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'Craft reaches places where you don’t normally see climate activism' says Sarah Corbett


9 November 2021

The craftivist on making an impact with gentle protest


9 November 2021

  • Sustainable craft
  • Textiles
  • Social justice

Sarah Corbett, founder of the Craftivist Collective. Photo: Gary Morrisroe

Sarah Corbett, founder of the Craftivist Collective, believes in the power of craft to drive change. Her latest project, Canary Craftivists, championed the introverted activist to create handmade messages of hope in the form of yellow birds. Here, we speak to her about the power of 'quiet activism', and what role craft can have in shaping the world.


What is the Craftivist Collective and what do you do?

Sarah Corbett: My background as an activist, growing up in a low-income area and then working as a campaigner for charities, led me to found the Craftivist Collective in January 2009. We want to use craft to give a voice to introverts, or anxious people who are nervous to meet in groups, or those who have never seen themselves as activists.


A 'flock' of craftivists making canaries on London's Hampstead Heath. Photo: Craftivist Collective

Tell us about your Canary Craftivists project.

Groups of craftivists have been meeting at local landmarks across the country – everywhere from Cardiff to Folkestone – to make little yellow canaries to send as encouraging gifts with handwritten letters to their local MP. The message asks MPs to encourage Boris Johnson and Alok Sharma to be brave hosts and leaders at COP26 in November and to ask our politicians to act faster and bolder to protect our home from climate catastrophe.

In one flock, we had three generations of a family who all had very different political ideologies, but came together for this because they all cared about their community and the environment.

Why do you refer to your craftivism as ‘gentle protest’?

All of my craftivism work is based on neuroscience and positive psychology. I call our approach ‘gentle protest’, but it’s not about being passive or weak, it’s about doing something compassionately, and in a caring and careful way to make it strategic.

I wouldn't do a gentle protest approach to activism if it didn't work – it has genuinely helped change people's hearts and minds, as well as policies and laws around the world.

I call our approach "gentle protest", but it’s not about being passive or weak, it’s about doing something compassionately


Sarah Corbett

What role can craft play in encouraging change?

Craft is an important catalyst, not a conclusion. It is an incredible way to reach places where you don’t normally see activism. For example, we've worked with lots of Women's Institutes who have never done climate action before, who were very diverse politically, but who became engaged with environmental issues through craft.

We live in such a polarised world, and I feel that it is unhelpful to get aggressive and defensive. Through the process of craft, we can channel that anger and sadness about injustice, to get out the other sides without acting in a reactive or aggressive way.


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