A day to simply say thank you

On the morning of 12th March, the day of our planned event to bring supporters, funders and friends of Global Generation together for a visit to our new triangle site and a thank you lunch, I open the curtains and see torrential downpour, I check my phone and the forecast says double rain for the whole day, I check my messages to see ‘do we need to cancel?’ and ‘is it going ahead?’

The team comes together in the Story Garden and we don’t cancel! Changes are made, the fire in the roundhouse is lit, benches are stacked up close to the fire to dry them, Chaneti puts up a gazebo for the outdoor cooking, we count our umbrellas, and we let everyone know that it is going ahead.

We meet in the new snazzy apartment building - Author - next to what will be our permanent garden, currently known as the Triangle site, which is warm and cozy, to welcome guests. I am amazed that everyone shows up in the wettest day of the year, and feel incredibly lucky and supported as each person comes walking through the door, some who have known Global Generation since the first days such as Michael Freeman, co-founder of Argent, who have given us space in King’s Cross since our first Skip Garden in 2009; Charlie Green, founder of the Office Group, with who we built our first roof garden even before then; John Nugent, founder of Rotunda who was a trustee and our first commercial terrace garden; Robert Townshend, founder of Townshend Landscape Architects who did all the landscaping for the King’s Cross development and with whom we also now work in Canada Water; as well as newer friends, such as Rachel Johnson from Phoenix Court Works who have been our Story Garden neighbours for the past 5 years and support us in many ways, Lisa Finlay from Heatherwick Studio who we are running a collaborative project with to inspire creativity in young people, and many more. All have helped us get to where we are now, ready to embark on the next chapter of our journey … building a permanent garden.

“Partnering with Global Generation has always been a two way thing, it wasn’t just about helping a charity. We understood quite quickly that what we were creating with Global Generation was benefiting our building. Creating the green roof provided benefits for the environment, biodiversity, local young people as well as our tenants. It made us think much harder and helped us develop our sustainability approach. We supported Global Generation because it was a good thing, but also because the benefit comes back to us as a business, and the more people who know that, the better.”

- Charlie Green, The Office Group

“There is always a huge enthusiasm at Global Generation. I think being involved gives young people an opportunity in life for them to believe that they can achieve things if they want and it gives them the way to do it.”

- Robert Townshend, Townshend Landscape Architects

“I see Global Generation as a leading charity in the neighbourhood who have the most widespread impact. You touch every group. And so actually, if we have a question about the neighbourhood, we come to you because we feel like you've got such a good pulse on what the needs are.”

- Rachel Johnson, Phoenix Court Works

Global Generation and the Wates Family Enterprise Trust share a common belief that people thrive in places where nature thrives. Along with our colleagues in Wates Group we have helped out where we can. In so doing we have seen first-hand how Global Generation’s work creates beauty, boosts the environment and inspires local people. Our own work, on what we call nature based neighbourhoods, has been influenced by your example. Each of your projects is a mini-miracle. What is not always seen is how the impact of your work extends far beyond them. You are pathfinders, and we are grateful for the path you have shown us.

- Jonny Wates, Wates Family Enterprise Trust

Martina and Alice lead the group outside, sharing umbrellas to show the site, which at this point is a big patch of mud, but with a little imagination people could start to visualise the potentials, plants growing, children playing and insects buzzing.  We walked over to the Story Garden where the roaring fire and the most incredible lunch prepared by Chaneti awaited us in the roundhouse. Cassie, Global Generation Fellow, who has been with Global Generation since she was 14 spoke about her experience, which brought the importance of the work to life for all that were there.

“I was super shy growing up and so having to join Global Generation was really out of my comfort zone but I pushed myself anyways. There’s so many things I learned and skills gained but a session I’ll never forget was making natural balms using organic oils and products. I remember bringing it home to my mum and it opened up a conversation with my mum where she started talking about how she used to make stuff like that growing up and for the first time we started talking about the Philippines, it had me interested into my heritage and I learned that the environment and nature is an important aspect of my culture. I was then interested in other people’s cultures and their practices and a common denominator was the environment, that’s how I felt we all connected together. And so, my passion for the environment grew and when I was 16 I made the conscious decision to be a vegetarian which was a big lifestyle change. Fast forward 6-7 years since I first joined, I’m currently in my third and final year of uni and doing Environment & Sustainability - which tells you how much Global Generation affected me. I understand that Global Generation won’t affect everyone the same way it impacted me but I just wanted to thank you all personally for all the love and support you give us, your support really empower young people. Thank you!”

- Cassie, Fellow

By the end of the day, I felt warm, supported and ready for our next adventure. It felt like an honour to be able to bring people together to simply say Thank you. As a charity we so often ask for things, ask for money, ask for materials, ask for donations. This day was not about asking, it was about giving back and sharing our appreciation for all the support we receive.

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Notes from the Garden