  The formation environment of stars in massive stellar clusters is similar to
the environment of stars forming in galaxies at a redshift of 1 - 3, at the
peak star formation rate density of the Universe. As massive clusters are still
forming at the present day at a fraction of the distance to high-redshift
galaxies they offer an opportunity to understand the processes controlling star
formation and feedback in conditions similar to those in which most stars in
the Universe formed. Here we describe a system of massive clusters and their
progenitor gas clouds in the centre of the Milky Way, and outline how detailed
observations of this system may be able to: (i) help answer some of the
fundamental open questions in star formation and (ii) quantify how stellar
feedback couples to the surrounding interstellar medium in this high-pressure,
high-redshift analogue environment.

Astrophysics of Galaxies