An Urban Safari

Independent Dance presents a series of public lunchtime talks and walks inviting an awareness of, and a response to the wildness and elemental in the city. Curated by ID with dance artist Rosemary Lee, the four experts will share their particular passion for the urban wild and help us to perceive what we often pass unnoticed, take for granted or literally cannot see.

"Whilst the city is often seen as simply an absence of countryside, our streets and buildings form a fascinating habitat in their own right," says Bob Gilbert.

"This 'urban safari' sets out to explore the area around the Elephant, to reveal its hidden wildness and to understand how a surprising variety of plants and animals can survive in such a seemingly hostile environment.

"And attached to each, as this walk will uncover, is a wealth of story; of myth, magic andmedicine, of past uses and present associations."

Bob Gilbert is director of environmental sustainability in the London Borough of Islington, working on environmental impacts at a local level -including climate change, the depletion of natural resources and biodiversity. He has written and broadcast on a wide range of environmental topics including his book 'The Green London Way' - describing a 100 mile exploration of routes encircling London. This reflects his particular interest in urban walking and the ecology of the inner city, and in finding new ways to see, and interpret, our everyday environment and the richness of its unseen wildlife.