Everybody has a story. Islington famously has the least green space of any London boroughs but it’s still part of London National Park City. Here Ranger Coordinator Floree Zama-Neagra, who is based in Old Street, talks about how she gets her nature fix. Interview by Nicola Baird
Floree Zama-Neagra: “I studied Media and Communication with French in Canterbury. I specialised in Public Relations and realised I didn’t want to do it if it wasn’t ethical and environmental. Studying PR really opened my eyes to the world of manipulation that is around us at every step.” (c) FZN
Islington Faces met Floree using Zoom. While she sat talking from her balcony, with a bike behind her, overlooked by a large tree, I was stuck indoors in my office. Right from the start it is clear that Floree is passionate about nature and clever at finding it in a city like London despite the 8 million people also living here. Not only is she a consultant/facilitator specialising in environmental and social justice she also works part time for London National Park City. London is officially the world’s first National Park City, an organisation that aims to make cities “greener, healthier and wilder”. http://www.nationalparkcity.london
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It’s clear that whether in or out of lockdown Floree takes London National Park City’s message to “Stay Positive in Viral Times” by spending time “at an open window, on a balcony, on your front doorstep, or exploring a park or local community space on your one walk a day” as “a good investment in your physical and mental health.” www.nationalparkcity.london/positive
On the Zoom call her flat seemed quiet but Floree (which appropriately means Flower in her mother tongue, Romanian) points out that: “I’m on the main road at Old Street so it’s perhaps not the best place to be. Islington is the second central borough with the highest health risks from air pollution.” Not surprisingly she’s also excited about the possible bike lane London’s Mayor has said will run from Old Street to Holborn, adding: “but if there is going to be a boulevard then I will live in the best place!”
Floree Zama-Neagra: “I love Isabella Tree’s book Wilding and I think everyone should read it. I think we should do more rewilding and pulling up the concrete. I’m also enjoying Birdwatching London. (c) FZN
Q: What have you been doing during lockdown?
I’ve been working online. I’ve been cycling a lot and exploring London and really enjoying that side of lockdown. Many times I was the only one on the road and that was fascinating. I also did a few night safaris on my bike. It was incredible to be the only person in front of Big Ben or Buckingham Place. I’ve never been to such a place that was so quiet – there were no buses, no cars, no humans. I’ve been in the countryside, jungle and you always hear a sound – insect, animal – I could only hear my bike and myself. It was almost like a sci-fi movie.
I’ve also been spending a lot of time at the marshes foraging. The last thing I foraged was elderflower to make elderflower lemonade, but sometimes I make elderflower champagne. And I also picked bird cherries: I’m from Romania where we eat a lot of sour cherries and so it reminds me of that.
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Floree Zama-Neagra enjoys nature, coaching, facilitating and Managing London Rangers for National Park City (c) FZN
Places Floree Zama-Neagra loves in Islington (and nearby)
- I love the architecture of the Barbican and the gardens. They have wild plants and there’s a tropical garden inside the Conservatory – it’s the most incredible thing. It’s very complicated to get into because there are loads of events which use it, but I think twice a month you can queue for a I went to a gender equality event organised in the Conservatory and as I was wondering around, I met the gardener, who showed me the gardens. They also have two cactus greenhouses that are not open to the public. Their cheese plants are more than 20m tall! They have huge palm trees, fish and turtles. You really feel like you are in the jungle. And I had a friend who lived in the Barbican so I could see their internal garden using the residents’ special key too. https://www.barbican.org.uk/whats-on/2020/event/visit-the-conservatory
- I love Candid Café at 3 Torrens Street, behind Angel station. It’s a super quirky café hidden away. Very bohemian and also has a garden. https://candidarts.wordpress.com/cafe/
- I love the Yoga Life Centre at 1 Britannia Row off Essex Road, N1. There are two teachers Harriet Bone and Luis Valentine who teach Jivamukti yoga. https://thelifecentre.com/yoga-classes/class-schedule
- I also like Whitecross Street Market when it is open. There is so much amazing food. I’m not very satisfied with the green spaces in Islington so I often cycle a bit further – the parks are super tiny, some are closed. I do also like the Bunhill Fields cemetery. There’s quite a lot of wildlife, when I used to commute to work I’d always pass there. http://www.bitecross.co.uk
- I did find some gingko trees as I was walking in Islington. That’s very unusual! There’s also a really amazing vegetable shop – the Newington Green veg shop. They have a lot of organic vegetables and they have unusual fruit.
- Another favourite is the N1 garden centre, 25a Englefield Road, N1. I’m a big plant lover and I have over 50 species in my flat. You have to connect with the plants, give them names and really listen to what they need. They don’t all need to be watered at the same time or with the same amount, or need the same amount of light. And sometimes they are very fussy about where they want to sit! My oldest plant is 8 or 9 and now it is taller than me. It is quite amazing to have a plant from when it was a baby that has grown so much. I live on my own, but it felt quite nice to be with my plants during lockdown. Even today [when it was 32C] I was thinking the temperature is more bearable of my plants and they really purify the air in my flat because I’m on a main road. https://n1gardencentre.co.uk
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London is officially the world’s first National Park City, an organisation that aims to make cities “greener, healthier and wilder”. (c) London National Park City
Q: How did you get involved in National Park City?
