October 11  |  11AM-5PM

Our August Retreat was a great success, so we’re tempting fate and doing it again in October.

If the weather is good, we will spend a day under resplendent Autumnal trees.

If it is not good, we will postpone the retreat and instead ‘hang out at the Southbank’.

We will make the call the day before, based on the weather forecast. We will notify everyone by email and also put a post up here.

If you weren’t there last time, here are some pictures of the August Retreat:

Click on the image below to see the full carousel :-)

We believe that humans are:

  • naturally creative

  • naturally social

  • naturally connected with nature.

But modern life squeezes our creativity, our time together, and our time outside.

We want to make space (physically, temporally, and economically) for people to come together, be creative, and connect with nature.

We’re aiming for a balance of organised activities and time to ‘hang out’, reflect, and relax. So there will be lots of opportunities to join in with activities, but never any pressure. 

❋  Relaxed Structure

Lots of you have reached out to say you’d be up for helping out with the day and the clean up. This is exactly the spirit we were hoping for :-) teamwork, collective effort, and connection through shared effort. 

❋ Collaborative Energy
❋ Amateur Facilitation & Amateur Participation

We are proudly ‘giving it a go’, as both facilitators and participants. There is no pressure to be ‘good’. Come as you are :-)

(A little aside: “Amateur” comes from the Latin ‘amare’, to love. To be an amateur rather than a professional means to do something for love, rather than for money.)

Many of the workshops are creative, and alongside them we’ll have a series of opportunities for creative co-production.

❋ A Creative Space
The rough

Feel free to drop in and out as you like. We may make some changes to the schedule as we go.

Arrival

11:00-11:30

SLOW TEiP 1

11:30-12:00

1st Activity Slot (50mins)

12:00-12:50

Lunch (with SLOW TEiP 2)

1:00-2:00

3rd Activity Slot (50mins)
2nd Activity Slot (80mins)

2:30-3:50

4:00-4:50

Closing & SLOW TEiP 3 (for the road/ afterparty)

5:00

  • One thought experiment with several ‘checkpoints’, to slowly unfold and provoke conversation throughout the day.

  • 30 minute session - mindful breathing, meditation, & reflection

  • Spend time noticing the nature around us. A practice of slowing down.

  • Standing yoga that you can do anywhere! No need for a mat or ‘yoga clothes’.

  • Design in the forest.

  • And the ground trembled

  • Throwing sounds, be some cheese, and get ready to interview an expert on TV

  • Tell the story of you in three Tarot cards: you right now, future you, and your hidden magic/ superpower.

    No Tarot skills required: just curiosity, imagination and a willingness to let the cards surprise you. Come shuffle, pick and play, and leave with a groovy little snapshot of the wonderfully weird and magical person that is you.

  • Go on a pro-social litter picking adventure with a buddy and help us to leave the forest better than we found it.

  • An inclusive introduction to Cuban Salsa. The goal is to give people the keys (basic steps) to enjoy social street dance salsa. Everyone welcome, no prior dancing experience necessary :-)

  • Depending on who arrives on the day, we could have a range of pop up experiences including: boardgames, origami, meditation, bodyweight workout, mindful walk, face-painting. Lets see what happens :-)

There are a few more still to be added.

  • JOTTIE

    MEDITATION & BREATHWORK

    Jottie is curious about understanding why we as humans do the things we do and think the things we think.

    Jottie is a breathwork, meditation and mindfulness practitioner and approaches self-awareness from philosophical and scientific lenses. He is passionate about exploring the complexities of our inner landscape, and believes in the power of awareness, thoughts and perspective.

    He loves nature, dancing, driving, photography, being active, loves being involved in social acitivities and cares about community and connection.

    Building presence everyday, training to be a life coach and thinking to meditate with others more!

    “Quiet the mind, Open the heart”

    — Ram Dass

  • SABRINA

    IMPROV

    Sabrina started doing improv after getting feedback at work she needed to be better at dealing with ambiguity. So she booked onto the most ambiguous hobby she could find where she wouldn’t know what the audience would say, or her teammates would do. Ten years on she is a regular performer and teacher at London’s biggest improv school - and much better at ambiguity!

  • ANDY

    POETRY & IMPROV

    Andy is drawn to creativity, play and the slightly unexpected. He loves poetry and improv, and is interested in the ways that play, embodiment, imagination and experimentation can help us see and feel familiar things differently.

