The re:generation project was a pilot festival of collective action aimed at raising awareness about how to make legal use of empty commercial buildings for the benefit of the community. Organised by ReSpace Projects and Hackney Roots, it took place in Dalston, at The Hive.

For two and a half years, The Hive operated as a free social centre, repurposing empty buildings and wasted resources to create an independent environmental and cultural space. The Hive was brought to life by ReSpace Project, an award-winning initiative focused on community reuse.

ReSpace aims to build innovative environments from vacant buildings, wasted resources, and volunteered time, creating a network of mutual aid hubs to help build a better world. These innovative spaces have been proven to address issues such as homelessness, poverty, hunger, health, and various political, economic, and social challenges.

The seedling for The Re:Generation Project was The Hive's need to develop and raise awareness about their exciting community space. It took shape as a weekend festival, a sort of utopian machine designed like an online system, but free from profit, encouraging real-life, data-free connectivity and advocating for serendipity. The festival brought the community together, helping to break isolation by fostering connections between neighbours and nurturing a genuine sense of belonging.

The concept also draws from the historical tradition of barn raising, a collective action where a community comes together to build or rebuild a barn for one of its members. Built on synergy and cooperation, it gives rise to a whole that is greater than the sum of its parts.





















This collaborative and entirely free festival involved thinkers, activists, and social entrepreneurs, united by the belief that true change can only be achieved through lived experiences. The collective envisioned a cross-disciplinary festival featuring a series of live events, offering a platform for creation driven by passion, enjoyment, and a desire to address societal issues.

The activities included herb-growing workshops, cooking from surplus to fight food waste, painting, a cake-off, live music, organic networking, and discussions on collective action by a panel of participants. The festival’s format highlighted the benefits of applying corporate networking to community projects, encouraging people to meet, exchange ideas, and shift away from monetized systems toward give-and-take or service exchange models, sparking further collaborations after the festival.

A Dialogue Session featured brilliant speakers who shared their thoughts on what’s required for collective action, discussing everything from engagement and outreach to business, media, politics, and the spaces that could facilitate collaboration:

Kofi Oppong, Founder & CEO,Urban MBA,
Jason Mollring, former Senior Programme Manager, Nesta
Caroline Russell, Councillor, Green Party
Hilary Wainwright, Co-editor, Red Pepper Magazine
Dan Sofer, Founder, Founders and Coders
Michael Sani, CEO, Bite the Ballot
Liam Prior, Photographer, Us Humans UK

Some contributors included:


Good Gym: A community of runners, walkers, and cyclists helping local organizations and isolated older people through practical tasks.

Legal Geek: A platform promoting ethics in business, hosting legal tech conferences that connect changemakers and industry leaders to positively impact the legal sector.

Square Root Soda: A social enterprise crafting soft drinks from fresh fruit.

Trew Era Cafe: A non-profit coffee house founded by Russell Brand, employing former drug users in recovery and helping them reintegrate into the workforce.

Hackney Herbal: A social enterprise promoting health and wellbeing through herbs.

FoodCycle: An organization fighting food poverty, loneliness, and waste by working with volunteers and surplus food to provide welcoming spaces where people can meet, eat, and connect.

Made in Hackney: A community food kitchen championing plant-based eating, tackling health inequalities, food access, and the climate crisis through equitable food systems.


OLIO: A mobile app for sharing items within communities, reducing household and food waste through giving, borrowing, and lending.

Forest Recycling Project: A charity with environmental and social goals, engaging with London communities to reduce, reuse, and recycle waste while promoting sustainable living.

BikeWorks: A social enterprise offering cycle maintenance and instructor training courses. Surplus funds support inclusive cycling initiatives like the All-Ability Clubs for people with disabilities.

Restoration Station: A furniture social enterprise that repairs and restores mid-century pieces, while providing woodworking skills and support to people in addiction recovery.

Bootstrap: A workspace and charity promoting responsible business practices to address inequality in Hackney.

Urban MBA: A non-profit that equips marginalised young adults with enterprise skills, building resilience and supporting them in launching sustainable businesses through enterprise programs and business courses.

Bite the Ballot: An international, party-neutral social enterprise specialising in civic and community engagement.

Founders and Coders: A UK-based non-profit that provides free training and apprenticeships in software development