KNIT FOR WILDLIFE
Creative action for conservation and community
Knitting has long been linked to calm and focus, but research also shows cognitive benefits: Counting stitches and following complex patterns strengthens memory and attention.
As researcher Joanna Nordstrand at Gothenburg University explains:
“Knitting can be a great support, a valuable occupation. It can be calming but also increase the ability to concentrate. It strengthens faith in one’s own abilities and gives both context and identity. Above all, knitting contributes to happiness and joy.”
Knitting has already played surprising roles in wildlife care; sometimes practical, sometimes symbolic, always powerful in raising awareness.
Penguin jumpers (Australia): After an oil spill, volunteers knitted sweaters to stop little penguins from preening toxic feathers. Fewer were needed than knitters produced, but the movement raised global attention and funds for conservation.
Koala mittens (Australia bushfires): Handmade mittens were used to protect burned paws during rehabilitation. Again, the supply outpaced demand, but the story mobilized knitters worldwide and brought urgent visibility to the crisis.
Wildlife nests (ongoing): Knitted and crocheted nests remain in active use at wildlife rescue centers, helping orphaned birds and small mammals stay warm and secure.
These projects show that even when the items themselves aren’t all used, the act of knitting together for a cause creates visibility, solidarity, and support that reach far beyond the stitches.
Practical tip: If you want to knit for wildlife care, always check with local rescue centers, needs change quickly, and the best projects are those shaped by real demand.
Patterns gain power when they are freely shared. Open-source knitting archives, museum collections, and conservation-driven designs allow techniques to spread and evolve. By tying open-access patterns to wildlife causes, knitters amplify stories far beyond their local group.
Practical tip: Document your pattern clearly (gauge, yarn type, modifications) if you want it to be useful to others. Open access is only powerful when others can successfully recreate the design.
KNITTING RESILIENCE
A new software.
Knitting is neuroscience in action. Clinical studies show that repetitive hand movements lower cortisol (the stress hormone) while activating the parasympathetic nervous system, the body’s “rest and restore” mode. This is why knitters often report feeling calmer after just a few rows. It also supports memory, attention, and cognitive flexibility, the very skills that protect us when life gets tough.
Resilience grows when we feel capable. Psychologists call this self-efficacy: The belief that you can influence outcomes. Knitting provides exactly that; a visible proof of progress, loop by loop. Even simple projects build confidence, while more complex patterns train persistence. It’s also linked to the concept of flow: The deep, immersive state where time slips away and stress falls silent. Whether you’re learning your first stitches or mastering cables, knitting offers a rare combination of comfort and challenge. A recipe for stronger mental health.
Resilience is only useful if it fits into real life. That’s the beauty of knitting: It’s portable, affordable, and can be picked up anywhere. Ten minutes on the train, a few rows before bed, or a short break between meetings. Each moment trains your nervous system to return to calm. Researchers even suggest knitting before stressful tasks like exams or presentations, as it improves focus and steadies nerves. Think of your needles as a toolkit you can carry in your bag, low-tech & low-cost, but surprisingly powerful.
Humans are wired for connection, and resilience is often born in community. Knitting has always been social; from traditional knit circles in kitchens to today’s massive online communities. On TikTok, the hashtag #Knittok has passed 2 billion views; on Instagram, wildlife- or culture-inspired knits go viral in hours. Joining a group, posting your project, or even knitting in public can spark conversations and friendships. Shared creativity makes challenges easier to carry and resilience stronger.
In conservation, resilience means adapting and recovering under pressure. Knitting shows the same principle: A fabric made of individual loops can stretch, bend, and still return to shape. Even when torn, it can be repaired and made strong again.
Practical tip: Learn a simple darning technique. Repairing a weak spot instead of discarding the whole piece is the most direct way to practice resilience in knitting - and in life.
A Simple Resilience Tip
Finding Flow
The Power of Knit Circles
Knitting & the Brain
Social Media Knitting
The Red Beanie
POPCULTURE
Knitting renaissance.
