Credit: WTML / Andy Fletcher
MycoStrike is only possible due to the work of the Woodland Trust.
In late 2024 I applied to the Woodland Trust's Igniting Innovation competition, and after 2 rounds of presentations, was given £3,000 in start-up funding.
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So far, the funding has gone towards this website and the resources needed for designing the game both by hand and digitally. The rest will go towards the printing, with the profit we make being used to maintain the project and distribute more decks.
After the initial written application outlining our ideas and how they support the main principles of the Woodland Trust, all 18 semi-finalists took part in online training to build our confidence when presenting our ideas and meet other young people with similar interests and motivations.
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This led us to the next stage - recording a 5 minute application video expanding on our ideas! From this application the 18 ideas that made it to the semi-finals were whittled down to the final 6.
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All 8 of the finalists from the 6 teams then had the opportunity to meet in London this May to give the final 10 minute presentation that decided what proportion of the £20,000 prize pot we would receive!
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Throughout the entire process, the Youth team from the Woodland Trust have been a huge support. As I continue to develop the game over the next few months, I'll be keeping in contact with the other finalists and having regular meetings with my brilliant Woodland Trust Mentor to get as much from this experience as I can!
What is the Woodland Trust doing for Fungi?
The Woodland Trust's main principles are protecting, restoring, and creating woodland across the UK. Whilst most attention within woodland tends to go to trees, the Woodland Trust considers the health of woodlands holistically. This means not only the trees are conserved but other plants, animals, and Fungi. For Fungi in particular, the Woodland Trust advocates in several different ways:
Raising Awareness
Project Partnerships
Working with Landowners
One of the major ways the Woodland Trust advocates for Fungi is through raising awareness of their importance to ecosystems and how interesting they are in their own right.
There are lots of resources available if you would like to learn more about fungal pathogens, poisonous species, or work currently going on to investigate Fungi by organisations such as Kew Gardens.
The Woodland Trust is the UK's largest woodland conservation charity. To broaden its impact, the Trust often partners with research organisations to conduct projects on a professional and citizen science level.
Some of the current projects include
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'Fungi4Restor', collaborating with Forest Research and Natural England amongst others to understand how soil woodland Fungi establish on former agricultural land
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Training volunteers to spot pests and tree fungal diseases alongside the citizen science project Observatree
The Woodland Trust works with people from many different backgrounds and contexts. From schools, to local communities and farmers, they offer funding, advice and resources like training or trees themselves.
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In terms of protecting Fungi, one of the main methods is through finding ways to manage woodland strategically to protect standing deadwood - essential habitat for many species.