About Future Ancestor
Our Foundations: Indigenous Storytelling & The Earth Charter
Blueway Art Studio founded Future Ancestor in 2024 as a 3-part pilot project, funded through Kildare’s Climate Innovation Fund.
Three parts, one pilot
How the project was structured.
01
Research & Story
Researching the river’s creation story and folklore and linking it to contemporary ecoliteracy — challenging, since colonisation led to the loss of key knowledge. Angelina adapted a new version from fragmented stories, edited by Emily Rainsford, published in the Earth Stories Collection, Volume 3.
02
Event
“Future Ancestor Athy” — held 2 November 2024, with the participation of 15 artists or groups.
03
Review & Planning
A review of lessons learned, and a plan for continued behaviour endurance through Repair Cafés.
The overall project and festival honours Berba, Goddess of the River Barrow. Berba is the witness to all that has come before, symbolising the interconnectedness of past, present, and future. She is a constant presence through changing times; she represents the vital role of the River Barrow in the life and history of the town.
The Earth Charter
The Earth Charter is a document featuring 16 principles that inspire a global movement to build a just, sustainable, and peaceful world. Born from a decade-long worldwide dialogue, the Charter emphasises our interdependence and shared responsibility for the well-being of all people, the greater community of life, and future generations.
Reviving the Voice of Berba
In 2023/24, we dedicated ourselves to uncovering the ancestral creation story of Berba. All of Ireland’s great rivers are named after goddesses and therefore have an unseen connection to Mother Earth’s eternal magic. Over centuries of colonisation, many of our indigenous narratives were silenced, rewritten, or filtered through patriarchal or colonial views, vilifying or punishing the feminine and distancing us from the river’s original voice.
The first four Earth Charter Banners created for Future Ancestor 2024 by Anchor Youth Club, community prayer flags and Griese Youth Theatre’s piece were presented by the young people at the Seánad (Irish Senate, seat of Government) in May 2025. It was an incredibly proud moment to listen to the young people articulate their banner concepts in our centre of politics and decision-making. They were also displayed at the Peace Palace celebrations in July 2025 and at the Mary Robinson Climate & Nature Conference 2025.
