People and Nature Lab Seminar - John Little

John Little

founder at Grass Roof Company Ltd

John argues against long standing protocol within public space and horticulture. 

He suggests structural complexity and topography is overlooked in landscape design and is more important than plant choice for driving biodiversity. Since starting the Grass Roof Company in 1998 he has designed and built over 400 small green-roof buildings, combining deep biodiverse green-roofs with walls of breeding and hibernation space. 

He argues that we must invest in gardeners rather than more infrastructure. After 18 years caring for the greenspace on a social housing estate (Clapton Park) in London and he has started a ‘not for profits’ to train gardeners in everything other than straight horticulture. 

He questions our obsession with specifying topsoil in all new projects, especially on highways and new developments. Habitat trials at his home include a garden designed with spoil from the local road widening scheme and industrial and construction waste. 

In 2008 he launched a range of small green roof shelters based on shipping containers and designed portable structures including bike and bin storage. greenroofshelters.co.uk  

 John can be contacted on Instagram @grassroofco