Hortus Collective is changing UK landscape design through nature, reuse of materials and close work with architects. In this interview, the studio talks about biodiversity, making places people feel good in and creating gardens that grow and change over time.

In a Birmingham house, Civic Square opens up the hidden layers of the housing crisis. Retrofit House uses natural materials and collective learning to link housing, health and climate, and to show how neighbourhoods might repair themselves.

In Portugal, a proverb says whoever cares about their grandchildren plants a cork oak. Harvested without felling, regrown on long cycles, cork offers a rare building material that renews itself - a slow, living alternative to extractive forestry and fast, fragile afforestation.

Groupwork’s Finchley Road project elevates stone construction with over 400 precision-engineered Larvikite beams and columns. A low-carbon alternative to steel and concrete, it combines structural innovation and sustainability building on lessons from Clerkenwell Close.

Interior design impacts the planet yet awareness is low. Chloe Bullock advocates for sustainable practices - using regenerative materials, avoiding toxic chemicals, and embracing circular design - while engaging clients, communities and nature to reduce harm and protect biodiversity.