Emerging artist, Karen Okpoti, worked alongside Community Organiser, Adam Dosunmu Slater to create a piece that touched on the themes from the Green Corridor project. An initiative that looks to combat fly-tipping and green deprivation with community led redevelopment of problem areas in Derby’s inner city.

Watch Karen talk about the creation of her animation here:

Karen’s animation film takes you on a walk through the green corridor at projects that have been developed, like the mural on Normanton Road and ones that will be in the future such as Church Street Park.

Using different artistic methods like, drawing, photography and digital animation, Karen’s work flicks between documentary and fictional depictions to illustrate the impacts of littering and how the community can suffer as a result. The video also features Karen’s other talent – playing the harp- which you can hear in the background of the video.

Watch it here:

Speaking on the project, Karen said: “It was all about promoting the work of Derbyshire Wildlife Trust and giving it an artistic flair. Working with Adam (Nextdoor Nature Community Organiser), I got to see the projects he was working on.

“Straight away I got a sense that the community and the kids were very much involved in the project, so I knew that my film was going to have a childlike and fantasy feel, so I ran with that straight away.”

A product of the Nextdoor Nature program, the Green Corridor has dramatically improved the societal issues of the areas and has been credited with an uplift in community spirit. The best example of this is Society Place. A walkway that was a dumping ground for fly-tipping and littering was transformed by Arboretum Primary School into a wildlife area.

Following the changes, the issues of fly-tipping have been reduced with residents and councillors pleased with the results. Similar initiatives, like the Normanton Road planters, have also been given a makeover by the community’s young people, to much acclaim in the community.

On the need for communities to lead on changes in their area, Karen said: “I think for projects like this, where they are within the community, the community should be the ones to decide what to do with it. They live in the community, so they should decide what their space should look like. It’s hard for an outsider to come in and say what needs to be done, the community has to decide for themselves.”

The communities’ ideas have been the basis for all of the Nextdoor Nature work in Derby since it began two years ago. The initiative has been a success not just in Derbyshire but across the United Kingdom and as it comes to an end, many Trusts are looking to continue with the ‘Community Organising' approach.

To find out more about Nextdoor Nature and our work with communities, click below:

Nextdoor Nature Lottery Fund

Special thanks must go to Animate Projects for setting up and leading this project, to see their fantastic work and other projects, please visit:

Animate Projects

To find out more about Karen’s work, please visit:

 Karen Okpoti