Inspirational textiles that raise awareness of climate change to go on display at University of Salford

The pieces of artwork are from the Loving Earth Project and are crafted by people from across the world, with each panel representing a place, person or thing that is loved, is being affected by climate change and what people are doing to address it.

The exhibition, which was part of the cultural events for the COP26 global climate change summit in Glasgow, is currently on an international tour and will be on display on the ground floor of the University’s MediaCity campus from Monday 13 March until Friday 24 March.

Over 400 panels have been made for the project in total depicting images of polar bears, bees, flowers and sea creatures caught in plastic in the ocean. Each piece of artwork is accompanied by a short text from its maker, explaining its design.

Marta Strzelecka, Sustainability Engagement Officer at the University said: “At Salford, we aim to embed sustainability in all aspects of our university. Community engagement – such as temporarily hosting these panels – is a crucial part of this. This project is a celebration of people, places and things that are important to us, while raising awareness of environmental issues which could put them at risk.

“It is an excellent opportunity for Salford students, staff and the local community to learn about these issues in a creative, engaging way which can leave them feeling hopeful, inspired and ready to take action.”

The project is being brought to Salford by the University’s Associate Quaker Chaplain, Sandra Dutson with a digital display also set to be present to help showcase some of the other hundreds of panels that have been created to date.

Sandra added: “This project, started in 2019, has now inspired hundreds of people in the UK and elsewhere to make panels or view them. It really does help us to engage with so many environmental crises without being overwhelmed. The designs have been inspired and created for the sake of what we love. Making or viewing them means we take time to reflect more deeply, learn about the issues and focus on them in a creative way so we go on to take action and help.”

A free panel-making workshop will take place at the exhibition on Wednesday 15 March from 2pm until 5pm. You can reserve a spot at the workshop online.

For those unable to make the exhibition in person, the panels can also be viewed online.