The Festival of Debate returns to South Yorkshire for its sixth year in 2020, bringing with it over 130 public events from 14th April to 31st May reaching over 20,000 people.
The festival aims to provide an important platform for debating and discussing the key political and social issues of our time. The event will feature a host of prominent figures, such as broadcaster and Extinction Rebellion supporter Chris Packham, Labour MP David Lammy, commentator Ash Sarkar, Gina Martin, who led the successful campaign to make upskirting illegal and world famous feminist Gloria Steinem, whose life has recently been made into a Hollywood movie.
In addition to hosting an impressive assembly of household names, the festival is coordinated by not-for-profit social enterprise Opus Independents and is co-programmed by over 100 individual partners in Sheffield, Rotherham, Doncaster and Barnsley, meaning it is truly grassroots in nature.
Festival programmer Joe Kriss said: “At a time when Britain has been increasingly polarised along lines of North and South, young and old, left and right, the Festival of Debate creates a critical platform for communities to have these conversations in public. Our hope is that the festival encourages people to participate in their communities and try and make change, together”.