    He loves any opportunity to be a big kid and invite other people do the same.

    When he isn't using his playful side Andy likes to think deeply to understand the world more and it is this which drew him to TEIP. He likes spaces where people can be curious, try ideas out and learn from each other.

    These interests inform his work. Andy runs Citizenry, a consultancy which aims to build the capability of government to serve its citizens more effectively through consultancy and skills based training. A big part of that work is creating the space for public servants to think differently, question assumptions and find more imaginative ways to tackle difficult problems.

  • ALEX

    CREATIVE IMAGERY

    Alex is a London-based graphic and motion designer with a curiosity about how we communicate, interpret and make sense of the world around us. He believes that using a creative mindset, we can learn to question assumptions, challenge our usual ways of thinking and look at familiar things from a different perspective.

    For Alex, creativity is not limited to making things. It is a way of thinking, exploring ideas and finding connections that might otherwise go unnoticed.

    Outside of design, Alex enjoys gaming, reading, learning guitar and generally falling down interesting rabbit holes.

  • BONNY

    TEiP

    Bonny is the founder of TEiP (THOUGHT EXPERIMENTS IN PUBLIC) and general gathering enthusiast.

    She is inspired by peer-support networks, grassroots movements, and the many wonderful humans she meets at events.

    She also loves hanging out.

  • WILL

    WILL

    SALSA

    Will is a recording artist and a salsa dancer. Salsa has changed his life and he now shares it with others by teaching beginners the ‘keys to the street social dance’. 

    Will teaches on Fridays at the Southbank. He also offers private classes. You can see him dance and get in touch on Instagram @Wilfried2xm

  • JOYA

    DREAM INTERPRETATION & TAROT

    I’m Joya and I am a coach, astrologer, Tarot reader, dream interpreter and lover of symbols. I’ve written books on astro coaching and dream coaching, taught groovy workshops on astrology, dreams and Tarot, and I love sharing what I know in a simple, fun and whimsical way.

    Website: groovyworkshops.com

    Instagram: @groovy_workshops

  • FOREST GUARDIANS

    FOREST GUARDIANS

    LOOKING AFTER THE HOME BASE

    Some of the forest guardians are pictured above: Hamza, Neil, Bonny, & Hana.

    Others will be identifiable by butterflies and TEiP patches on the day.

    They will be there to welcome, introduce, timekeep, and hang out.

    Hana is the forest fairy in chief and the one to look out for upon arrival :-)

  • MARY

    BREATHWORK & COACHING

    Mary is a marketing professional by day and a life coach, breathwork facilitator in training and someone deeply passionate about somatic healing by passion. She’s curious about the connection between mind, body and behaviour and loves creating spaces where people can reconnect, explore and discover new ways of being. These interests inspire her work both professionally and through her passion projects.

ESSENTIAL

  • Water - recommended 2L

    (there is a water refill point on the way from Chingford Overground Station to Epping Forest)

  • Something to sit on

    (plastic bag, rug, chair, etc.)

  • Layers - it can be very cool in the forest even on a hot day.

  • Rain protection

    (jacket, umbrella, etc.)

  • Snacks to keep you going

OPTIONAL

  • Pen and paper

  • Your own packed lunch OR…

  • Join in with the co-created salad

    • Salad contribution: leaves, cheese, tomatoes, cucumber &

    • Something to eat out of: e.g. tupperware, bowl from home

    • Something to eat with: fork/spoon

    • We will have a large bowl to make the salad in and a knife and chopping board.

  • If you’re planning to go on adventures through the undergrowth, it’s worth considering wearing long sleeves/trousers as there are deer in Epping Forest and ticks have been spotted.

You can read last time’s THOUGHT EXPERIMENTs here:

THOUGHT EXPERIMENTS

  • "Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished."

    — Lao Tzu

  • "Live in each season as it passes; breathe the air, drink the drink, taste the fruit, and resign yourself to the influence of the earth."

    — Henry David Thoreau

  • "The butterfly counts not months but moments, and has time enough."

    — Rabindranath Tagore

  • "Slow is smooth. Smooth is fast."

    — Navy SEALS

  • "Adopt the pace of nature. Her secret is patience."

    — Ralph Waldo Emerson

Here is a Google Maps dropped pin.

Or you can click on the image below for the what3words link.

Step by step directions from Chingford Overground Station here.