Festival of People, Planet & Place
Celebrate our campus, community, and shared values at our first ever Festival of People, Planet & Place from Monday 20th – Saturday 25th April.
Bringing sustainability to the forefront, the festival will showcase how Keele is taking action on environmental responsibility, social equity, and ethical living. From a Diversity Festival and picnic under the cherry tree blossom, to culturally enriching Keele Concerts and a Green Careers Fair, every event is designed to inspire more sustainable choices and thinking.
By opening up conversations about how we live, learn, and thrive together, the festival will connect sustainability with everyday life at Keele - from wellbeing and community to identity and belonging - and highlight the role we all play in shaping a more sustainable future.
Please keep an eye on the Keele App for more information on upcoming events.
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To support the Festival of People, Planet & Place, our campus eateries will be offering the following promotions from Monday 20th April until 4pm on Friday 24th April.
- 25% off plant-based meals, available at The Kitchen Table
- Get £1 off any hot drink if you bring your own reusable cup, available at CENTRAL Café, Chapter’s Café and Smart Innovation Hub Café
| Date, time, and location | Activity | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 12pm–2pm, Union Square | Nature and Wellbeing Mini Fair | Explore how People, Planet, and Place support your wellbeing by connecting with others, discovering support, and finding simple, sustainable ways to thrive. Expect interactive stalls, friendly conversations, and simple ideas you can incorporate into your everyday routine. |
| 4pm–5pm, Forest of Light (Union Square) | Edible Campus Tour | Explore Keele's edible landscapes on this guided tour of the Walled Garden allotments, fruit trees, and berry-bearing hedgerows. Discover how the campus supports seasonal growing, biodiversity, and community food projects, while also learning about edible plants hidden in plain sight. |
| 5pm–6pm, Keele Hall (Gardens) | Nature-based Yoga | A gentle Vinyasa Flow yoga session inspired by the rhythms of the natural world, offering a calming way to connect body, mind, and environment. Suitable for all levels. Spaces are limited, so please book in advance to secure your place. |
| 5pm-6.30pm, Sustainability Bungalow | Nature Poetry Writing with Nurture CIC |
Celebrate the beauty of the natural world through words and colour. |
| 6pm–8pm, Keele Hall (Salvin Room) | Cookery Demonstration |
Join us at Keele Hall for a practical and inspiring cookery demonstration where you'll be shown how to make a delicious Spaghetti Bolognese step-by-step. Learn tips and tricks to make your budget stretch further and pick up simple batch-cooking techniques to save you time and money during the week. You'll also have the opportunity to taste test — we've got your evening meal covered! Classic, halal, and vegetarian/vegan options will be available. Please book your place using the event link. Bookings will close on Sunday 12th April. |
| Date, time, and location | Activity | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 10.30am–2pm, Chancellor’s Building Foyer and The Kitchen Table | Discover your future at the Green Careers Fair | Looking for a career that makes a real difference? Meet inspiring organisations working across sustainability, community impact, and responsible business. Explore opportunities including internships, placements, graduate roles, and volunteering, and gain insight into careers that help shape a better future. Whether you're passionate about the environment, social change, or building stronger communities, this is your chance to connect, learn, and get inspired. Please book your place using the registration link. |
| 1pm–3pm, Claus Moser Building and Hybrid | PGR Café – Doughnut-Informed Research: Embedding Sustainability into our Research at Keele | This PGR Café will explore how Kate Raworth's Doughnut Economics framework can shape research that is socially grounded, ecologically aware, and impactful in the real world. By focusing on needs and boundaries, the session invites PGRs from all disciplines to consider how their work sits within and contributes to the 'safe and just space for humanity', embracing Keele's strong affinity for sustainability. If you wish to attend the session virtually, please pre-book your place. |
| 1pm–4pm, Students’ Union and Forest of Light (Union Square) | Diversity Festival | Celebrate the richness of our campus community at this vibrant festival of cultures, identities, and creativity. With food vendors, live performances, interactive stalls, and music, it will be a joyful space to connect, learn, and celebrate with makes us unique. |
| 3pm-5pm, Meet in front of the Old Library steps at Keele Hall | Creative Community Walk | A reflective, place-based session that weaves together geography, culture, multilingual storytelling, and gentle exploration. Starting with a creative community walk, notice how the campus landscape shapes our sense of place and the stories we carry, followed by a session in Keele Hall where simple prompts and shared reflection invite creative expression grounded in people, place, and lived experience. The workshop also offers supportive space for those writing with English alongside other languages, introducing creative techniques that value your full linguistic identity and encourage expressive place-based writing. Spaces are limited, so please book your place in advance. |
