20-21 March 2025
Art Research Garden and Art and Ecology Laboratory
The Singing Compost workshop was an occasion for hands-on experimentation in soil microbiology inspired by a citizen-science approach. The aim of such activity was to test and disseminate accessible tools and methods for soil health monitoring and improvement. The active, practice-based nature of the activity also created a different mindset for conversations.
The workshop was an opportunity for discussing priorities, intentions and directions following on the original Singing Compost project, aiming for further development towards a range of practice-based research activities such as workshops, trials, soil testing, publications, community and public-facing events.
It was anticipated that the workshop will yield clear starting points for further collaborative work around soil science and soil health, creative public engagement, and climate action.
Initial research questions included:
- How can an artistic, citizen science-based approach contribute to outputs in soil science and technology?
- How can a citizen science approach to soil microbiological processes allow the development of methods to be applied for art and science projects with an agenda of public engagement on climate action?
- How can the collaborative and relatively low-tech approach practically inform the development of useful tools based on soil health and monitoring for art and science applications?