Posts by Clara
A Welcome Back to the Hedge
By Fay Young, Pond Cottage The road to Pond Cottage rises through comfortably rolling farmland as it has done for more than 200 years. It’s odd to think, despite the turmoil of the wider world, this view must look pretty much as it did to travellers going north in the 18th Century. Old maps show…
Read MoreMeet Kevin, Howe Beer Project
Article coming soon – in the meantime, here is a short description about Howe Beer Project: Howe Beet Project is a hyper-local brewery and taproom with an aim of connecting people to the local landscape and to each other. Situated in Balmalcolm, the brewery looks over the Howe of Fife – the broad flat valley…
Read MoreMeet Laura, Balbirnie Home Farms
Stand at the top of Balbirnie Home Farms and the view stretches out in front of you. The Forth Estuary lies in the near distance, with the Pentlands, Edinburgh, the Lammermuirs and Bass Rock along the horizon. The high ground is where Laura, the livestock manager, likes to be: “You just get a real sense…
Read MoreMeet Jimmy, Hattonburn Farm
Meet Jimmy Smith, a self-proclaimed “non-farmer” who grows Christmas trees and produces eggs alongside his son, Cameron Smith. While Cameron manages the farming side of the business, Jimmy focuses on the broader business operations. Jimmy moved to Kinross-shire in the 1980s without a farming background. A series of unexpected events led him into the farming…
Read MoreOpportunity – Two Artist Micro Commissions
Think Like a Catchment Commission fee: £580Presentation: Saturday 17 October 2026 As part of the Forth Rivers Trust Artist in Residency programme, exploring our relationship with the Leven Catchment, we are inviting two artists and creative practitioners who live or work within the catchment to each respond to the ideas emerging from the residency so…
Read MorePasture to Plate
We are excited to invite you to our Party to Pasture Event! Join us for a fun afternoon at the farm – meet the lovely coos at Balbirnie Home Farms 🐄, discover how they farm in ways that are good for the planet and the people, and learn about where your food comes from. Activities…
Read MoreArtist in Residence: Think Like a Catchment
Before this residency, I had never really thought about a catchment. I knew rivers as individual places. I knew landscapes through neighbourhoods, parks, coastlines and hills disconnected experiences perhaps. But a catchment asks us to think differently. It ignores the boundaries we create and instead follows the movement of water, connecting places that might otherwise…
Read MoreFancy the Scottish Sustainable Agricultural Conference on us?
We are offering financial support for farmers in the Leven Catchment to join the conference. Funding is available on a first come, first served basis! About the Conference On 1 October, the Scottish Sustainable Agriculture Conference will bring together farmers, crofters, landowners and industry professionals from across Scotland to share practical ideas, experiences and knowledge…
Read MoreConnecting Young Hearts to Their Catchment
As part of the lead-up to the Catchment Festival, we’ve been delivering nature-based learning sessions for schools across the catchment, both within classrooms and at the beautiful Pond Cottage. These sessions explore how children connect with the rivers and landscapes around them, helping to build a stronger understanding of and relationship with their local catchment.…
Read MoreBeyond Grants: Community-Owned Renewables
Event Information Join us for an evening exploring the many benefits that community-owned renewables can bring to local communities; from funding nature action and other local priorities, reducing energy costs, to empowering communities to take meaningful local climate action. With dinner at hand, we will hear about what community-owned renewables are, how they work and…
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