Barn Conversation: Alice Vincent & Joycelyn Longdon on Listening
Join writer and author Alice Vincent and environmental justice technologist and Phd Joycelyn Longdon for a powerful conversation about how listening shapes their work. They'll explore their latest books: Hark: How Women Listen (Vincent) and Natural Connection (Longdon), digging into the ways listening fosters resilience, empathy, and reconnection.
As part of Barn Conversations: Sowing Knowledge, Growing Change, this session invites reflection on listening not just as an act, but as a radical practice, one that nurtures connection, resilience, and more sustainable futures.
Paperback copies of both books will be available for purchase at a special price.
What to Expect:
6:00 PM – Doors open | Take a stroll down the gardens and find a seat at the Barn.
6:30 PM – Conversation Begins
8:00 PM – Conversation ends | Stay for informal networking and book signing.
8:30 PM – Event ends.
About the speakers:
Alice Vincent
Alice Vincent is a celebrated writer, broadcaster, and multi-platform storyteller fascinated by the often-overlooked layers of life. Her books include the bestselling Why Women Grow: Stories of Soil, Sisterhood and Survival - shortlisted in the 2023 Books Are My Bag Readers Awards - and Rootbound: Rewilding a Life, both longlisted for the Wainwright Prize. A columnist for The Guardian, Alice also writes for Vogue, Financial Times, The Sunday Times, and New Statesman. She hosts the Why Women Grow podcast (which topped the British podcast charts) and In Haste, a platform exploring the creative process in writing.
Her latest book Hark: How Women Listen continues her journey into nature, sound, and connection, reframing motherhood and listening in a noisy world.
https://www.alicevincent.co.uk/ @alicevincentwrites
Joycelyn Longdon
Joycelyn Longdon is an award-winning researcher, designer and writer, bridging the worlds of ecology, technology and environmental justice. Her doctoral research at the University of Cambridge centred on the design of justice-led conservation technologies for monitoring biodiversity, and her work as a storyteller and educator shifts perspectives and practices across conservation, fashion, technology, art and culture. She was the 2022 winner of the Emerging Designer London Design Medal and was featured in British Vogue’s December 2023 ‘Forces for Change’ Issue. Her debut book, Natural Connection: What Indigenous Wisdom and Marginalised People Teach Us About Environmental Action, was published by Penguin in the UK in April 2025 and Princeton University Press in the US in May 2026.
Her book Natural Connection celebrates ancestral wisdom, community-led climate action, and the power of listening across cultures—from the Chipko women of India to grassroots movements globally.
https://www.joycelynlongdon.com/ @joycelynlongdon
About OmVed Gardens:
OmVed Gardens is a garden, exhibition, events, and learning space in North London dedicated to exploring the connections between food, ecology and creativity for health and climate resilience. We are on a mission to inspire ecological awareness and action, and deepen our understanding of interconnectedness with the natural world.
As a registered Community Interest Company, all our activities prioritise social and ecological objectives. Whether collaborating with chefs, creatives, gardeners, or schools, OmVed Gardens is a hub for education, connection, and action. We aim to inspire individuals and communities to reimagine their role in building a healthier, more resilient world.
We work to increase biodiversity - of species, seeds, food systems, and participation, through regenerative gardening, seed saving, habitat creation, and ecological education. Our space serves as a living example of how urban areas can be transformed into thriving ecosystems that support both human and non-human communities.
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www.omvedgardens.com · @omvedgardens
