In Spring 2024, funded by a Catalyst Award, the Willow Worlds project was established in a public park in Fife, growing willow branches to protect young trees from deer. The project aimed to assess whether living structures could offer a natural, attractive alternative to plastic tree guards.

Today, the original Willow World structures are thriving and providing the foundation for the next phase of work. With the Change Award, Willow Worlds 2: Cut and Plant will explore how willow’s ability to grow from cuttings can drive expansion. Environmental workers will harvest local willow and create new Willow Worlds across Fife and the Forth Valley, building skills while reducing costs, capturing carbon and supporting wildlife, all without the use of plastic.

Through gathering findings from across multiple sites, the group hope to demonstrate how this approach can be repeated further afield. All their findings will be documented openly and supported by short films that share their progress and reflections in an accessible way.

See Catalyst awarded project: https://williamsontrust.org.uk/projects/willow-worlds/