Skill Share
Our skill share sessions take inspiration from other movements that have engaged with craft and land skills as a touchstone for sustainability, environmental stewardship, reconnection to place, and community wellbeing. These hands-on sessions will teach off-grid living, homesteading, and survival skills, combined with discussions about the role of traditional skills and crafts in post-growth, post-industrial, relocalised economies.
This workshop aims to teach four cleaning-product recipes that are effective, environmentally friendly, and economical. The recipes include one disinfecting cleaner, one multipurpose cleaner, a glass cleaner, and a scrubbing paste. The workshop will discuss the advantages and precautions, teach the recipes, and enable sharing of experiences.
Hosted through the University of Waterloo, the Land Skills for Wellness and Sustainability (LSWS) initiative builds on evidence that attitudes towards sustainability can be improved by cultivating connections to land, place, and community, and replacing the tendency towards material consumption with mindful experiences. There is also a growing body of research that links the practice of craft and skills to improved personal wellness and mental health. The LSWS initiative connects students, faculty, and staff to build new relationships with the land, natural materials, and community. In this session, conference participants can learn more about the project, meet some of the makers, and try their hand at their skills and crafts–such as spooncarving, basket and nature weaving, and herbal tea making (see below for more details on the various presenters).
