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Living Worlds Big Saturday and Conservation and Sustainability talk

04 May 2011

On Saturday 7 May at The Manchester Museum

Big Saturday
Saturday 7 May / 11am-4pm
Living Worlds

From minibeasts like worms and beetles to nature's giants such as whales and polar bears, our world is home to an amazing array of creatures (including humans). Come and celebrate the opening of our new Living Worlds gallery, which explores the connections between all living things, including us, and shows how we can all shape the future by the choices we make. You can also get your hands dirty in the allotment outside the Museum.

  • 11am-4pm: Seed sowing
    Plant your own seeds, take them home and watch them grow.
    Drop-in, free, all ages
  • 11am-4pm: Living worlds activities
    Decorate your seed pot, meet the Manchester Geological Association, see objects not on display in Living Worlds, watch BBC films and the film HOME.
    Drop-in, free, all ages
  • 11am-4pm: RSPB peregrine project
    Find out about the Manchester peregrine project.
    Book on the day, free, 8+
  • 12-1pm: Family Friendly Film screening
    Watch short animated films about bugs and insects, including How dinosaurs eat their food and T is for Terrible.
    Book on the day, free, under 7s and their families/carers
  • 1-2pm: Waste makes music
    Claudio Kron do Brazil, a percussionist from Bahia, developed his interest in music as an adolescent in Bahia. His love of nature made him look at preserving the world with a spirit of celebration, using re-usable waste to create instruments to make music. Claudio says, “Mother earth is in pain. If we don't look after our mother we are not great sons!!“
    Bring any waste material which can be reused to make music. Ideas include anything that can be used to make a sound, noise, rattle etc – eg old pots, pans, computer keyboards, tins, beads, yogurt, pots, seeds, any organic or man-made objects. Part of the Cultural Collage World Music Festival.
    Book on the day, free, 8+
  • 2-3pm: Conservation and sustainability – Paradise Lost
    What impact did the use of early stone tool technology have on how people lived their lives? What can we learn today about the balance between nature and technology from the past? Join Matthew Cobb, from The University of Manchester, in this first talk in our Conservation and Sustainability series.
    Book on 0161 275 2648, free, adults and older children

Conservation and sustainability talks
Every Saturday between Saturday 7 May and Saturday 11 June

Did pre-historic hunters live in balance with nature or over exploit their resources? How can we make sure our current food resources, such as fishing, are harvested sustainably? Join museum and university experts along with 6 objects from the Museum’s collection to explore the history of sustainability and how we might become more sustainable.

  • Saturday 7 May / 2-3pm: Paradise Lost?
    What impact did the use of early stone tool technology have on how people lived their lives? What can we learn today about the balance between nature and technology from the past? With Matthew Cobb, The University of Manchester.
  • Saturday 14 May / 2-3pm: This Island Earth
    Did the people of Easter Island cause the depletion of their island’s resources or was it the impact of contact with European society? Does the Easter Island story act as a metaphor for today’s world population and resources? Anthropologist Colin Richards, from The University of Manchester will debate these issues.
  • Saturday 21 May / 2-3pm: Plenty more fish in the sea?
    Are fish a sustainable food source or do we face empty oceans? Join geneticist Niklas Tysklind, Bangor University in a discussion on the relationship between people and the sea.
  • Saturday 28 May / 2-3pm: Fencing off nature?
    Yellowstone Park was created in 1872 as a public monument “for the benefit and enjoyment of the people”. Join George Holmes, Leeds University in a discussion about how ‘natural’ is nature.
  • Saturday 4 June / 2-3pm: The bread of the Tropics
    Originally native to South America, Manioc is now a staple in the entire tropics. Film-maker and photographer duo Ali and Sumiko Anzai-May, will talk about the history of how humans have used plants for their own use, and what impact that has had on the natural world.
  • Saturday 11 June / 2-3pm: Spending to save
    What do we know about the current balance between economy and nature? Johan Oldekop, The University of Manchester, will discuss the interaction between money and credit as we struggle to protect biodiversity.

Book on 0161 275 2648, free, adults and older children.

To find out more: