Join us for Beth Nawr? Festival on Saturday 5th July 2025 in Talgarth, Wales.
About the Festival
A micro-festival nestled in the hills of Bannau Brycheiniog, hosted by Black Mountains College. Unlock your capacity to create a future in which people and the planet can thrive.
Our planet is in crisis. Our way of life is increasingly unsustainable and unequal. Meanwhile, there is no shortage of ideas and models for solutions and alternatives to turn things around. Yet, actual application of these ideas is painfully slow.
So, we are asking, Beth Nawr? (Now What? in Welsh).
This festival brings together community builders and activists, farmers, artists, politicians, food leaders and many more all pioneering practical systems change across the UK and internationally.
Through a day of interactive sessions, explore how they are doing it and how you too can help leverage change in small and big ways to build a more just and regenerative society.
Join our Beth Nawr? WhatsApp Community group to get festival updates and connect with BMC team and attendees.
Programme
On Saturday the workshop programme runs 9.30am – 7pm. There will be four workshop slots, with 2-3 parallel sessions each. In the evening there will be live music at Trigg’s Cafe and an informal campfire social. On Sunday morning we will gather for a walk to explore the BMC farm campus and local landscape, deepen connections we’ve made, and continue conversations we’ve started.
Spaces on the workshops are limited. For more information on each session and to reserve your place follow the link to the booking page. Each workshop is ticketed at £10. Be careful to book one workshop per timeslot. All venues are in Talgarth and within short walking distance.
Morning Sessions: 9:30 – 11:30
- Workshop 1: How to reimagine our relationship to plants beyond the narrative of invasion
Tsitsi Mareika Chirikure – Radical Ecology - Workshop 2: How to take back control; land, power and community
Chris Blake – The Green Valleys
Noon Sessions: 12:00 – 14:00
- Workshop 3: How to start local, future-proof economies and industries
Stephen Davies – Social Designs - Workshop 4: How to protect our forests
Lina Brunelius – Protect the Forest Sweden and Greta Thunberg Foundation.
And Gabriel Paun – Champion of the Earth
Afternoon Sessions: 14:30 – 16:30
- Workshop 5: How to centre future generations; lessons from Wales
Jane Davidson – #futuregen: Lessons from a Small Country - Workshop 6: How to build community learning infrastructures for just transitions
Daniel Blyden and Emily Churchill-Zaara – CIVIC SQUARE - Workshop 7: How to grow food systems for your community
Ali Taherzadeh – Splo-down Food Coop and Teasel Coop
Sanab Hersi – Green Soul
Evening Sessions: 17:00 – 19:00
- Workshop 8: How to reimagine fair food systems for rural communities in Powys
Chloe Masefield – Bwyd Powys Food
Carwyn Graves – Cegin y Pobl. - Workshop 9: How to protect our rivers
Nicola Cutcher – Rivercide and Friends of the River Wye
Paul Powlesland – Lawyers for Nature - Workshop 10: How to create education that teaches people to change systems
Andre Pusey, BMC Degree Lead.
BMC Student Society.
Natalia Eernstman, HE lecturer and creative practice lead.
There will be ongoing free demonstrations and drop-in workshops organised by BMC students throughout the day.
Live Music: 20:00 – 22:00
Hawk Howard and Michael from Caution Horses
An alternative bluegrass band playing ‘Jazzgrass’, Bluegrass and old-time tunes
Travel
We encourage travelling by foot, bike and public transport where possible. The nearest train stations are Abergavenny and Hereford – there is a public bus from Hereford to Talgarth. For those arriving to Abergavenny, we will run a minibus pick up between the train station and Talgarth – see times below.
The T14 bus runs between Talgarth, Brecon and Hereford train station five times a day, timetable here: https://traws.cymru/en/services/SSWL/T14
If you are driving, consider carpooling with other festival guests. Parking is available in the Talgarth Car Park and there are limited spaces outside Unit 5 at the Business Park.
Minibus Times
Friday:
18:00 – Abergavenny Train Station -> Talgarth (30 mins)
Saturday:
8:45 – Abergavenny Train Station -> Talgarth
11:00 – Abergavenny Train Station -> Talgarth
19:30 – Talgarth -> Abergavenny Train Station
Sunday:
13:00 – Talgarth -> Abergavenny Train Station
Accommodation
Camping
For the weekend, we are collaborating with Lower Porthamel Camping, to provide a beautiful, tranquil place for you to spend the night. The campsite is located 1.5 miles down the road from Talgarth on an organic orchard, so you will sleep between the very apple trees that make the cider in the onsite tap room. As part of a Dark Skies Area in the UK, you can camp under starry skies if we are lucky enough to have a clear night!
For those travelling from further afield, you may want to book both Friday and Saturday nights to make the most of the day. We recommend booking soon before pitches sell out:
Non-Camping Accommodation
- The New Gurka Inn
- The Castle Inn
- Dinas bunk house
- The Red Lion Llangors
Food + Drink
We’ll have a street food van serving all day from the Unit 5 Garden so you can grab something delicious between workshops and refreshments will be available in each venue. Sobremesa Drinks will be supplying locally pressed apple juice, natural cider and farmhouse beers from their pop-up bar – you can also enjoy a drink from their Tap Room in the evening located on the Lower Porthamel campsite.
There is also an abundance of local, independent eateries in the area to choose from. Here are a few recommendations where you can find a tasty breakfast, lunch or dinner:
- Trigg’s at the Mill (cafe with locally sourced ingredients)
- Pobl Bakery (fresh bread, pastries and savouries)
- Claire’s Wholefoods (fresh produce, snacks and drinks)
- The Deli Pot (fresh sandwiches, cheese, meat and savouries)
- Honey Cafe (Mexican inspired food and local honey)
- Parry’s Ice-cream (gelato and milkshakes)
- The New Gurka Inn (Nepalese cuisine)
Tickets
Each workshop is ticketed at £10. Book your space here.
The BMC Prospectus
Download the Black Mountains College prospectus for an overview of our courses, campuses, and vibrant student life
Visit us
Come along to one of our Discovery Days or Campus Tours to explore our campuses and meet your tutors