| 8pm–8.30pm, Smart Innovation Hub (Denise Coates Foundation Building, Lecture Hall G.030) | Perspective | Astronauts experience an other-worldly feeling when they see Earth from above. Professor Jacco Van Loon will share that feeling and provide a sense of our place in the cosmos and on Earth. |
| 8.30pm–10pm, Keele Observatory | View celestial objects through the 151-year-old 31cm Grubb refractor or 15cm solar telescope (weather permitting) and enjoy a tour of the observatory. |
| Date, time, and location | Activity | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 12pm–2pm, Cherry Tree Drive | Blossom Picnic |
To mark Earth Day 2026, join us for a community blossom picnic celebrating Keele’s National Collection of Cherry Trees. Bring your own picnic to enjoy with friends or colleagues, take part in gentle, mindful crafting activities, and unwind amongst the spring blossoms that make our campus so special. There will also be a selection of blossom-themed nibbles and drinks to sample. Picnic tables and blankets will be available, and if you're feeling festive, feel free to wear something pink. A special cherry tree information stand will be available throughout the event, where you can learn more about Keele's remarkable collection and meet Dr Sarah Taylor, Curator of the Cherry Tree Collection. Following the picnic, you can also join a guided walk to explore the trees in more depth. Please note: This event is weather dependent. In the case of adverse weather, activities will be held within the Chancellor's Building. |
| 1.15pm–2.15pm, Westminster Theatre (Chancellor's Building) | Earth Stories for Earth Day | Join us in the Westminster Theatre to hear from members of the award-winning Earth Stories team and learn how the project is inspiring young people to share their environmental stories through film. We'll also screen a selection of winning entries from previous festivals. |
| 2.30pm-5.30pm, Westminster Theatre (Chancellor's Building) | Nature's Narratives: Attenborough on Screen |
2.30pm-3.30pm Climate Change - The Facts: Sir David Attenborough looks at the science of climate change and potential solutions to this global threat. Interviews with some of the world's leading climate scientists explore recent extreme weather conditions such as unprecedented storms and catastrophic wildfires. They also reveal what dangerous levels of climate change could mean for both human populations and the natural world in the future. |
| 6pm, Walter Moberly Building (WM1.01) | Professor Fumiko Yonezawa Memorial Lectures Series: The View from Osaka |
Carolyn Davidson MBE will draw on her nearly 40-year career in the British diplomatic service across four continents to explore the importance of regions as well as nations in international diplomacy, the role of Osaka and Western Japan as a regional and global hub, and its interconnectedness with the world from the perspective of someone who has represented the UK from Asia to Zambia. |
| 6.30pm–8.30pm, Westminster Theatre (Chancellor's Building) | Community Film Night: The Wild Robot |
Watch The Wild Robot (2024) for free on the big screen. Please note that bookings will close on Wednesday 22nd April at 12pm. |
| 7.30pm–9pm, Chapel | Maxwell String Quartet | The Maxwell Quartet blends classic mastery with the rich folk heritage of the group's native Scotland. Formed by lifelong friends who met in youth orchestras, their performances radiate warmth, virtuosity, and a deep musical bond. Please pre-book your ticket. Students can attend for free. |
| Date, time, and location | Activity | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 10am–11am, Low Carbon Energy Generation Park. Meet at Keele Observatory. | Talk and Tour | Learn how our two wind turbines, 12,200 solar panels, and industrial battery power our campus. Please wear sturdy footwear and weather-appropriate clothing. |
| 10am-2pm, Library (middle main floor) | A Greener Library and IT Pop-Up | Find out about reading for wellbeing and leisure, take part in simple creative activities, and see how our Library and IT teams are making both physical and digital environments more sustainable. |
| 4pm-5pm, Keele Hall Courtyard | History and Geology tour | This walk combines the geology and history of Keele. The geology dates back at least 311 million years and controls the landscape of North Staffordshire, which in turn influences the development of industry and the transport geography of the region. The walk will also look at the more recent history of Keele from the Knights Templar, through the ownership of the Sneyd family and their two Keele Halls, and link back to the geology via the oldest historic feature identifiable on campus, the quarry for the stone of the first Elizabethan Keele Hall. |
| 11am–1.45pm, 12pm-12.45pm, 1pm-1.45pm, Keele Hall | Tours of Keele Hall Heritage | Former Keele staff member (for more than 40 years!), Chris Wain will tell the story of the family who lived in the house before the University arrived, as well as offering insights into the early days of the University College of North Staffordshire and of Keele University. |
| 5pm–7pm, Keele Hall Courtyard | Forest Bathing Session | Come and discover the gentle art of Shinrin Yoku or 'forest bathing' at this taster event, where you'll learn about the significant health effects of spending time in nature, as well as trying out practical exercises including co-breathing with trees, mindful noticing, and the daily practice of 'sit spots'. All are welcome, just bring comfortable shoes and an open mind! |
