The Floret is a platform for stories.

If the world is a cauliflower, each community is a floret of that cauliflower; some are bigger, some are smaller. Our communities are collectively held together by the stem, which is representative of global systems including our economic and social institutions. The job of the stem is to provide nourishment to the florets and ensure each one can survive and thrive, no matter its size.

Fogo Island is a small floret with big stories. Here, we share these stories to present varying views on life, work, and art on this Island in the North Atlantic. Over a decade ago, Shorefast (a charity) started a series of projects that have allowed both Fogo Islanders and people from away to become entangled in new relationships with this place. Their perspectives are shared here as examples of the social, cultural, and economic impact of Shorefast’s work with community of Fogo Island.

The stories of The Floret and “cauliflower thinking” remind us to think and act holistically and to consider a diversity of lifestyles, viewpoints, and experiences as making up the whole of our human experience.

An initiative of shorefast.org.