Friends of the Earth's 2013 annual gathering for environmental activists combined topical issues with space for collaboration and creativity, all based in a beautiful rural venue with a pub just down the lane.
Basecamp was all about engaging new people in Friends of the Earth's work - participants included volunteers from elsewhere in the green movement, supporters who have yet to connect with local groups, and a growing contingent from Young Friends of the Earth, fresh with lots of ideas.
It was an action-packed weekend that caught people's imagination. With the Big Top and the yurts in the tree-dotted garden of Hartington Hall, a 17th century manor house in Derbyshire, it felt more like a festival or a wedding.
You could have heard a pin drop as the environmentalist George Monbiot delivered a gripping and eloquent talk about rewilding nature - drawn from his new book Feral.
Residents Action on Fylde Fracking (RAFF) won this year's Earthmovers' Campaign of the Year award - they're a brilliant example of campaign-building on the ground.
It was both hilarious and poignant when everyone lined up for a photo message to support our sister organisation Friends of the Earth Paraguay, which is helping local people protect their land from big agricultural companies.
The Big Ideas Change the World campaign was launched and we intend to discuss the various topics over the coming year. See the link below for details of the different topics and please come along to our meetings if you’d like to be involved with our local discussions. http://www.foe.co.uk/what_we_do/about_us/big_ideas_change_the_world_40167.html