THE PROGRAMME IS HERE!!
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THE PROGRAMME IS HERE!! ~
OUR PRESENTATIONS
While each venue has a maximum capacity (Alder: 300, Elm: 112), we expect everyone to be able to attend the presentations that they fancy. Ideally, audience members will arrive and take seats before the presentation starts, but it is a relaxed environment - rolling up during an active presentation is allowed! As many activities overlap in the programme, we wanted to give festivalgoers the maximum opportunity to interact with diverse themes and types of knowledge.
❋ Fungal community succession and carbon cycling from heathland to forest habitats ~ led by Louis MielkeThis talk takes aims to take a journey through long-term afforestation experiments in the Grampians, evaluating how soil fungal communities shift under decades of birch and pine planting in heathlands. Utilizing high-throughput DNA metabarcoding, decomposition assays, and soil carbon analyses, we’ll discuss intricate relationships between fungal succession, organic matter turnover, and carbon sequestration.
❋ Shroom Sangs ~ led by Lynne Campbell of the Scottish Mushroom PodcastJoin Lynne for a dive into some of Scotland's mushroom stories, and how Scots language and poetry can enhance our connection with each other and our funga family.
❋ What role can fungiculture play in a movement for agroecology? ~ led by Rhyze Mushrooms CoopJoin Rhyze Mushrooms Co-op for a discussion exploring what role mushroom cultivation could play in building alternative food Systems. We will first define and try understand agroecologu as a movement and framework for sustainable food production and then break out into small groups and explore how mushroom cultivation can fit within and support this framework, in our local contexts.
❋ Exploring the fungi of Edinburgh through time-lapse and macro photography ~ led by Alfred Drummond-HerdmanUsing time-lapses and macro photography, Alfred will showcase many of the beautiful and interesting fungi growing in and around Edinburgh.
❋ Fungal Medicine & Folk Herbalism ~ Johanna Koen (Foraging Gardener) & Sofia CaersSeasoned herbalists Hana and Sofia bring the crowd into the world of applied folk medicine. They offer history on some of the ways fungi have been used in folk medicine and guidance on how to work with them yourself!
❋ Fungi of the Celtic Rainforest ~ led by Daisy YiangouDaisy is a recent Oxford Biology graduate and is currently finishing her MPhil in fungal ecology under the legend that is Professor Lynne Boddy. She is particularly interested in folklore and foraging. Her talk will meander through the wild and weird world of fungi and their role in the Celtic rainforest. In an attempt to convey the importance of mycology education and all this kingdom has to offer, she will bring her own research into fungal communities of the temperate rainforest and present what she has learned so far on her mycological journey.
❋ Cultivating Chaga in Scottish woodlands - exploring the risks and responsibilities of a new frontier in mycoforestry ~ Marco Tenconi (Rhyze Mushrooms Coop) & Mary Silk (Life to Lab)In this session Mary Silk and Marco Tenconi of Rhyze Mushrooms will present their research into the possibilities for the responsible cultivation of the Chaga fungus in Scotland. What ecological risks could this practice pose, can they be mitigated and how do they stack up against ths potential benefits?
❋ Fungi which grow after wildfires + Advanced Microscopy ~ Patrick Hickey, HYPHA Research Ltd.Patrick brings us a talk on imaging fungi at the cellular level using advanced microscopy, showing time lapse and 3D sequences with a particular focus on urban fungi and species which grow after wild fires. HYPHA Research Ltd. is an independent research organisation dedicated to the study of fungal biology and applications in biotechnology.
OUR WORKSHOPS WILL BE FIRST COME, FIRST SERVE!!
They each have varying maximum capacities, so make sure to show up at the correct venue in advance of the start time to secure your spot.
Citizen science, art, fermentation, cultivation — there’s something for everyone!
❋ Fungi & Friends: A Microscopic Soil Safari ~ led by Mary Silk & Jamie Sommerville (Life to Lab)Explore the hidden world beneath our feet using microscopes to discover the fungi, bacteria, protozoa and other tiny organisms living in soil and compost. Learn how these interconnected communities form the soil food web, cycle nutrients and play a vital role in healthy soils, plants and wider ecosystems.
❋ Fungal Lino-printing ~ led by Johana Koen (Foraging Gardener) and Sofia CaersJoin one of the founders of Myceliart - a collective of radical mycology-practicing arts and makers - to create fun prints of funga (and flora and fauna!). This activity is open to all ages and all backgrounds - you do not have to be an artist. We do ask that you bring t-shirts, tote bags, or anything else you’d like to get a print on!
