Green Light Trust

The Green Light Trust has been working in environmental and social change for 20 years. They have a long-term relationship with remote rainforest dwellers in Papua New Guinea.[1]

Golden Wood, Lawshall - with The Foundry and its wind turbine in the background.

The mission of the Trust is to bring communities and landscapes to life through 'hands-on' learning and the growing of woodlands. With independence and self-sufficiency as the goal, they work with both urban and rural communities to find land, design, plant, manage and own their woodland projects.[1]

The Trust also provide education for sustainable development through local action and global citizenship. Their work in schools involves pupils from early years to the sixth form; from gathering seeds to caring for woods in order to help them develop as wise caretakers of the earth’s resources.[1]

They are based in their headquarters in Lawshall at the Foundry, a carbon neutral building. The Trust have nearly 60 rural and urban community-owned woodland projects in 8 counties throughout the East of England Region with others in Yorkshire, Kent and London. Around 70 hectares of land are now under community management and they have over 1000 volunteers with over 3000 children engaged in continual school programmes.[1]

The organisation began in 1993. Their overall goal now is to build a unique patchwork of rejuvenated landscapes and communities, to initiate 200 projects and impact on 100,000 children.[2]

The Trust run a number of school programmes for children and courses for adults working in education.

The Trust promote forest schools, a Scandinavian education programme promoting woodland-based classrooms which give children the opportunity to learn outdoors and explore the environment.[1]

The Foundry - venue for meetings.

The Foundry is the Green Light Trust's headquarters and training centre which is set in 2.5 acres of meadowland at Bury Road, Lawshall. In 2006, The Foundry was awarded an RIBA Sustainability Award. Built using "deep green" construction methods, it is a carbon neutral building that is as autonomous as possible.

The Foundry was originally an 1840s threshing barn that was transformed into a traction engine maintenance shed in the 1880s. It later became a forge and foundry between 1920 and 1950. Abandoned for 50 years, Green Light Trust decided to make The Foundry their headquarters as well as an example of sustainable building in East Anglia. The project started on 27 May 2005 and a year later the self-sufficient and carbon-neutral building was completed.[1]

• Teach the Future