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Forests Without Frontiers Forests Without Frontiers is a non-profit planting trees for future generations with the help of music and the arts.

As part of our Enchanting Forest project we recently returned to Westerlands in the South Downs to record and film with ...
09/10/2026

As part of our Enchanting Forest project we recently returned to Westerlands in the South Downs to record and film with musicians Nuala Nova and Jack Hogsden, alongside project director and producer Nico de Transilvania , co-producer Jules Abstract Source and the team Katy Jenkyns & Jane Dunford.

As part of our work at Westerlands, we’re helping to restore the landscape through native tree planting. This time, we turned our attention to the sounds of the place, bringing together Nuala and Jack to create new compositions inspired by the landscape around them.

The recordings build on the song we began with the Copper Family, with Nuala and Jack working together to help bring the piece to life. We also captured nature recordings at Westerlands across a full 24-hour cycle, taking in the sounds of both day and night.

“Creating sounds with Jack was great fun. We played around with different tunes and styles of folk music, without trying to make it sound a certain way - just seeing what happened in the moment. The landscape supported the sounds beautifully.” Nuala

“It is a real honour and a dream come true for me to bring these musicians together who are both hugely inspired by folk music and the landscapes and stories that shape it. And also continuing to work with Jules, Murray Ballard and Vasil Dzhagalov on this project, who are part of our FWF creative artistic team” Nico says

A big thank you to South Downs National Park & the South Downs Trust for part-funding this project and to everyone involved in bringing these recordings to life.

📷 Photography by Murray Ballard

It was an honour to bring our films to the Transilvanian International Film Festival TIFF Oradea in Romania last weekend...
02/10/2026

It was an honour to bring our films to the Transilvanian International Film Festival TIFF Oradea in Romania last weekend, where all three films from our three landscapes were screened together for the first time.

Seeing the trilogy on screen in this format really brought the connections between the films to life. We were truly moved by the response from the audience and by the thoughtful questions during our Q&A.

Across the three films, we explore our connection to the natural world and the people working to protect it. Each has been made in collaboration with local conservation partners, researchers, professors and artists, bringing together different generations and perspectives to share knowledge, raise awareness and highlight the possibilities for a more hopeful future.

Taking this work across borders feels important. The landscapes may be different, but the stories remind us how interconnected we are, with each other and with the environments we call home.

A huge thank you to TIFF Oradea for inviting us to screen the films in premiere in Romania and for being part of this special moment.

We’d love to continue taking the trilogy on tour. If you’d like to screen the films in your community, get in touch.

This Saturday, three films created through Forests Without Frontiers’ work across three different landscapes will come t...
24/09/2026

This Saturday, three films created through Forests Without Frontiers’ work across three different landscapes will come together for the first time in Romania at TIFF Oradea #9.

Beyond Frontiers brings together:
🌿 INTERBEING – Fagaras Mountains, Romania. Part funded by Endangered Landscapes & Seascapes Programme in partnership with Conservation Carpathia
🦅 WINGS OVER MOUNTAINS – Eastern Rhodopes, Bulgaria. Part funded by Endangered Landscapes & Seascapes Programme in partnership with the Bulgarian Society for the Protection of Birds
🌳 ENCHANTING FOREST – Sussex, UK. Part funded by Arts Council England in partnership with Sussex Wildlife Trust

Developed over the past five years, these projects explore how art, music and storytelling can connect people with nature and inspire its restoration. Each landscape has its own story, culture and ecology, reflecting our Restore, Nurture, Inspire approach.

We’re happy to be partnering with TIFF Oradea this year. The event will open with a nature soundscape recorded this summer by our director Nico de Transilvania in the beautiful, biodiverse landscapes around Oradea, before taking audiences on a journey through the three films.

📍 Sinagoga Sion, Oradea
📅 Saturday 26th September
⏰ 8pm
🎤 Followed by a Q&A with Nico de Transilvania Director & Producer of these films.

Find out more and get tickets https://tiff.eventbook.ro/film/bilete-tiff-oradea-2026-beyond-frontiers-dincolo-de-hotare

Image credits:
4 - Marius Sumlea
9 - Murray Ballard
10 - Beth Steddon

Really exciting news from Lewes!This week, Lewes became the first town in the UK to recognise the rights of trees, ackno...
18/09/2026

Really exciting news from Lewes!

This week, Lewes became the first town in the UK to recognise the rights of trees, acknowledging their right to flourish and maintain their natural ecological functions.
We were especially pleased that our founder Nicoleta Carpineanu was invited to speak on BBC Radio 5 Live yesterday morning to share her perspective:

“All trees and nature should have rights as they are the lungs of our planet. They clean the air we breathe, store carbon and help us tackle climate change while providing homes for countless species. When we protect trees, we protect our own health and the health of our planet that we depend on."

Recognising the rights of trees is an important step towards changing how we see and value the natural world. While the charter is not legally binding, its ambition is to encourage a cultural shift: to give trees greater consideration in how we make decisions about our towns, landscapes and shared future.

For us, this is at the heart of nature restoration, protecting ecosystems, nurturing communities and inspiring a deeper connection with the living world.

Listen on catch up on BBC Sounds

It was wonderful to return to Westerlands to care for the young trees we planted earlier this year. Despite a hot and dr...
16/09/2026

It was wonderful to return to Westerlands to care for the young trees we planted earlier this year. Despite a hot and dry summer, a really positive number of saplings have survived, a welcome sign of how they're establishing.

Our annual tree tending included mulching, weeding and placing larger stakes around some of the taller trees. We also removed small poplar trees that had grown into the field, using its thinner, leafy branches as mulch to help protect the smaller saplings.

This work is an essential part of helping young trees establish and giving them the best chance of survival.

