Ask me where I'm going
Ask me what is my purpose
Ask me what my name is
They call me the coat of hopes...
The Coat of Hopes is a patchwork pilgrim coat, made, worn and walked by hundreds of people over hundreds of miles from Newhaven on the south coast of England to the gates of COP 26, the UN climate summit, in Glasgow last autumn. The coat was made up of pieces of blanket into which were sewn or otherwise marked, the grief's, remembrances, prayers and hopes of people along its route and beyond. The invitation to put on the coat, is an invitation to be empowered by the warmth of the love that it holds, to carry the weight of responsibility we all share to respond with our whole self to the climate and ecological emergency we face together.
We are currently working on renewing this website to tell fully of its journey, patches and pilgrims in the best way we can. In the meantime you can investigate what's here using the menu in the top right hand corner. You will find the words and music for the Coat Song under "media".
If you would like to arrange for the coat to visit your community please email yes@coatofhopes.uk
Invitation to World Leaders
and Delegates at COP26
to wear the Coat of Hopes
To the Leaders and Attendees of COP26
An invitation to put on the Coat of Hopes
We'd like you to find one moment to put on this coat. A coat that has travelled the length of the British Isles, carried on the shoulders of pilgrims.
Sewn into it are hundreds of pieces of blanket - the patchwork hopes, of a people for their land. In the patches you will find griefs for the loss of species, remembrances of landscapes irreversibly changed, prayers that our hearts can expand to welcome those displaced by climate breakdown, hopes and dreams of joy in nature, of safe and sustainable access to fresh food, of safety and freedom to play for our children, and for the children of all beings.
We ask nothing else than this. There's no ideology or policy position that you might accidentally endorse by wearing it, no hidden social media gotchas in store. We ask that you just put it on. To feel it on your shoulders; to feel the weight of all these hopes that have been carried so far, to feel the warmth of the love and energy invested in this garment by children, gardeners, council workers, grandparents, businesspeople, artists - all those that have carried the coat to Glasgow, or made a patch, or simply worn it for a moment and become part of its story.
We ask this as an act of communion. Of fellow feeling. As an indication that you stand with us. We are the generation who gets to decide the future of life on this planet. And you are our leaders and this is the moment of decision.
To make an appointment to wear the Coat of Hopes email yes@coatofhopes.uk
Extendemos una invitación a que te pongas el abrigo de esperanzas.
Nos gustaría que encontraras un momento para ponerte este abrigo. Un abrigo que ha viajado el largo de las Islas Británicas, acarreado en los hombros de los peregrinos. Cosido en él hay cientos de pedazos de manta -un mosaico de esperanzas, de un pueblo por su tierra. En sus parches encontrarás pesadumbre por la pérdida de especies, recuerdos de paisajes irreversiblemente cambiados, oraciones para que nuestros corazones se puedan expandir para dar la bienvenida a aquellos desplazados por el colapso climático, esperanzas y sueños de alegría en la naturaleza, de acceso seguro y sostenible a alimentos frescos, de seguridad y libertad de jugar para nuestros hijos y para los hijos de todos los seres vivos.
No pedimos nada más que eso. - Al usarlo, no corres el riesgo de accidentalmente apoyar una ideología o posición política, tampoco forman parte del trato ‘gotchas’ ocultos en redes sociales. Simplemente te pedimos que te lo pongas. Que lo sientas en tus hombros; que sientas el peso de todas estas esperanzas que han sido acarreadas desde tan lejos, que sientas la calidez del amor y la energía imbuida en esta prenda de los niños, jardineros, trabajadores municipales, abuelos, empresarios, artistas -todos aquellos que han llevado este abrigo a Glasgow, o han hecho un parche, o simplemente lo han usado por un momento y se han convertido en parte de su historia.
Lo solicitamos como un acto de comunión. De solidaridad. Como indicación de que contamos con tu apoyo. Nosotros somos la generación a la que le toca decidir el futuro de la vida en este planeta. Y ustedes son nuestros líderes y este es el momento de tomar una decisión.