| 6pm–8pm, The Kitchen Table | Supper Club | A free three-course plant-based and locally sourced supper with two available sittings at 6pm and 6.30pm. Please book your place. Bookings will close on Tuesday 21st April. |
| 7pm-8pm, Keele in Town (top floor) | Stoke-on-Trent Book Night - 100Books Results Show | To join in with World Book Night's #ReadingHour, Dr Lisa Blower will take you through the findings from the 100Books in 100Years project that has explored the world of literature produced in Stoke-on-Trent this past century. Lisa will showcase some of the books that have made the final 100Books canon - soon to be on display as the 100Bookshelf in Stoke archives from June 2026 - and share some of her favourite finds and reads. All are welcome. |
| Date, time, and location | Activity | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 10.30am-11.30am, Low Carbon Energy Generation Park. Meet at Keele Observatory | Talk and Tour | Learn how our two wind turbines, 12,200 solar panels, and industrial battery power our campus. Please wear sturdy footwear and weather-appropriate clothing. |
| 12pm, Keele Hall (Louisa Room) | Stories of Keele Climate and Wildlife | Hear how decades of local weather records have helped to build a picture of changing climate patterns at Keele, and how these shifts have influenced wildlife on campus. Look back at what the data shows, what's changed over recent decades, and what it means for Keele's natural environment today. Also hear about how to become a Climate Ambassador or Nature Positive Ambassador. |
| 12.30pm-1.30pm, Keele Hall Gardens | Campus Bioblitz | Participate in a one-hour Keele campus bioblitz and then carry it on wherever you are as part of the City Nature Challenge (CNC). The CNC is an annual, four-day global bioblitz taking place from Friday 24th - Monday 27th April where cities and regions are in collaboration/friendly competition to see who can gather the most records of the wildlife in their cities. The CNC is coordinated in Staffordshire by Staffordshire Ecological Record and Staffordshire Wildlife Trust. It would be useful to have downloaded the iNaturalist app on your phone or device and to join the Keele Campus BioBlitz April 2026 . iNaturalist in preparation. Information and support will be available on the day. |
| 1pm-2pm, Keele Hall Library | Guided meditation session | Lunchtime reset for mental clarity and afternoon performance. This is particularly beneficial if the morning has been demanding or cognitively heavy. This session blends therapeutic sound and guided transformational meditation to:
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| 2pm-3pm, Walter Moberly Building (WM0.04) | Learn more about the Climate Ambassadors Programme | Hear from Professor Zoe Robinson (Regional Hub Lead) and Chris Bayes (Regional Hub Manager) about this exciting government-funded programme. Climate Ambassadors is a project that matches volunteer climate, sustainability, and environmental professionals with educational settings to develop climate action plans in nurseries, schools, and colleges. In this session, you'll hear about the project, its aim, how it support the Department for Education (DfE) 'Sustainability and Climate Change Strategy', and how you can register as a Climate Ambassador and gain hints and tips engaging with educational settings and activities. You will also meet your Regional Hub contacts and have a chance to share ideas around how to engage with young people as part of this agenda. |
| 4pm–7pm, Keele Hall (Lawns/Salvin Room) | People, Planet & Place End of Term Party | Celebrate the end of term and the Festival of People, Planet & Place with music, free food, good vibes, and a beautiful outdoor setting. A chance to relax, connect, and reflect on the week. |
| 4.30pm–6.30pm, The Kitchen Table (Chancellor's Building) | Social Sips and Sharp Shots | Enjoy a laid-back social with complimentary low- and no-alcohol drinks, plus games like darts and curling. A fun, inclusive way to unwind with friends. |
| Date, time, and location | Activity | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 10am–3pm, Keele in Town | Family Fun Day | Pop along and browse market stalls, crafts, botanical Lego, hydrogen and electric vehicles, renewable energy models, repair café information, student music and dance performances, and more. |
| 11am-3pm, Keele in Town | Circular Weaving Workshop with Fran Buxton | Fran will guide participants in a circular weaving activity using found and recycled textiles and materials inspired by soft blossom colours. Drawing on principles of reuse and sustainability, the workshop invites people of all ages and experience levels to experiment with texture, colour, and pattern, weaving together reclaimed fabrics and materials into circular forms. Each woven piece created during the day will become part of a community installation. |
| 11am-3pm, Keele in Town | Don't Ditch It - Fix It! | Find out about Repair Cafés. |
| 11am-3pm, Keele in Town | Crafts and colouring, Lego flower making, and renewable energy models | |
| 11am-3pm, Guildhall | Hydrogen car (Keele) and Electric Minivan (Newcastle-under-Lyme Borough Council) exhibit | |
| 12pm-2pm, Guildhall | Keele Dance and Music Society performances |
