Centre for Nature Futures

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Heligan is a time traveller with one foot in the past and one in the future. For centuries people have worked the land here and planted trees under whose shade they never sat, to lovingly create these magical gardens.

Now the world is changing. Nature is rapidly vanishing and people are less well connected with wildness than ever before. 

The Centre for Nature Futures is Heligan’s response to those changes. 

You can’t save what you don’t love and you can’t love what you don’t know

We are creating a place for people to engage deeply with nature so we can each play our part in breathing life back into the world.  

Our learning programmes ignite curiosity for nature in young people, including school groups and Heligan Rangers, our out-of-school nature club for 6-11 years olds. More programmes are in development too.

Our nature-connected workshops and retreats inspire everyone to learn new skills, explore their passions, and develop deeper wild connections.

Our nature recovery work is restoring Cornwall’s lost wildlife to this quiet valley and revealing new ways of stewarding land with nature and people in mind. 

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    Learning

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    Wild Connections

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    Nature Recovery

Centre for Nature Futures Events

Heligan Seed Pod 2026

Seed Pod events space

Two modern multi-purpose event spaces in the heart of Heligan with a reception area, state-of-the-art AV, self-contained kitchenette and close access to the wild wonders of Heligan.

Choose from our smaller space for up to 30 people or our larger area for up to 175 seated in theatre style. In each flexible, fully accessible, multi-purpose events space, you can enjoy balcony views over Heligan’s wild fringes, including a traditional orchard and wetland wilderness shaped by our reintroduced beavers.

From Seed To Harvest

The Plant Factory

Created by Plymouth University, the Plant Factory is the future of growing in the heart of these historic gardens.

A vertical hydroponic system, powered by solar PV, created inside a converted shipping container allows us to experiment with different growing mediums and plant varieties to explore the future of horticulture. 

If you are a student or researcher with a project you’d like to host inside the Plant Factory, please get in touch (link)

Thanks to the Good Growth fund for funding these projects.

The Future of Life? photography exhibition 

To celebrate the launch of the Centre for Nature Futures, we invited Marine and Natural History photography students from Falmouth University to submit works under the title “The Future of Life?”

These images will be on display in the Seed Pod until July 2026.

Photo: Airspace by Katie Rowland

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