The idea for this piece began in July 2012 when I attended the Global Composition Conference in Dieburg, Germany. I went on a soundwalk with Hildegard Westerkamp and came away feeling very lucky to know and understand what a soundwalk was. I decided to organise a soundwalk in my hometown. The idea was to teach people a little about soundwalking and how to listen to their environment. I took about 15 people on this 50 minute walk and the group ranged from about 3-65 years of age. My interaction with the local community and the creation of the soundwalk had a significance influence on the locations of my recordings and the compositional process. The Thing about listening is.... brings together thoughts, experiences, stories and sounds that were discussed and recorded as a result of the soundwalk. I would like to thank Rosemary Porter and Brian Johnson for allowing me to record our conversation about listening and using it in the piece.