❋ Exploring Lichen: Identification Workshop ~ led by Dylan Stephens and Rebecca YahrJoin Rebecca Yahr (Lichenologist Royal Botanic Gardens, Edinburgh) and Dylan Stephens (PhD student Royal Botanic Gardens, Edinburgh) in the microscopic world of lichens! We will speak about identification, their biology and structures and answer any questions or curiosity you have on the subject.
❋ Fungal Lino-printing ~ led by Johana Koen (Foraging Gardener) and Sofia CaersJoin one of the founders of Myceliart - a collective of radical mycology-practicing arts and makers - to create fun prints of funga (and flora and fauna!). This activity is open to all ages and all backgrounds - you do not have to be an artist. We do ask that you bring t-shirts, tote bags, or anything else you’d like to get a print on!
Queer Flora, Fauna, and Funga is both a book and an ongoing digital publication—an eclectic, transdisciplinary, and versatile conversation. Through art, poetry, scientific and speculative writing, this project asks to expand our knowledge about sexual and gender diversity, and to reconsider our relationships with each other and our more-than-human companions in the natural world. This event will feature three of the creatives involved in the book, as well as the editor: Franky Cannon, Siôn Parkinson, Nina Scott, and Johanna Koen. Expect queer fungal philosophies, visuals, ideas, and smells in this performance and conversation.
❋ Queer Flora, Fauna, and Funga: Multidisciplinary fungal performance ~ Franky Cannon, Siôn Parkinson, Nina Scott, and Johanna Koen❋ Nukazuke Fermentation ~ led by Edinburgh Fermentarium's Ruth MunroLearn how to harness the magical powers of fungi to make this traditional Japanese preserved food, made by fermenting vegetables in rice bran!
❋ EMF Vision ~ led by Ollie HallDive into the underground, put your EMF glasses on and see what ectomycorrhizal fungi (EMF) are really up to by observing the great morphological variations of the 'harting net' which encases its plant host in a symbiotic squeeze. In this short workshop we will be cleaning, viewing (under a dissection microscope), and identifying features (and potentially genera) of EMF harting nets.
❋ Exploring Mycelium Materials ~ led by Lasse MelgaardMycelium materials is one of the future materials from which so much of the built environment will be made of. Biodegradable and sturdy, the opportunities of using mycelium to create are ever expanding. In this session, we will make household objects using mycelium and discuss the opportunities and challenges of working with living materials.
❋ Radical Mycology Zine-Making ~ led by Johana Koen (Foraging Gardener) and Sofia CaersJoin the duo for a second weekend workshop after their fabulous presentation on Folk Herbalism and Fungal Medicine! Reflect on the stories they tell by telling your own in the form of a zine - a small, handmade artbook/magazine. Materials are provided, and no arts and crafts experience needed!
❋ Little Red Forager’s Fire Cider Workshop ~ L.R.F.Come join Little Red Forager to make the best kind of health tonic around! With apple cider vinegar, onions, garlic, honey, chillis, cloves, elderberries, and a few other magic incredients (including the fungi present in the fermentation process!), you can take home some Fire Cider just in time for peak cold & flu season. Heal your gut with the power of fungi and foraged plants!
❋ Mushroom Cultivation ~ led by Mycobee MushroomsJoin Edinburgh mushroom cultivation and community education staples, Mycobee Mushrooms, for an hour’s crash course on mushroom cultivation!
❋ Mycelial Futures ~ led by Hopepunk Arts CollectiveTime travel with fungi in a creative workshop, following mycelial threads into a symbiotic, regenerative, collective future - where things are getting better. We'll be using words, drawing, and collage to report on what we find; no artistic experience needed, all ages welcome!
OUR FORAYS WILL BE FIRST COME, FIRST SERVE!!
Like the workshops, they each have varying maximum capacities, so make sure to show up at the correct venue (*details to be announced for each foray both here and on social media*) in advance of the start time to secure your spot. Forays are open to all ages and we will specify which routes each will take. Certain forays will traverse more paved, accessible routes than others - stay tuned!
Lichen Foray - Hermitage of Braid
led by Edinburgh and Lothian Lichen Enthusiasts (ELLEN)
Beginner-friendly Intro to Fungi Foraging - meet in front of the Nucleus, foray in King’s Buildings
led by Edinburgh and Lothian Fungus Enthusiasts (ELFE)
Children’s and Family Foray - meet in front of the Nucleus
led by Mycobee Mushrooms
Photography and Citizen Science (iNaturalist) Foray - meet in front of the Nucleus
led by Darren Gordon