The Empire Cafe

@the-empire-cafe.bsky.social

The Empire Café explores Scotland & Empire through events, places, writing & conversation. Co-created by Louise Welsh & Jude Barber. Podcast 'Who owns the Clyde?', co-produced with Halina Rifai out now. https://podfollow.com/who-owns-the-clyde/view

In our new bonus episode, Jude & Louise discuss Glasgow's 850th birthday, and their decision to launch a petition to the Scottish Parliament. The petition calls for the River Clyde to be granted the legal right of personhood. Could the Clyde become the lifeblood of Glasgow again?

Louise gave a fabulous talk to launch the St Mungo Festival last week. It featured our podcast 'Who owns the Clyde?' and the petition to the Scottish Parliament to grant the Clyde the legal right to personhood. Great turn out, and the first event in the #Glasgow850 celebrations. 💥💥💥

BildBildBild

"To solve a problem, you have to understand the problem". Extremely important discussion, answering questions most Glaswegians will have had on the severance, disconnected and under-used nature of much of the Clydeside. Who owns the Clyde & how might things change? open.spotify.com/episode/0BWv...

Photo looking eastwards from the Squinty Bridge on the River Clyde in Glasgow, with the city centre and Kingston Bridge in the distance. 

The photo shows the inaccessible riverside path running along the south side of the River Clyde for 500m along Mavisbank Quay, between the Squinty Bridge and Springfield Quay.

The path runs through privately owned land and has been blocked off by a metal fence since the construction of the Squinty Bridge, meaning there is no viable walking path on this side of the river. Despite this being a direct route connecting key destinations and various neighbourhoods to one another and to the city centre.Photo showing land use around the Finnieston Quay in Glasgow, next to the SEC campus. The image shows the Finnieston Crane, surrounded by cobbled quayside, formerly used for loading goods and heavy machinery onto Clyde-going vessels. At this location, it's possible to see rail lines embedded within the cobbles, which were used long ago by trolley cars and trains transporting goods along the quayside. The site is adjacent to the Scottish Event Campus, the city's principle venue for concerts and exhibitions, which draws hundreds of thousands of visitors each month.

The space in the photo is fenced off and used as a car park.Photo showing the public realm next to the Ovo Hydro venue, part of the Scottish Events Campus. The photo shows the venue in the background, which draws tens of thousands of visitors for concerts and events each week. In the foreground is vacant, grey cobbled space, with two empty benches and weeds.Screengrab of the Spotify title card for the "Who Owns The Clyde?" podcast episode, "Live Public Event at Collective Architecture".

The introductory text reads: On 22nd October 2024, we welcomed an audience of around hundred people to Collective Architecture's office for a public event asking the question, "Who owns the Clyde?".
Jude Barber@judebarber.bsky.social · 2y ago

Petition now live! Do sign our @the-empire-cafe.bsky.social petition to grant the River Clyde, and other Scottish rivers, the legal right to personhood. You can hear more about in EP3 of our 'Who owns the Clyde?' Podcast along with the discussion at our live event here podfollow.com/who-owns-the...

Our petition to grant the River Clyde, and other Scottish Rivers, the legal right to personhood is now live at the Scottish Parliament website. 💥💥💥 If you are minded, please sign the petition & share widely with those you think might be interested.👇https://petitions.parliament.scot/petitions/PE2131

Petition: Grant Scottish rivers, including the River Clyde, the legal right to personhood

Calling on the Scottish Parliament to urge the Scottish Government to grant the River Clyde, and potentially other rivers in Scotland, the legal right to personhood by: * adopting the Universal Decla...

petitions.parliament.scot

It was a pleasure to talk with Cllr Holly Bruce about her work to embed a feminist approach within Glasgow's city planning and what this might mean for the future of the Clyde & city. She generously shared thoughts & key actions. Hear Holly in Ep3 'Clyde Rights' and bonus live event episode.

BildBildBild

We met Kate and Mary of Clydeside Gardens to talk about their transformation of an underused space at Glasgow Harbour. They have created a vibrant and biodiverse community garden. Thank you for sharing insights into the project and its impact. We hope to talk more on this very soon.

BildBildBildBild