Adults of all ages join us for this fun event, time-travelling to reimagine the future of your coastal town.
Change is on the horizon – whether you live in, work in, visit, or simply love your coastal town come be part of the journey in Felixstowe and Lowestoft, and Newhaven. Help decide what matters most and shape the future.
⏰We start by adding events of historic or personal significance to a timeline of your coastal town since 1875.
🙋♂️You choose your time-travelling characters. Will you start as a young person, or an elder? What does your character care about?
✨Then we will travel all the way to 2075, 50 years into the future!
FREE snacks and refreshments will be provided!
✅Booking essential
⚡Get FREE tickets now for you and your friends
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🎟️ FELIXSTOWE Get your tickets!
Friday 16 May, 6.30-9.00 pm
Venue Furtherfield at the Lawn Tennis Club, Felixstowe IP11 7JN
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🎟️LOWESTOFT Get your tickets!
Saturday 17 May, 10.30 am-1.00 pm
Venue First Light Festival at The Battery, Suffolk, NR32 1LZ
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🎟️NEWHAVEN Get your tickets!
10.30 am-1.00pm Saturday 31 May
Venue Hospitable Environment at Marine Workshops Newhaven, BN9 0ER
More info
This event is part of a research project on the effect of immersive experiences. A researcher will be there to observe the event. Although the researcher will not be observing individuals, there is an opportunity on the day for you to decide if you wish to be part of the research or not. If you would like to know more about the research project before the event, please email Professor Ann Light at the University of Sussex (ann.light@sussex.ac.uk) and she will send you an information sheet.
⁉️Got any other questions email info@furtherfield.org
This event has been created by Ruth Catlow and Ann Light, in collaboration with many creative practitioners and lovers of Felixstowe, and is the first in the Reimagine This Coastal Town series led by Furtherfield. Find out more here.
This work was made possible by funding and support from The University of Sussex, Arts Council England, and Suffolk Cultural Fund and the funding of Ann Light’s fellowship by the UKRI’s Arts and Humanities Research Council (grant no.AH/Y003330/1).
Hero image by Furtherfield. With photo by John Fielding, licensed under a Creative Commons CC BY 2.0 license
Furtherfield is the UK’s longest-running centre for art and technology. For over 25 years, through nearly 70 exhibitions, and over 125 national/international partnerships, we have developed alternative systems of co-creation and co-organisation across digital and physical networks.
We envision a world where diverse communities act together creatively to imagine and build more equitable and resilient alternatives together.
Imagining the possible futures of the places we care about is the first step to forging the futures we want. In 2024, following extensive research, dialogue, and collaboration with local and regional communities, Furtherfield relocated from London’s Finsbury Park to Felixstowe, East Suffolk. As an Arts Council England National Portfolio Organisation, Furtherfield is expanding its mission to organise for place-based community-led imagination, inclusivity, and equity in art and technology, advocating for their use in shaping positive eco-social change.
We are therefore looking to recruit advisory board members who share our vision, with one or more of the following areas of expertise:
We are keen to hear from anyone who feels they can offer these skills and/or can open up valuable connections to community groups, partners and cultural networks. At Furtherfield we want our board to reflect both existing and new communities in the Felixstowe Peninsula. We especially welcome individuals aged 18-30, those from lower socio-economic backgrounds, LGBTQIA+ individuals, and those with Black, Asian, or Global Ethnic Majority heritage. Your voice can help shape the cultural and social landscape here.
For details about the role and application process download Advisory Board Recruitment Pack | Large Text Version.
Application deadline: Open
Prospective applicants are welcome to contact the Artistic Director for an informal conversation. Please make contact first by email to Ale, the Administrator, to arrange a telephone call – info@furtherfield.org
Working with local and international partners we are creating a vibrant hub for eco-social cultural engagement in Felixstowe.
Through creative labs, youth co-production, exhibitions, and networking events, and building empathy through Live Action Role-Play (LARP), we inspire collective environmental and social transformation—helping communities imagine and forge the futures they want.
This Coastal Town Reimagined – 200 Years of Change. Watch a video on our arts-research work exploring community hopes for Felixstowe and the region.
With a rich history of co-creation and open tools, Furtherfield continues to foster peer-to-peer artistic collaboration. Our legacy programme ensures access to our archives, publications, and debates, preserving 30 years of pioneering work for artists, researchers, and future generations.
Research shows that young people worldwide are deeply concerned about the climate crisis and biodiversity loss. As the generation that will be most affected, they have the power to drive change—spreading new habits, attitudes, and technologies. However, they also face significant barriers to meaningful action.
What is Felixstowe Youth VOICE?
Felixstowe Youth VOICE is a series of creative workshops co-produced by Furtherfield and young people (18-30 years) from the Felixstowe Peninsula. Through art, storytelling, and collaboration, we explore how creative practices can empower young people to lead positive eco-social change and contribute to the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
In these workshops, we:
🐝 Step into the worlds of local species through experimental role-play, discovering what truly matters to them.
⚖️ Unpack the justice issues behind the Earth crisis, from climate collapse to species extinction.
🌾 Turn insight into action, exploring meaningful ways to create change—for ourselves and the ecosystems we depend on.
Together, we aim to
🧭 Explore artistic methods and creative ways of taking environmental action.
🤝 Come together as a community to shape a better future.
📣 Make sure young voices are heard and take an active role in decisions that impact our planet.
💡 Empower young people to improve and create real change in the places they love.
We have been exploring how artistic methods developed by artists in Furtherfield’s community can support environmental actoin:
Multispecies role-play was developed with artists, biodiversity experts and park lovers as part of the 5 year project, The Treaty of Finsbury Park. The Hologram, is a feminist peer-to-peer healthcare system, that was initially developed by artist Cassie Thornton at Furtherfield and is now practiced by thousands of people around the world.
Organising Team: Courtney Hessey, James Garden, Lauren Bruen, and Ruth Catlow
Co-production Team: Alexander Fotheringham, Cameron Sawyer, Jamie Lea , Katie Clark, Luke Winston, and Mark Richards
Film, animation and illustration by James Garden
Photography by Chris Clayton
Part of a European Research Initiative
Felixstowe Youth VOICE is part of VOICE a European research project examining how artist-led innovation and citizen engagement can help achieve the UN SDGs. In Summer 2025, the team will showcase creative media, tools, and learnings in an exhibition in Felixstowe.
Partners & Support
Special thanks to Laura Locke at the Felixstowe Wellbeing Hub, and Level 2 Youth Projects, Felixstowe for their partnership.
This work was realised within the framework of the VOICE project at Waag Futurelab with support from the Horizon Programme of the European Union.
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