Thank you to everyone who joined us and helped care for the young scrubland, and to the South Downs National Park Trust for helping to part-fund the event.

We're also grateful to all our donors who support this important part of our restoration work.

And a special thank you to Jack Hogsden for bringing live music to the day. 🌿

Photos Murray Ballard

We need your help! Two FREE opportunities to spend a day in nature tending to young trees. With good food, live music, I...
02/09/2026

We need your help! Two FREE opportunities to spend a day in nature tending to young trees. With good food, live music, Inspiring talks. And the chance to make a real difference to the future of a young woodland.

Saplings need particular care during their first years. The time we invest in them now can make all the difference to their chances of surviving, becoming part of a woodland that will be here for generations to come.

🌿 Thursday 10th September at Westerlands, West Sussex
Join us for our Tree Tending & Nature Connection Day, with live music from Jack Hogsden inspiring talks and a delicious local lunch.
✨ Free to attend
🥪 Lunch provided
🚌 Transport available from Brighton, Shoreham and Pulborough
📩 Register: [email protected] by Friday 4th September if possible.

Thanks to the South Downs Community Fund South Downs Trust South Downs National Park we are able to offer free places, however you are also welcome to support our work by making a donation directly via our website. The event is in partnership with Westerlands Weald to Waves and Locate Productions

We are also looking for volunteers to join us at Wilderlands, East Sussex

🌿 Tuesday 8th September, Wilderlands Rewilding
Join us for a day of tree tending at Wilderlands, in partnership with Wilder Ouse and Sussex Wildlife Trust
🥪 Bring a packed lunch & reusable water bottle
🚗 Own transport required or we can make arrangements for car pooling
📩 Register: [email protected]

Bring a friend and please share with your family and networks, we really hope to see you there!

Photos:
2 ,4, 5, 6, 9, 10 Luke Spencer
3, 8

Come and spend a day with us at Westerlands.Back in the spring, we planted 1,000 young trees at Westerlands. Now we’re h...
28/08/2026

Come and spend a day with us at Westerlands.

Back in the spring, we planted 1,000 young trees at Westerlands. Now we’re heading back to give them some care and we’d love you to join us.

You don’t need any experience, just come ready to get involved, spend time outdoors and help these young trees on their way.

There’ll be tree tending, nature connection, talks, music and food, all in the beautiful surroundings of Westerlands.

Tree Tending & Nature Connection Day

📅 Thursday 10th September
📍 Westerlands, West Sussex

🌱This event is kindly supported by the South Downs National Park Trust

Interested? Email [email protected] to register.

In partnership with Westerlands, Weald to Waves and Locate Productions

Photo credits 1,3,5 Ryan Mero

The next chapter of Enchanting Forest is taking us deeper into the sounds of the South Downs.We’re delighted to have Ali...
26/08/2026

The next chapter of Enchanting Forest is taking us deeper into the sounds of the South Downs.

We’re delighted to have Alice Eldridge continuing to be part of the project, working alongside Project Director & Producer, Nico de Transilvania and the forest team as they explore nature recording across the South Downs National Park.

We began at Devil’s D**e, learning to use new recording equipment and capturing the sounds of the landscape in preparation for a larger recording session at Westerlands next month.

As Alice says, she’s interested in the power of sound “to rekindle these connections” with the wider web of life, something that sits at the heart of Enchanting Forest.

These recordings will become part of the evolving sound scape of the project, bringing the music of the South Downs into the next chapter. 🌳🎶

Meet another of the Sussex based artists helping bring Enchanting Forest to life.Violinist and multi-instrumentalist Nua...
19/08/2026

Meet another of the Sussex based artists helping bring Enchanting Forest to life.

Violinist and multi-instrumentalist Nuala Nova has joined Director/Producer Nico de Transilvania in creating one of two new compositions supported by the South Downs National Park Trust .

A hugely versatile musician, Nuala's ability to move effortlessly between instruments and musical styles brings a unique angle to the project. Inspired by the natural world, her music captures the movement, energy and atmosphere of the landscapes around us.

"Music goes straight to the heart, reshaping how we experience life. We can understand the challenges facing nature intellectually, but when that knowledge is paired with music, we feel it too. Bringing environmental experts together with improvised music and performance in the heart of nature creates something truly powerful. Right now, we need to awaken feeling because the natural world is in crisis and it needs us to act." Nuala Nova

We're so pleased to have Nuala as part of Enchanting Forest and can't wait to share the new music inspired by the landscapes of the South Downs.

Photos:
1 - Screenshot from video by Murray Ballard
2 - Sarah - Branded by Photography
3 - Benedict Stenning

Bringing Sussex's folk heritage into new musical landscapes.We're excited to share the next chapter of Enchanting Forest...
12/08/2026

Bringing Sussex's folk heritage into new musical landscapes.

We're excited to share the next chapter of Enchanting Forest.

With support from the South Downs National Park Trust, Nico de Transilvania is working with Sussex folk musician Jack Hogsden to develop a new composition inspired by traditional Sussex folk songs and the recordings made with Jack at Westerlands.

Blending centuries-old songs with contemporary composition, the project explores how Sussex's musical heritage can continue to evolve while remaining deeply rooted in the landscapes that inspired it.

"Working with Nico to deconstruct and reassemble traditional Sussex folk songs has been an exciting creative process. Combining these historic songs with Nico's musical background and production has opened up a fresh perspective on Sussex's folk heritage. The Copper Family are synonymous with Sussex, and their songs remain deeply connected to the landscape and the people who live here. Through Enchanting Forest, we're bringing these stories to new audiences, helping Sussex's rich musical heritage reach new genres and inspire future generations." — Jack Hogsden

We can't wait to share the finished composition with you later this year.

Photos by Sarah - Branded by Photography

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