The Amateur Ancestor Project

What if the key to our collective futures was our common heritage?

The Amateur Ancestor Project is a programme of workshops, alternative museum guided tours and storytelling events that places museum collections at the heart of climate action. I work with cultural organisations, volunteers and visitors, as well as businesses.

Taking a long view on the urgent problems we face, each experience is designed to expand your understanding of time and regain your sense of agency. In each we delve deep into the root causes of our current predicaments and use imagination to better illuminate the way forward

Let’s work together

Organisations and businesses looking to deepen their work and motive their team to grow their positive environmental impact, addressing the climate crisis from a value-led, cultural perspective.

Museums looking to inspire their staff, volunteers and visitors, growing their understanding of the past and nurturing their capacity to imagine how things could be better. We’ll place your collections right at the heart of it all.

  • A mind-expanding tour of the Science Museum, Natural History Museum and V&A that will help you see your strategy through the lens of history. Download brochure for more details.

  • A thought-provoking tour of the Great North Museum: Hancock exploring our ancient connection to the land, pondering the ethical use of technology and highlighting how worldviews shape how we live.

    Each tour is followed by a bespoke participatory workshop responding to your specific needs.

  • Stories shape how we see and act in the world. We are deeply wired to remember them. The Amateur Ancestor Stories reveal deep connections to each other and the land - through the lens of beloved museum objects. I write and perform these stories in museums, conferences and use them to deliver object-based environmental storytelling to a variety of publics.

  • What if you could take your team on a journey through time? The Time travelling workshops I run are anchored within history and use futures literacy as a way to galvanise teams around environmental action. We take a long view on current issues to better zoom in on the deep narratives that underpin everything we do - so that you can keep showing up in the world with renewed commitment.

  • I help make conferences memorable and galvanising by creating interludes that connect audiences to place and time. From storytelling about the location the event is taking place, to future-focused ‘What if?‘ workshop to take the learnings of the event into the future - each intervention is developed in collaboration with the event organisers to better suit the audience needs.

Download Heritage Brochure
Download London Tour Brochure

"Thought-provoking, emotional, impactful”

“A highlight of the year”

“A powerful, sensory experience”

“Engaging, insightful and eye opening

”Dedicated, detailed and incredibly engaging“

“Tackles huge, important subjects in a way that feels intimate”

"Thought-provoking, emotional, impactful” “A highlight of the year” “A powerful, sensory experience” “Engaging, insightful and eye opening ”Dedicated, detailed and incredibly engaging“ “Tackles huge, important subjects in a way that feels intimate”

  • Co curating with young people at Sunderland Museum and Winter Gardens

  • Exploring how to think like ancestors with children at Great North Museum: Hancock

  • Shining a new light on permanent display with Design Museum staff at Victoria and Albert Museun

  • Connecting to deep time at Blue Futures Conference (University of Sunderland) at the Word, North Shields

  • Telling the Story of the Seeds to a captive audience at a Discovery Museum Late Night

  • Environmental storytelling workshop for Going Places cohort

  • Amateur Ancestor Tour London, at the Natural History Museum with a group of curators

  • Taking conference attendees on a journey through time at the Blue Futures Conference for the University of Sunderland

Testimonials

  • “The Amateur Ancestor Tour is a visceral reframing of the history we've been taught. For anyone working in the field of sustainable/regenerative design, this experience will zoom your perspective right out, and when you zoom back in again, you land in a very different understanding of the complex systems that we operate in and how we got here. Thanks Justine for a very thought-provoking, emotional and impactful experience.”

    Nat Hunter, Regenerative Designer & Coach

  • “Justine’s thoughtful and well researched tour was eye opening and inspiring. She deftly reminded us of the role museums play in telling stories, helping us understand where we’ve come from, inviting us to take comfort in historic challenges that have been overcome, and galvanising us to think creatively about how to shape the future. […] A highlight of the year.”

    Elise Foster Vander Elst, Head of Exhibitions, Design Museum London

  • “An eloquent orator, Justine delivered three, short interludes, navigating the room of participants through deep time to a personal commitment to take positive climate action. Her careful threading of connections from the ancient beginnings of early human settlements to the rise of the site’s industrial heritage and on to a hopeful, recuperating and sustainable future. The experiences proved to be a powerful, sensory experience that added significant value to the event.”

    Dr Suzy O’Hara, Research Fellow and Lecturer, University of Sunderland

  • “Engaging Justine in this bespoke offer for British science week 2024 was a no brainer and an absolute pleasure. Her way of working is so dedicated, detailed and incredibly engaging, inspiring the visitors and myself in equal proportions! Such a great opportunity to think about and animate the museum and its collections in a different way, get teenagers curious and reflective, and always delivered with buckets of enthusiasm and warmth!”

    Jo McSwaine, Assistant Learning Officer, Tyne & Wear Archives & Museums

  • "A cut above your average workshop. Learners were put in the roles of ancestors and descendants so they processed the information they were being given in a way which was really powerful. I expected the workshop to be useful but the quality of it did exceed my expectations."

    Teacher, Gosforth East Middle School

Why Ancestor? By recasting ourselves as ancestors to future generations, we are more likely to feel connected to them - and thus to care and act on their behalf. This work is steeped in Deep Ecology, Long Time Thinking and Intergenerational Stewardship.

Why Amateur? There is joy to be had in being an amateur - learning through practice and not waiting to become an expert to actively be the change you want to see.

Dedication

The Amateur Ancestor Project is born out of extensive research into climate science history, philosophy, economics, regenerative practice and design history amongst others. It builds on the work of many, to whom I am eternally grateful for their knowledge and generosity. They include Joanna Macy, Ella Saltmarshe and Beatrice Pembroke from the Long Time Project, my fellow Climate Museum UK members, Phoebe Tickell from Moral Imaginations, Roman Krznaric, Dr Lyla June Johnston, Rob Hopkins, Dr Daniel Christian Wahl, Joycelyn Longdon, Robin Wall Kimmerer, Dr Alice Bell, Rachel Donald, Dr Ayanna Elizabeth Johnston, Jason Hickel, Kate Raworth, Tyson Yunkaporta and so many others!