Tonight's Specials

We might think of the world of Bridgerton in terms of old-fashioned candlelit glamour, but the Georgian period brought exciting scientific food developments. This talk focuses on royal dining at Kew and Carleton House, which was at the cutting edge of culinary technology and displayed innovation that could control nature. From glasshouses and copper kitchens to pastry rockets: a Georgian dining experience that would appeal to Heston Blumenthal!

Growing food can be fun, collaborative, creative and make us healthier. It can also be frustrating at times. Dr Coetzee is an occupational therapist and scientist from the University of Essex. She researches community food growing, asking what happens when we grow food together. What are the changes that take place and how can we understand them? In this talk, using examples from London and Colchester, she discusses how personal, social, environmental and political changes can be cultivated in community food growing projects.

Agriculture is one of the sectors most vulnerable to climate change, at risk from both extreme weather events and long-term changes in climatic pattern. The resulting lower yields and higher prices could cause severe food insecurity, driving up food prices for consumers around the world. This talk focuses on the link between rising temperatures and our dinner tables, explaining how food shortages could be intensified as the world warms up and environmental crises become more common.