Une invitation à revêtir le manteau de l’espoir
Nous aimerions que vous trouviez un moment pour enfiler ce manteau. Un manteau qui a voyagé la longeur des Iles brittaniques, porté sur les épaules des pélerins.
Des centaines de morceaux de couverture sont cousues dedans, le patchwork des espoirs d’un peuple pour leur terre. Vous trouverez dans les patchs, les chagrins pour la perte d’espèces, les souvenirs d’un paysage changé de façon irréversible, les prières que nos coeurs puissent se gonfler d’accueiller les personnes déplacées par la dégradation du climat, les espoirs et les rêves de joie dans la nature, d’accès sûr et durable aux aliments frais, de la sécurité et la liberté de jouer pour nos enfants et pour tous les enfants du monde.
Nous vous demandons rien d’autre de le mettre. En le portant vous ne prendriez accidentellement une position ni idéologique ni politique. Quant aux médias sociaux, il n’est pas question de se faire avoir. Nous vous demandons tout simplement de le sentir sur vos épaules, de sentir le poids de tous ces espoirs qu’on a portés si loin, de sentir la passion et l’énergie investie en ce vêtement par les enfants, les jardiniers, les employés de la municipalité, les grandparents, les hommes et les femmes d’affaires, les artistes, par tous ceux qui ont portés le manteau jusqu’à Glasgow, ceux qui ont fait un patch ou ceux qui tout simplement l’ont mis pour un moment et par conséquent sont devenus une partie de l’histoire.
Nous demandons ceci comme un acte de communion, comme la sympathie, comme un signe de solidarité avec nous. Nous sommes la génération qui décidera de l’avenir de la planète. Vous êtes nos dirigeants et c’est le moment de la décision.
各位COP 26代表您好！
在外面有一件外衣，那件外衣是用方补丁拼起来的， 数百人一起做这件外衣，轮流穿着它，走了几百英里到这儿。
我们邀请你们，耒穿上这件 “希望的外衣”，以此来庆贺他们付出的努力，并显现与所有地球生命的联结
CONTACT: yes@coatofhopes.uk
Something has brought you here.
To these words, on this screen
– perhaps the rumour of a coat of hopes?
I ask in all gentleness, please read or listen to this invitation:
+ Invitation: Read
Will you come to the top of this hill with me?
Look out across the landscape of now; the grey sky stretching over a thousand, thousand closed front doors, the faceless traffic flowing endlessly somewhere, masked parents queuing orderly to pick up their children from school.
A storm is passing, and the air grows still, but the horizon remains dark.
What is there to say, above the hum of traffic and washing machines and devices on standby? Are you feeling the cold? The cold of not knowing what to do? The cold of not feeling a part of the story? The cold of sitting alone? The cold of being static with fear? The cold of having no voice? The cold of uncertainty about tomorrow?
I want to make you a coat.
A coat to warm you. To warm you; with a sense of what to do, and of being a part of the story, with the knowledge that you are not alone, alone; a coat that will not be still, a coat to carry your voice and to comfort your uncertainty. A comforter, a carrier of sorrows, remembrances and a carrier of hopes. Stitched from the ragged past into a gentle armour against a sharp future. So you can wear the promise that we all belong together.
But I can't.
I can't do this alone.
How can such a coat be made? And by whom?
Only by many hands, cut pieces of blanket, embroidered, stitched and joined, on a journey. Like a living fable, this coat must grow as it travels on many backs, from the south coast of this island to the city of Glasgow in the north, every person who is willing, may have a piece joined to this coat. It will be a pilgrim coat, it will be a coat of hopes.
Look to the North, and into the near future; world leaders, gathering like rooks to once again talk about the brewing storm – unstable global climate, ecological collapse and mass extinction. That is where your coat must go. Will you let them try the weight of our hopes? If they stand with us, they will delay no longer for the sake of growth, they will act now for the children of the future. May it's warmth be their encouragement, and our messages guide them...
28 August - 28 October 2021
Follow the coat of hopes on its journey to COP26 from Newhaven to Glasgow.
Walking Schedule & Route
Latest News