Top UK Photographers Bring Their Vision To Morecambe

Some of the UK's top nature photographers, Andy Rouse, Bertie Gregory and Peter Cairns will gather in Morecambe on Wednesday 25 June to present an evening of spell-binding imagery and personal anecdotes from 2020VISION, the most ambitious nature photography project ever staged in the UK.  The event supports the current 2020VISION Street Gallery which is on display 24/7 on Morecambe Promenade (just opposite the Winter Gardens) until 29 June, before moving onto Barrow-in-Furness and Grange-over-Sands.

Focusing on 20 flagship projects – including Morecambe Bay – 2020VISION’s team of top UK landscape and wildlife photographers have come together to tell an inspirational story about some of the UK’s ecosystems and the services they provide to us all, such as clean water, fresh air and productive soils – to show that healthy ecosystems are not just for wildlife, but are something fundamental to us all.

Taking place at the Winter Gardens “THE VISION” theatre show will present a fascinating insight into the ethos behind the project, revealing inspiring stories from throughout the country where some of our greatest and wildest natural ecosystems are being repaired and re-connected.

Susannah Bleakley, of Morecambe Bay Partnership, which brought the 2020VISION project to Morecambe Bay, says: “It's an absolutely fantastic opportunity to hear some of the UK's most talented nature photographers talking about their incredible work for 2020VISION and how they achieved these incredible images.  2020VISION is a visual feast for the soul, a collection of some of the most inspirational images ever taken in the UK, and all here on our own doorstep. Don't miss it." 

2020VISION – The Theatre Show is at the Winter Gardens, Marine Road Morecambe at 7.30pm in Wednesday 25 June, 2014. Tickets cost £8 (£6 concessions) and are available from Morecambe Visitor Information Centre on 01524 582808.

The 2020VISION Street Gallery will remain on Morecambe Promenade until 29 June. It will then move to Barrow-in-Furness from 1 July – 2 August and to Grange-over-Sands from 5-29 August.

ENDS

Notes to Editors

A selection of images from the 2020VISION collection, along with the project’s logo, can be found at www.2020v.org/press_room.asp.

For tickets, further images, interviews and information about this event please contact Jan Shorrock on [email protected] or 07947 505100.

• 2020VISION is the most ambitious nature photography project ever staged in the UK.  It aims to engage and enthuse a massive audience by using innovative visual media to convey the value of restoring our most important but often fragmented habitats – to show that healthy ecosystems are not just for wildlife, but are something fundamental to us all.  For the first time, 20 of the UK’s top nature and wildlife photographers, along with filmmakers and sound recordists, have come together to tell an inspirational story about some of the UK’s ecosystems and the services they provide to us all, such as clean water, fresh air and productive soils.  2020VISION has identified a number of flagship projects up and down the country, that are currently restoring, reconnecting, or at the very least protecting, damaged habitats or species. Over a 20-month period, the 2020VISION team have carried out 20 iWitness Assignments at these locations, producing a set of stunning pictures, along with supporting video footage and sound. 
• 2020VISION has been brought to Morecambe Bay through Morecambe Bay Partnership's 700 Days Scheme which, with £0.5M from the Coastal Communities Fund, will support over 260 tourism-related jobs and safeguard many thousands more. As well as bringing the 2020VISION Roadshow to Morecambe Bay, the funding will be used to connect and sign a 200Km ‘Bay Cycle Way’, develop maps, trails and apps to improve information for visitors and provide over 300 training places to support tourism businesses. Further funding has been provided through Morecambe Bay Local Nature Partnership's Nature Improvement Area.
• Morecambe Bay Partnership is a small charity making big things happen in the Morecambe Bay area. We are a place based charity with the aim of securing resources that will bring jobs and growth to the area. Our target for the next 5 years is to secure £10M of investment that will create or safeguard over 8,000 jobs, increasing visitor numbers by 3% equating to an increase in the visitor economy of Morecambe Bay of £15M by 2016.
• Morecambe Bay Nature Improvement Area – this project is creating a step change for nature around Morecambe Bay by improving and connecting up the area’s special wetland, limestone grassland and woodland habitats, as well as inspiring community action and supporting sustainable farming, woodfuel and wildlife tourism businesses. The £800,000 programme is being delivered by Morecambe Bay Local Nature Partnership, and led by Arnside & Silverdale AONB. Nature Improvement Areas are generously supported by Defra, DCLG, Natural England, Forestry Commission and the Environment Agency.
• The Coastal Communities Fund (CCF) aims to encourage the economic development of UK coastal communities by awarding funding to create sustainable economic growth and jobs. Since the start of the CCF in 2012 grants have been awarded to 104 organisations across the UK to the value of £53.6 million. This funding is forecast to deliver 7,655 jobs and help attract around £90 million of additional funds to coastal areas. The Big Lottery Fund is delivering the CCF on behalf of UK Government and the Devolved Administrations in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales.
• The Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) gives grants to sustain and transform our heritage that will make a lasting difference for heritage and people. From museums, parks and historic places to archaeology, natural environment and cultural traditions HLF invests in every part of our diverse heritage. The Landscape Partnerships programme is for schemes led by partnerships of local, regional and national interests which aim to conserve areas of distinctive landscape character throughout the UK. 
• Headlands to Headspace (H2H) is a major new initiative for Morecambe Bay Partnership, funded by HLF and motivated by a community desire to protect and celebrate the Bay’s rich heritage. This exciting Scheme will deliver training, improve access, and present the Bay’s heritage in fresh, new ways. It will bring local people and new audiences together by delivering engaging activities, high quality events and meaningful volunteering opportunities. All in all, it will significantly improve understanding of the natural and cultural heritage and help conserve that heritage for future generations. In so doing, it will bring new visitors, increase pride, and raise aspiration among the community. It will achieve a wide range of benefits – for heritage, for the Bay’s communities, and economic benefits too. We intend it to be a catalyst for community renewal and sustainable heritage management into the future.
  Headlands to Headspace will transform the way people think about Morecambe Bay. Its lasting legacy will be to deliver much greater profile and appreciation of the Bay’s unique heritage.