I came to the land through a gradually deepening realisation — that how we work with the natural world is inseparable from how we live in it.
For a long time that realisation had nowhere to go. I could see the world as it was — simplified, extractive, and out of step with the living systems it depends on — but not how to act within it. That changed when I encountered a body of knowledge that offered a different approach: designing with natural systems rather than working against them. It provided a way to translate principle into practice.
That discovery became a long-term practice. Over the past decade I have led the design and transition of farms and estates across the UK and Europe — working with landowners, organisations, and communities to create land-use systems that function as integrated wholes. Soil, water, food production, habitat, infrastructure, and long-term stewardship are approached as interconnected elements of a single system, rather than as separate problems to be managed in isolation.
Where others see degraded or difficult land, I see potential. Soil can be restored. Landscapes can become diverse, productive, and ecologically functional again. That possibility underpins the work — on the ground, in education, and in the wider conversation about land use. As a Soil Association Ambassador, I contribute to training and public discourse alongside project delivery, recognising that the transition required is cultural as well as practical.
Living Systems is the name given to this practice. The ambition is to contribute, in a grounded and practical way, to a broader realignment between people, land, and the ecological systems that sustain both. Each project is a step in that direction.
Background & Formation
The work developed through a combination of practical experience and formal study.
An early formative point was a residential permaculture design certificate, which introduced a structured way of understanding land as an interconnected system and provided a framework that could be applied in practice.
This was followed by a period of travel through France, Spain, and Portugal, working across farms and land-based projects to understand how ecological principles translate into real systems — from informal settings through to commercial operations.
Professional experience then developed across several projects in northern France.
At Château La Chènevière, a luxury estate with a Michelin-starred restaurant, the role involved the design, implementation, and management of the productive growing system. This included crop planning, establishment of growing areas, and ongoing management of production and harvest, aligned closely with the needs of the kitchens and delivered to a professional standard.
Further experience came through two organic market gardens supplying local distribution — one via farm gate, one via delivery — developing a practical understanding of reliable, small-scale commercial production, including crop planning, succession, and labour efficiency.
This was followed by three years at L’Abri Subtilia, a six-hectare agroecological holding in Normandy, working across food production, floristry, perennial systems, hospitality, and education as a single integrated enterprise. The focus was on long-term stewardship alongside the realities of running a viable business.
Following this period, I moved to the UK to deepen the practice through an MSc in Regenerative Food, Farming and Enterprise at Schumacher College, alongside a Level 4 traineeship in regenerative land-based systems — a year-long programme with weekly teaching from leading practitioners in agroecology, soil science, and regenerative land use.
I then took on lead roles in the design, implementation, and management of whole-farm systems in the UK.
At Higher Farm, I led the transition of improved grassland into a diverse agroecological farm, spanning full system design, implementation, and operation, alongside the development of a commercial enterprise including veg box delivery, markets, and on-site retail.
At Farmacy Farm, a 13-acre site within the Ashdown Forest, the work involved full-site design and project management across water systems, soil development, productive growing, and infrastructure. A borehole and treatment system were installed, hydrology was redesigned through ponds and swales, and a comprehensive soil programme enabled productive systems to be established within a retained wetland landscape.
This work consolidated the ability to deliver complex land-based projects from concept through to implementation and ongoing management, across ecological, infrastructural, and commercial dimensions.
The practice that exists today is grounded in this combination of design, implementation, and operational experience across a range of contexts.