinking a lot about how communities can work to connect again.   I have been wondering if the outdoor sector can do more to bring communities together safely outdoors where other provision is now restricted.  The outdoors is safer and preferred to indoors to reduce transmission, outdoor providers can do their bit.  We know the benefits of being outdoors and in nature, this is well researched now. 

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It can be hard to get people to come outside sometimes.  My research however has shown that people will get together outside to share food.   A fire always helps.  The power of a communal fire is well known, it has a gift for bringing people together, encouraging talk and conversation and personal story.  Fire, food and the outdoors is a great equation for connection with others.

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The Curious and Wild Soup Project seeks to actively bring people together outdoors to share connection and food around fire.  The combination of these together is magic- I have seen it, I have researched it and I want to encourage more of it.  In trying to find a way to encourage connection within our communities again I have unexpectedly settled on using the gentle power of soup!

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You can help with this project by sharing your soup and your soup moments with us or by donating to the crowdfunder project. 

https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/curious-and-wild-soup

 

Watch this space for project updates and soupy news.