The Ambition
Wherever you go it seems that people are struggling and unhappy.
And we know that the planet is suffering just the same.
But is there any wander that we feel unsettled, when everyday we’re blasted with news about the terrible state of things?
Current news scaremongers us and leaves us feeling helpless about the issues that surround us.
Winglewood is different.
Winglewood is for those of us who want to make a difference to the situations we face, but have no idea how.
Helen Fisher is the creator of Winglewood.
She also produces educational videos for her other business The English Woodworker – alongside woodworker Richard Maguire.
Seeing The Bigger Picture
Real solutions are difficult to find when we focus on an issue in isolation.
Currently it’s normal to pinpoint something dramatic about a problem, then focus on it from a very small point of view.
In other words, we’re fed the angle that best sells a newspaper, with very little context.
Winglewood is coming at things from the complete opposite direction.
We’re valuing everyone’s perspective with an open mind. To solve problems it’s necessary to really dig in to their root.
We’re connecting the dots, so our stories can start being solutions.
The Story
I was the child who had woodlice as pets.
That tells you a lot about where this business has come from.
I never really got the people side of things. Couldn’t understand why life is done the way it is.
So I spent a lot of time playing with bugs and being just a little bit different.
And this business reflects that.
I’m not going to play by the usual rules or expectations.
I’m diving in with a half-baked plan, and ‘impossible’ doesn’t exist here.
Doing it differently really is the point. We already have a good idea of what it looks like if we keep doing things the same.
And What’s With The Name?
Winglewood was my imaginary place to spend time in.
A creation that was vivid in colour and sparkling. The animals there (there were no people) were each unique and delighted in what they were doing.
When I was brainstorming names for this business, Winglewood kept cropping up.
It’s a stupid name –
It’s childish, and no one knows what it means.
And they’re the two reasons that I decided to use it.
A homage to the child within all of us. Because without imagination we can’t create change.
And we need something fresh to represent where we want to be headed.
This isn’t about dwelling in the dreary issues of our time – Winglewood is for bringing out the colour.
The Approach
Remember my pet woodlice?
Well there’s a lot that a child can pick up when the fascination for the world is still with them.
Bugs are great at breaking things down. And soil isn’t dirty – it’s the little bits and pieces that used to be useful, that now combine and allow beautiful new things to grow.
There is a huge sense of wander and respect for Nature at the heart of Winglewood.
We’re bringing information on all the issues that affect our daily lives.
But we’re bringing it in an entirely new structure.
Nature inspires us to see that everything effects everything else.
There’s a flow. A cycle.
This happens in our society too, but we neglect it. It’s simpler to focus on the issues in isolation.
Using a structure of ‘Series’, Winglewood seeks to identify the links between our stories.
And whatever that story is, we view it through the concept that Nature is an extraordinary teacher.
Testing the beliefs that improvements can always be made if we head in the direction of:
– Reducing chemicals,
– Closing the resource loop,
– Building beneficial relationships.
Inspired By Nature
Nature flows. Society doesn't.
Our short introduction explains how Nature can become our teacher when seeking steps to improve our lives.
