Case study: SWIMBY – Something Wonderful in My Back Yard (2016)

‍Songs of community energy and joyful protest

Following the success of The Element in the Room, Regen collaborated again with poet Matt Harvey, this time with composer Thomas Hewitt Jones and community choirs to create Something Wonderful in My Back Yard (SWIMBY).

Conceived as a playful counterpart to the NIMBY (“Not In My Back Yard”) label often thrown at renewable energy projects, SWIMBY celebrated the positive, local benefits of community energy.

The centrepiece was the SWIMBY Songbook — a collection of original songs with lyrics by Matt and music by Thomas. The songs were performed by community choirs at festivals, conferences, and local events, bringing humour, harmony, and hope into conversations about climate and energy.

“SWIMBY was a joyful way of saying: these technologies aren’t blots on the landscape — they’re things we can be proud of, sing about, and celebrate together.” – Matt Harvey

The Project

• Funded through the ERDF Centre for Business and Climate Solutions at the University of Exeter.
• Involved collaboration with community choirs in the South West.
• Performances ranged from village halls to national conferences, turning energy discussions into shared cultural experiences.
• The project produced a lasting resource in the form of the SWIMBY Songbook, available for other choirs to adopt.

Impact

• For Regen: SWIMBY reinforced Regen’s pioneering role in using the arts to reframe energy debates, giving the organisation visibility and credibility in both creative and community spaces.
• For communities: singing together about solar panels, wind turbines, and climate action turned technical issues into sources of joy and local pride.
• For Matt: the project expanded his work from poetry into songwriting, demonstrating how humour and music could work hand in hand to engage audiences.
• For the sector: SWIMBY showed how creative expression can dismantle stereotypes (like NIMBYism) and foster enthusiasm for renewable energy.

Legacy

The SWIMBY Songbook remains a resource for choirs and communities to perform, ensuring the project’s messages live on. It also paved the way for Regen’s continued interest in musical, performative, and participatory approaches to energy engagement.

Matt reflects:

“Energy projects can inspire music, laughter, and togetherness. SWIMBY was proof that climate action doesn’t have to be grim — it can be joyful.”

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