Combining art and advocacy, the Royal School of Needlework is championing biodiversity, using needle and thread to craft powerful messages about the importance of protecting the natural world. ‘Fragile Threads’, is an innovative and collaborative partnership programme made possible thanks to a £247,000 grant from The National Lottery Heritage Fund and aims to spotlight endangered species, celebrate ecosystems, raising awareness and inspiring action to preserve the planet’s extraordinary biological diversity.

Embroidery is an art form celebrated for its intricate beauty and throughout history has served as a dynamic medium for environmental storytelling. Unique and rich embroidery traditions have used stitching to record events, impart knowledge, and make powerful statements. Fragile Threads places creative self-expression and the fragility of the natural world side by side. Embroiderers have always looked to the natural world for inspiration, and their artwork has recorded the movement of species around the world, mapping their importance to global social and economic networks. However, 37% of species in the UK have experienced population decline over the past 50 years (Source: State of Nature Partnership 2023) , and globally one million species are thought to be at risk*.

Fragile Threads has enabled us to collaborate with conservation groups, educational and art establishments and invite their communities to contribute their stitches to biodiversity-themed projects. A series of projects will teach participants new skills and help them better understand the fragility of their natural surroundings by embroidering their own biodiversity stories.

Rhian Harris, Chief Executive of the Royal School of Needlework said:

“For centuries, the art of hand embroidery has been inspired by nature and has been a powerful platform for self-expression. Through Fragile Threads we aim to amplify awareness of critical ecological issues, including habitat loss, climate change and species extinction. We are thrilled to have the support of The National Lottery Heritage Fund, and it is thanks to National Lottery players that we can bring this project to life and help promote both the art of hand embroidery and the urgent need to address biodiversity loss.”

Partnerships with a number of visionary organisations include :

• Action for Conservation – a bespoke embroidery project to explore the importance of sustainable textiles; traditional craft; consumerism and fashion; biodiversity and activism.
• Hope For Home – working with socially isolated carers of advanced dementia patients to create simple nature-inspired embroidery piece.
• Global Generation – a series of workshops interpreting nature-based solutions through sustainable hand-stitching.
• Intoart – teaching artists with learning disabilities to create nature-based themed pieces, exploring sustainable materials, natural dyes and embroidery techniques.
• QEST – supporting QEST scholars to research and develop a single nature-based narrative through embroidery, working in diverse, non-textile mediums using sustainable materials.
• Around the World in 80 Fabrics – developing and understanding knowledge about the significance of plant, animal, bio-based and recycled materials, communities and craftspeople.

As part of the initiative, we will also host a symposium and an exhibition towards the end of the programme. Additional projects and events will be weaved into our existing Educational Programme, including the BA Honours Degree in Hand Embroidery taught at Hampton Court Palace, and short courses for leisure stitching.

*Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystems (IPBES) 2019. The RSN commissioned a report on Biodiversity to support the development of Fragile Threads. It provides a comprehensive overview of the main issues impacting global biodiversity, with a particular focus on the UK, and explores their implications on human populations, ecosystems, and economies.

The National Lottery Heritage Fund – Our vision is for heritage to be valued, cared for and sustained for everyone, now and in the future. That’s why as the largest funder for the UK’s heritage we are dedicated to supporting projects that connect people and communities to heritage, as set out in our strategic plan, Heritage 2033. Heritage can be anything from the past that people value and want to pass on to future generations. We believe in the power of heritage to ignite the imagination, offer joy and inspiration, and to build pride in place and connection to the past.  Over the next 10 years, we aim to invest £3.6billion raised for good causes by National Lottery players to make a decisive difference for people, places and communities.  Heritagefund.org.uk

Fragile Threads Partners

Action For Conservation
Action For Conservation will deliver an interactive webinar and in-person event to 20 AFC Ambassadors who will learn lifelong skills including sewing and mending. They will also take part in a bespoke embroidery project to explore the impact of fashion on the natural world, and the importance of sustainable textiles and traditional craft.  actionforconservation.org

Around The World in 80 Fabrics
RSN is partnering with Around the World in 80 Fabrics, a non-profit working with global communities to champion non-petroleum fabrics—plant, animal, recycled, and bio fabricated. Through Fragile Threads, ATW80F will connect project partners with diverse fabrics, makers and biomes, highlighting the cultural and ecological stories behind biodiverse fabrics. atw80fabrics.com

Global Generation
Young people working with environmental education charity Global Generation will explore the fragility, beauty and interconnectedness of our natural environment through the medium of stitching in partnership with tutors from the Royal School of Needlework, creating a beautiful piece which will be permanently displayed in Global Generation’s new community garden in King’s Cross.  globalgeneration.org.uk

Hope For Home
Hope For Home will offer around 60 unpaid carers who look after their loved ones with dementia at home the opportunity to create simple nature-inspired embroidery pieces. These pieces will contribute to an exciting display for our final exhibition. Expert support will be provided virtually and by telephone. It is hoped that this creative needlework will contribute to the wellbeing of these carers and allow them some time for relaxation away from their caring responsibilities .  hopeforhome.org.uk

Intoart
This dynamic collaboration will provide access to embroidery knowledge to artists with learning disabilities. Together we will create nature-based themed pieces involving full-day workshops exploring sustainable materials, natural dyes, and embroidery techniques.  intoart.org.uk

QEST
QEST, a charity that funds the training and education of talented makers on their craft journeys to excellence, will engage up to 6 makers from its Alumni network, through an open-call, to research and develop a single nature-based narrative explored through embroidery, working in diverse, non-textile mediums using sustainable materials.  qest.org.uk

Images featured are Fantastical Moth by RSN Degree Graduate Eliza Gomersall; Woodland scene applique panel by RSN Embroidery Studio; Advanced silk shading of a Kingfisher by RSN Diploma Student Heather Milne