Organizers of a nature festival in the Cumbria region of England have been forced to insist that “clothing is recommended” for attendees after a mix-up caused the family event to be mistaken for a nudist gathering, reports The Independent.
The situation was due to a confusion of terms: the festival is dedicated to “naturalists” (which in English means nature lovers), but some understood it to be for “naturists” (meaning nudists, in English).
Organizers of the Cumbria Nature Festival, which will take place between May 8 and 10 in the north-east of England, later said they were giving attendees the opportunity to appreciate the region's “unparalleled natural beauty and ecological richness” and that this meant the event was for “NATURALISTS… not NATURISTS”.
In an email to The Independent, a spokesperson for the festival added that “this is a family event and we want people to feel safe and comfortable here, so clothing is recommended.”
“Even though the location is a festival, there is still wildlife in the area and the clothes tend to act as a barrier against a few [creaturi] which could be tempted to peck!”, he joked about the confusion.
How the confusion that worried the festival organizers started
Organizers have offered refunds to any 'naturist' who booked a ticket by mistake, but added: “If people do arrive without clothes, we'll ask them to put something on and join us to learn more about Cumbria's fauna and flora! Maybe we'll be able to encourage more people to become naturists.”
The spokesperson said the misunderstanding may have started from “a typo in a reply to one of our Facebook posts”.
“After all, 'naturist' and 'naturalist' look quite similar, even though they mean very different things,” he added.
The festival, which includes live music, presentations by conservationists, guided nature walks and creative workshops, aims to “inspire conservation and appreciation” of Cumbria's natural world and local environment.
The spokesperson explained that “being a very biodiverse county with many different habitats and species, we want to show this to the people of Cumbria and give them the opportunity to bring nature closer to them.”
