Future Generations: Success for Amgueddfa Cymru Graduate! Kate Breeze, 21 May 2026 In March, I became Amgueddfa Cymru’s first ever graduate of the Future Generations Leadership Academy (FGLA)! Run by the Future Generations Commissioner for Wales, the FGLA brings together a selected group of 18-30 year-olds from all corners of Wales to unlock leadership skills and expand knowledge on the Wellbeing of Future Generations Act. This all started when Amgueddfa Cymru announced that they had been awarded funding via the National Lottery Heritage Innovation Fund Project #GROW to sponsor a participant, which then culminates in the person working with #GROW Project Leads to support sustainability and climate action in line with the Wellbeing of Future Generations Act. I have always been passionate about nature and how it can shape our identity, our place in the world and our wellbeing. As a second language Welsh speaker too, I always found the crossover of language with nature, and how it can evoke different connections to our cynefin deeply fascinating. This opportunity felt the perfect opportunity to implement this passion tangibly with the enrichment of the FGLA skills and knowledge I gain. I was so excited to be part of FGLA 5.0 this year and Amgueddfa Cymru’s first ever participant - it was both thrilling and a little daunting to be the first person ever. However, it has been an amazing chance to gain skills to drive positive changes within the organisation, inspired by the values of the Wellbeing of Future Generations Act. As a public body, Amgueddfa Cymru is subject to requirements of the Act, and it is pivotal that the next generations of staff have the knowledge and experience of it to channel it into positive action. My FGLA journey kicked off with a residency where I met my cohort for the first time. We shared ideas, our ambitions networked as future leaders. We also met the residency speakers, Academy alumni, and the Future Generations Commissioner for Wales, Derek Walker. This was incredibly inspiring and set the tone for my fortnightly training sessions across the 8-month programme. I learned a range of things - from how to act and consider seven generations ahead, building a wellbeing economy, to how other leaders are pioneering the Act. Our final residency in North Wales further sparked my ideas and built my networks with people doing such amazing work across the public, third and private sector in Wales. As training developed, I also shared and explored ideas with different colleagues, and it’s been so gratifying seeing how others are excited at the potential of working in new ways. At last, my experience culminated with a fun but bitter-sweet graduation in Cardiff with my cohort, the Future Generations Office, alumni, as well as representatives from Welsh Government and organisations. I even took part as a speaker to present my change plan (more on that below!). It was amazing to be able to share how I’ve embedded my new skills and knowledge into a plan. So what’s next? As part of the FGLA, each person creates something called a ‘Change Plan’; a proposal in your area of expertise, which channels your new learning into a practical plan for their place of work to better align to the Wellbeing of Future Generations Act. My change plan looks at how we can blend language, nature and cynefin to develop opportunities for Amgueddfa Cymru audiences which invoke connection, belonging and wellbeing and helps people to connect to their cynefin and to nature overall. Linking these together not only fosters deeper learning and care about the natural world, it invites people to reconnect to nature, shares intangible cultural heritages and links language to ecological literacy.The outcome of this contributes to a future Wales where growing people’s connections, knowledge and care for nature inspires future resilience. It also shows how Amgueddfa Cymru can be a hub for Welsh language as a way to experience nature and cynefin - inspired by our collections, spaces, programming, events and experiences.I am immensely proud to have had this opportunity to develop, from scratch, an ambitious, creative plan aligned to Amgueddfa Cymru’s organisational goals. I’m excited to see how it may be applied in order to contribute to a better future for Wales. This opportunity would not have been possible without the support of the National Lottery Heritage Innovation Fund Project #GROW, which builds workforce resilience in the face of climate change. I also extend my grateful thanks to my GROW project colleagues, Sarah Younan, Heather Jackson, Steph Burge, and Victoria Hillman for all of their support.
Conservation work on National Slate Museum objects 16 April 2026 Conservation is at the heart of the National Slate Museum redevelopment project and our conservation team are already hard at work assessing and working on the collections to make sure they look their best and keep them safe so that they can be enjoyed for generations to come when the Museum reopens. Jennifer Griffiths is Senior Conservator of Industry Collections and is one of several team members working on the National Slate Museum collection. here she tells us a bit more about her work. “I’ve started my part of the conservation work with treatment of a pay trolley." said Jennifer." This wooden cabinet contains 49 small pay tins made from tin-plate. The cabinet and all of drawers within the cabinet were extremely dirty with surface and ingrained dirt and the tins, all very heavily corroded. The cabinet can be seen here before and after conservation." "So far, the conservation of the cabinet and 7 of the tins has taken a total of 45 days' work.""Each pay tin takes 2 days to complete and so far, 7 tins have been completed.""Just 42 tins to go!"Over the next few months we'll be taking a closer look at all the other conservation work taking place including cleaning our wooden pattern collection, paper and artworks, furniture and clothing! The National Slate Museum redvelopment project is funded by The National Lottery Heritage Fund, UK Government via Cyngor Gwynedd as part of the Llewyrch o'r Llechi project, Welsh Government including the Community Facilities Programme, the Wolfson Foundation, Garfield Weston Foundation and other funders. We are extremely grateful to all our funders for their support.
