Our Team

Artist, writer, filmmaker & mother of three, Ciara launched Wildkind and the Grow Slow Initiative in 2022. Wildkind Ireland is a multi disciplinary creative project that began with Ciara’s children’s book of the same title. “Wildkind is a call to come home, to our breath, to our bodies and to our Mother, Earth.”

A film adaptation of the wildkind book is currently in production with the wonderful Dog Ears Animation Studio with the support of NI screen.

Ciara Tinney We Grow Slow - Founder Wildkind Ireland - Founder

Sam Ross-Brown We Grow Slow -Founder

Social worker, PhD Researcher and mother of one. Sam has almost ten years post qualifying experience in her capacity as a social worker, working with children, young people and their families. She is currently completing a PhD with the School of Psychology at Ulster University on the topic of youth homelessness in Northern Ireland, a topic she has previously studied and written on.

Our growth

  • Grow Slow Launched in 2022

    Grow Slow launched in October 2022, a sister project of Wildkind, aiming to help marginalised and refuge seeking chiidren and families develop a sense of place by connecting to nature.

  • Imbolc & Inbetween

    Family event celebrating the new beginnings of nature in spring. Activities included foraging, nature walks and mindfulness. Nature nurtures our sense of place and improves physical & mental health.

  • Bealtaine & Bluebelles

    Family event on the 1st of May , the beginning of Summer. We are invited to slow down in nature and take a leaf out of our native Bluebelle’s book, who takes 5 years to grow from seed to flower.

  • Lúnasa ar Lios na Bruíne

    This event was celebrated at the beginning of the harvest, at a local fairy fort. Designed to bring families together in nature to nurture our sense of place, bringing together all those growing on this shared island, including those who have been displaced and seek refuge and our young digital natives, who are navigating life in two environments.

  • Samhain, Storytelling & Stardust

    A simple event bringing children and parents together in nature to celebrate the changing season. Events included camp fire storytelling, nature hunt and music, for a grounding experience for all.

  • We Grow Slow Movement 2024

    After two years of continued research, conversation, exploration and advocacy founders Ciara Tinney & Sam Ross-Brown launched the new We Grow Slow Movement.

As parents ourselves, we often notice the passing of time through the growth of our children. We see them stretch through a summer, into a new shoe size, a new class, a new season. Long days turn into short years and time seems to fly.

We can’t avoid the passing of time & nor would we want to. Its a privilege to watch your child grow.

We can however, take back control of our time & how we want to spend it, creating new ways for our children to grow, prioritising more growing in green & more safety on screens.