Inspiration Case 10: Temporary Street Party Events

INSPIRATION CASE 10: TEMPORARY STREET PARTY EVENTS

General Information Temporary street party events like The Big Lunch are easy to set up and aim on celebrating communities and neighbourhoods in their public spaces. The main idea is to stroke the ‘human warming’ effect, that neighbours start to talk regardless of background or age and enhance community spirit.

Inspiration & Parametres for change a) binded, healthier and safer communities

Like tree planting events described in our inspiration case TreePeople, so do street party events also provide an opportunity for community involvement that improves the quality of life in neighbourhoods. One might think a street party is the last thing to tackle crime, domestic violence, homelessness or children in poverty. But the opposite is the case as people realise which issues their neighbours are facing whom they might have never talked to before.

© Clear Village 2011

b) opposing social isolation

Many people in the world live lonely lives, and street parties can be a great excuse to get out. Neighbours can meet those people who they share a street, road or estate with; can listen to their story, learn about their skills and interests. This can either be the beginning of new friendships, work relationships or the birth of local community services ideas.

Information and pictures sourced from http://www.thebiglunch.com | DCLG | http://www.flickr.com/photos/foodstories | http-//www.flickr.com/photos/dickdotcom. All rights reserved by The Big Lunch and the Eden Project.

INSPIRATION CASE 10: TEMPORARY STREET PARTY EVENTS Our inspiring example: THE BIG LUNCH, UK

© Clear Village 2011

The Big Lunch is a simple idea from the people of the Eden Project. The aim is to get as many people in the UK as possible to have lunch with their neighbours once a year on a fixed date. In summer 2010, more than one million people took part in the Big Lunch events all over the British Islands, and there are even more people expected in the upcoming events.

How does The Big Lunch work in detail?

The Big Lunch is based, as the Eden Project people state, on a belief that the world can be a better place through people working together; be it with nature, optimism or simply by common sense. The most important thing to meet new people is a big portion of fun with one’s neighbours on one day in the summer, aiming on building new friendships and get out of social isolation.

There are only a few steps to organise a Big Lunch event, which are quite simple: • Find out who wants to come and get involved • Settle on a venue: a street, an estate, a garden, community centre, a school...

• Invite your neighbours and tell them more about the event • Close your road (if you want to) & get permissions • Make the Big Lunch safe & get a license if required • Most importantly: Make your Big Lunch fun!

The Big Lunch can even be utilised as a fundraising event for local charities.

What does this mean for the local community?

The most important benefit of Big Lunch events is the ‘human warming’ phenomenon. People from different generations and backgrounds, who did not even recognised themselves as neighbours, come together, hear each other out, share stories, skills, tools and interests.

This enables to stoke up the community spirit; make people closer, friendlier and happier by conquering their natural shyness; initiates positive and lasting change of a neighbourhood by discovering a common sense and opposing the NIMBY (Not In My Back Yard) phenomenon. People start talking to each other, regardless of their age, class, faith, race, sexuality or whatsoever.

Information and pictures sourced from http://www.thebiglunch.com | DCLG | http://www.flickr.com/photos/foodstories | http-//www.flickr.com/photos/dickdotcom. All rights reserved by The Big Lunch and the Eden Project.