Spring at St Fagans Ellen Davies, 18 March 2026 Spring is a special time at St Fagans. There are daffodils and crocuses in bloom, and the farmyard is a hive of activity. From February to April, Llwyn-yr-eos Farm is alive with the sound of bleating as the expectant ewes take shelter in the lambing sheds. This year, we’re expecting over 350 lambs. Around 200 lambs have been born so far and there’s still plenty more to come! We keep three rare Welsh breeds of sheep at St Fagans:Hill Radnor Llanwenog Welsh Black Mountain Keeping native breeds of sheep is important as they are a vital part of Wales’ farming heritage. You can learn more about these rare breeds in this blog. Once the lambs are born, both the lamb and their mother are marked with the same number, so we know who belongs to who! The ewes and lambs are moved from the main lambing shed into smaller nursery pens, before being turned out into the fields a few days later. Can you spot any of the new arrivals as you walk around the museum? Please note, to protect the welfare of our sheep, no dogs are allowed in the farmyard during lambing. Can’t make it to St Fagans? We’re not streaming live from the shed this year, but you can watch the action from previous years’ on our website.
Celebrating Women Who Lead: Helen Goddard, Project Director, National Slate Museum Redevelopment 6 March 2026 For International Women's Day, we are shining a light on one of the incredible women that’s shaping the future of the National Slate Museum. Let us introduce you to Helen Goddard, Project Director for our redevelopment project. Leading with Purpose As Project Director, Helen oversees every aspect of the ambitious redevelopment of the National Slate Museum. Her role is all about ensuring the project delivers on its full potential creatively, culturally, and for communities across Wales and beyond. “I’m responsible for the project as a whole,” Helen explains, “and for making sure it delivers on its ambition.” A Journey Through Heritage Before joining the museum, Helen worked as an archaeologist and community archaeologist before moving into community development work. She spent many years working in the breathtaking northern and western Isles of Scotland, supporting island communities with heritage and community infrastructure projects. Helen moved to Wales in 2011, driven by a personal ambition to learn Welsh. She later qualified as a museum professional while working for Conwy County Borough Council. Women Leading the Way Helen is passionate about women taking up space in sectors where they’ve historically been underrepresented. While the heritage world has strong female representation, construction remains more male dominated. But at the National Slate Museum, the picture is different. “One of the wonderful things about our project is that there are numerous women in leadership roles,” she says. “Our Head of Site, Elen; Exhibition Development Manager, Ulli; our Curator, Cadi; and our Heads of Capital Projects, Julie and Diane. All outstanding women.” Her advice for other women entering similar fields? “Lead authentically. You don’t need to behave in traditionally male ways to lead. It’s okay to show emotion, to be collaborative, and to trust your team.” Life Beyond the Museum When she’s not leading a major redevelopment, Helen’s full of surprises, including one unforgettable chapter of her life: “I once worked on a fishing boat in the Outer Hebrides!” Inspired by a Strong Woman Helen credits her mother as one of her greatest inspirations. “My mum came from a family of 10 children living in rural poverty and went on to carve out her own destiny, never compromising on her dream to help people. She became a Nurse Practitioner towards the end of her career.” Thanks for sharing, Helen, you are a true leader and inspiration!
Hidden Wildlife in the Museum Garden Josh David-Read, 3 March 2026 Before 2017 the Waterfront Museum’s central garden was plain, and had no interest for wildlife to thrive. Then in came the GRAFT Garden to shake up the soil and to introduce a haven for wildlife in what is a concreted area of Swansea. Over the last two years I have found many species of insects and birds visit the Garden, and some have even made the Garden their home. In GRAFT we do not use any pesticides, and try to use natural organic solutions to the problems posed by pests. For World Wildlife Day I am spotlighting some of our most exciting and annoying bugs and birds that visit the Garden and how they impact the space. Compost Royalty! 👑🌱We produce our own compost on site, this is the best place to spot the royalty of the compost heap, and the best bugs in the business of breaking down organic matter into the lovely soil for our growing beds. We have the humble Earthworm which helps Aerate the soil and breaking the organic matter into useable soil. We have hundreds if not thousands of them! And did you know that there are over 16 different species! Pollinators 🐝🌼 The insects we love the most! The pollinators. These are a collection of insects (and sometimes birds but not in our case) that support our ecosystem. We of course have our Honeybee’s managed by our beekeeper Alyson and a group of students from Dylan Thomas School. At its peak we have over 100,000 bees in our hives!Bee’s play a massive part in global biodiversity and food production and we are lucky to have them here on site! Please keep an eye out on our what’s on pages on the website for your opportunity to see them! Pests 🐛Every gardener will have a battle with insects, be it Cabbage Moth or Slugs eating all our crops! But I am going to highlight a lesser known garden pest called the Aphid. These are tiny black insects that collect in their thousands on plants. Aphids love our Broad beans and Broccoli. They can cause disease in plants so it is important to regulate them. We use companion planting and also some water mixed with fairy liquid to try and support our plants.We also have a super hero in the form of Ladybugs who eat Aphids and help us create balance. Did you know you can buy ladybugs in the post? I didn’t! Birds 🐦I am not a bird watcher, however when I am working in the garden and see birds follow me around the garden it fills me with a little bit of Joy! We found evidence of a nest in our Grapevine last year, I am not sure what species this belonged to, but we also have a resident Robin that calls Graft its home and is its ‘patch’. Robins are extremely territorial and you will rarely see more than one Robin. We haven’t named this one yet, but maybe we should name it Charles Watkins after the inventor and creator of The Robin Goch monoplane …. So next time you visit the museum, take a walk out into the GRAFT garden and see what wildlife you can spot.