I was working at a social consultancy and transitioning to becoming a freelancer. Although I wasn’t really looking to have a job with one organisation again, when I read the job description for a part-time role it felt like it had been designed for me. I started in March, just before lockdown and just had time to meet most of the people physically once. Although my work has been mainly online, I loved every conversation I had so far, being it with our Rangers, Trustees or Partners..
We have just launched the Rangers programme and we are very excited about all the possibilities emerging when bringing a group of people together to cross-pollinate expertise and ideas with the aim of making London greener, healthier and wilder. Our 54 rangers over almost all boroughs, are a super diverse crowd,our youngest is 14-years-old and our oldest is 72. We have people working on conservation, people passionate about birds, people running community gardens, people working on climate mitigation and heat waves, people running sustainability departments in organisations and forest schools, geography teachers,artists, people working on nature based solutions, people engaging those from underprivileged backgrounds with outdoor activities, people trying to get us excited about the fungi in London and many more… it’s such a privilege to work with this community! Find out more about London National Park City rangers programme on this short video https://youtu.be/i_iIU_wV0qc
I’m also a coach and facilitator for the other two days of the week, specifically working with innovationmethodologies and co-production on environmental sustainability and inequality. My two biggest passions are to contribute to Biodiversity Regeneration and to living in a more equal and loving world, in all its shapes and forms. I come from a working class background and know what it’s like to be an Eastern Europeanwoman in the UK. I also cannot believe how disconnected we became from nature, which really, is our source of life. We cannot live without water, air and food, can we?
Floree Zama-Neagra was shocked when she moved to the UK and found that “fruit and veg don’t have a taste”. (c) FZN
Q: What’s special about nature?
I grew up spending a lot of time outdoors. My grandparents are all based in villages in Romania. Then moving into a city like London made me aware of the differences. I started noticing a lot of problems and for me it all started with food. In Romania, most people grow their own vegetables and farmers’ markets and organic are cheaper. It was quite scary to find that fruit and veg don’t have a taste here, and the meat wasn’t right – I didn’t eat it for eight years until I found out why. Then I developed food intolerances: everything is so processed and there are so many chemicals. The more you dig, the more you realise. Also as you grow older – I’m 32 – you appreciate things differently. Now I definitely prefer to spend time in the forest than to be at a party or crowded place in London. Nature is truly my happy place. I’m slowly learning to rewild my mind and I feel more people should work on that.
I also started being interested in indigenous wisdom – in the past two years I lived with indigenous tribes in Ecuador for a month last year and a month this year. It really shifted my everything, the way I see the world. I’d been working in the social and environmental change space for more than 12 years, but only recently I realised that our biodiversity loss is our most pressing environmental issue, rather than climate change. Of course, they are interlinked, but our biodiversity is pretty much supporting our whole eco-system and us as humans . Our animals and plants are dying at an accelerating pace which is why I became interested in rewilding because the loss of our ecosystems, ultimately means the loss of our human species. What was interesting being with a tribe, was questioning what I want to do with my life and in my own environment. I became tired of working in abstract social change spaces focusing on fixing deeply broken systems; I’d rather plant 50 trees or grow some tomatoes and feel more fulfilled. I want to be part of the attractive alternative. We are in a climate and environmental emergency and we need some fresh radical thinking. We need to rethink our lives and values.
Floree Zama-Neagra helping make Islington – and London – healthier and greener (c) FZN
Q: How have you found living in Islington?
Islington is an interesting place, it has been quite hard to interact with communities. Then because of an event online to celebrate World Environment Day run by Eilidh Murray from Inspiring Sustainable Islington I’m starting to know more sorts of groups. I’d love access to a plot of land, but I don’t know where I was supposed to go or what to do to get one. I wasn’t sure if this was because I’m a foreigner, but even though I’m a community person, and have worked with Impact Hub Islington, it has been very difficult to connect with activist movements in the borough.
For now Islington is meeting Floree’s needs, but how long will she stay? “I’ve loved living here for four and a half years. I’m craving for a more quiet place with my own garden though. So, when it’s time to go I’ll probably move out because rents are insane in Islington and especially finding a garden would be quite difficult.” Until then she’s kept busy enjoying nature, coaching, facilitating and Managing London Rangers for National Park City. Curiously although she’s here and there are already 54 Rangers across London, “We haven’t received an application from anyone in Islington.”
“We definitely would love to have some Islington Rangers. A Ranger is someone doing or wanting to do work contributing to London being healthier and greener. It can be about getting more children outdoors, getting people to reconnect with nature, or working with groups who don’t use green space and take them on historical walks or paint a mural together. Normally a Ranger needs to give at least five days of volunteering a year – they could work on their own projects or with other Rangers. They are reps in the borough and build the relationship with the council and with other organisations in the borough.
- National Park City will be recruiting Rangers again in 2021, so if you are interested to apply, follow on http://www.nationalparkcity.london
- Twitter:_floree_
- Insta: floree33
Over to you
If you’d like to nominate someone to be interviewed who grew up, lives or works in Islington, or suggest yourself, please let me know, via nicolabaird dot green at gmail dot com. A special thank you to Eilidh for introducing Islington Faces to Floree. If you enjoyed this post you might like to look at the A-Z index, or search by interviewee’s roles or Meet Islingtonians to find friends, neighbours and inspiration. Thanks for stopping by. Nicola
