About this Event
For the Land of Wood and Water
XAYMACA
Gathering to Galvanise
Join us at Reference Point for an evening of film, sound performance and conversation to continue fundraising efforts in support of island communities on the frontlines of the climate crisis, more recently affected by the severe devastation of Hurricane Melissa.
Hurricane season is getting worse and occurring earlier in the year across the Caribbean. With it, small islands become more vulnerable, ecological systems grow weaker and communities struggle to recover with these annual events. Hurricane Beryl (Jamaica early 2024) was the earliest category 5 hurricane on record in a century. Its power and destruction tore through Jamaica. Hurricane Melissa (October 2025) caused catastrophic damage to Cuba’s, Haiti’s and Jamaica’s social infrastructure, leaving weak and in some places non-existent, medical, educational and social systems that those nations rely on to survive. Akin to this, its impact on ecological territories and wildlife will take years to recover.
The Slow Grind as a Research and Publishing project has been focused on raising the alarm of climate injustice, ecological breakdown and the role of intersectional environmentalism and continues to, through research and open-education models. We want to continue to hold hope for a collective future that safeguards the botanical, communal and land cultures of Caribbean peoples, and direct our work towards this.
All ticket sales will go towards selected bodies to help deliver direct relief and support of resilience initiatives in and for Jamaica, as well as to develop education and conservation modes to support land and cultural sovereignty.
Runnings:
7pm - Doors
7.30pm - Film Screenings:
Grassroots: Legacies of Jamaican Women’s Artivism (by Jamaica Based Feminist Collective, Groundings with My Sisters)
A River Holds a Perfect Memory (dir. Hope Pearl Strickland)
from the forest to the concrete (to the forest) (by Alberta Whittle)
8.30pm - Resolve in conversation with Island City Labs (Jamaica Based network of Civic Thinkers)
8:50pm - Conversation: Georgina Johnson (The Slow Grind), Akil Scafe-Smith (Resolve) and Earth Tenders
9.45pm - Sound Performance by Shenece Oretha
Contributors:
Georgina Johnson is the artist, writer and intersectional environmentalist behind The Slow Grind; a research, publishing and curatorial project. Johnson believes in art and culture as realms where we can apply imagination and joy towards the cultivation of symbiotic relationships between people, planet and community (human + nonhuman). Her hybrid practice has resulted notably in the successful independent publication of two books: The Slow Grind: Finding Our Way Back to Creative Balance (2020) & The Slow Grind: Practising Hope and Imagination (2023).
Shenece Oretha (b. Montserrat) is a multidisciplinary artist currently listening from London. Her practice is invested in the mobilising potential of sound enacted through her sound sculptures, multi-channel installations, poetry, workshops and print.
RESOLVE is an interdisciplinary design collective that combines architecture, engineering, technology and art to address social challenges. They have delivered numerous projects, workshops, publications, and talks in the UK and across the world, all of which look toward realising just and equitable change in our built environment
Earth Tenders is a Black-led organisation committed to strengthening local food systems and community health for the long term.
At the core of their work is a deep celebration of land practices, traditional knowledge systems and relationships with the earth. We believe that reconnecting with the land is an act of resistance, healing and self-determination.
Island City Labs, Based in Kingston Jamaica, is a network of civic thinkers responding to the critical urban issues that affect island cities. We understand that our cities face unique challenges and require specific, context-driven solutions. We are mobilizing a network of lived and learned expertise across silos to confront these challenges.
Fundraising focus:
Jamaican Basic (Primary) School Foundation: A 30 year old organisation based in The Jamaica High Commission office in London, that supports the direct building and development of primary schools across every parish in Jamaica.
Jabbem: Coastal rights grassroots activist group, fighting to overturn colonial era laws that stop Jamaicans from accessing beaches, fishermen from working and coastal communities from being displaced.
GirlsCARE JA (Climate Action for Resilience & Empowerment): A Feminist climate justice movement that aims to create a space for alliance building and advocacy for gender justice in climate action. Through their Lend a Girl a Hand initiative, they are working to deliver relief and support to young girls and women affected by Hurricane Melissa in Jamaica.
The Slow Grind: A percentage of the funds will be allocated to continuing research, education and publishing efforts on the impacts of the climate crisis on Caribbean nations
Event Venue & Nearby Stays
Reference Point, 2 Arundel Street, London, United Kingdom
GBP 11.55 to GBP 44.04