When a story travels through fashion, music, film, or craft, it becomes part of who we are. Think of Jacques Cousteau’s red beanie: More than a hat, it became a cultural symbol of ocean exploration. Knitwear has that power. By linking wildlife stories to what people already wear, share, and celebrate, we make conservation visible in cafés, knitting clubs, and Instagram feeds
Knitting has always been more than wool and stitches. It’s identity.
Fisherman’s sweaters from Lofoten, Iceland, and the Faroes once meant survival at sea. Today they reappear on catwalks and in streetwear as bold heritage statements.
In 2021, Olympic athletes went viral knitting between competitions. A quiet act that signaled focus, resilience, and humanity.
The famous red beanie of Cousteau turned knitwear into a global icon for ocean adventure.
When knitwear enters the cultural spotlight, it shapes how we see ourselves. Wildlife-inspired knitting is the next step: Patterns and motifs that remind us we’re part of the same fabric as seabirds, whales, and reefs.
Knitting has gone through a renaissance. TikTok and Instagram have turned #knittok and #slowfashion into global movements, reaching millions. Hand-made garments are trending because they push back against fast fashion, offering mindfulness and personal style in one. Nordic and Atlantic knit patterns, once purely functional, are back, worn proudly from Brooklyn cafés to Berlin galleries.
This cultural current is already moving fast. Knit for Wildlife plugs directly into it, adding a missing link: Conservation. Instead of knitting only for aesthetics, we knit for stories. For seabirds on the edge, for ecosystems under stress, for resilience worth celebrating.
Academic research confirms what knitters already know: Craft builds resilience. Counting stitches and following patterns improve focus and memory. Group knitting reduces stress, builds community, and creates belonging. But there’s more. Studies in cultural communication show that shared creative practices, like knitting circles or TikTok knitting challenges, spread ideas faster than facts and figures.
That’s why knitting can be a serious tool for conservation. When stories are woven into knitwear, they don’t stay trapped in a report. They travel, they trend, and they stick.
HFX MITTENS
Inspired by the Lofoten fishermen and the tattooed mantra Hold Fast, the mittens are a cultural remix with a purpose. Pattern for free.
HFX Mitten Pattern
Local Biodiversity
Community & Conservation
KNITTERS IN RESIDENCE
Love the Oceans
Knitters in Residence is a residency program where knitting meets conservation. Selected knitters collaborate with scientists, conservationists, and local communities to translate wildlife challenges into patterns and narratives. The first cohort launches in October 2025, linked to a Hope Spot in Mozambique in collaboration with Love the Oceans. This round will be fully digital, with webinars, 1:1 coaching, and group workshops.
Photographer: Kaushiik Subramaniam
Love The Oceans’ end goal in Mozambique is to support the community in establishing a Marine Protected Area in the Inhambane Province, using a bottom-up, community-led approach through research, education and diving.
Love the Oceans is a non-profit marine conservation organisation supporting Jangamo Bay. Jangamo Bay, whilst home to a huge host of marine life, has never been studied in depth for any prolonged amount of time. Love The Oceans is supporting the community in protecting and studying the diverse marine life found here, including many species of sharks, rays and the famous humpback whales. We use research, education and diving to drive action towards a more sustainable future. Our ultimate goal is to establish a Marine Protected Area for the Inhambane Province in Mozambique, achieving higher biodiversity whilst protecting endangered species.
This first cohort (2025) will run as a fully digital residency, designed to fit around daily life but still provide professional-level support and collaboration.
Program structure:
Kick-off webinar with marine biologists and conservation partners.
1:1 coaching with textile designers, cultural practitioners, or scientists.
Group workshops exploring narrative techniques in knitting (e.g., lace for fragility, cables for strength, stranded colorwork for biodiversity).
Mid-term sharing of works-in-progress with open feedback.
Final exhibition & digital publication to spotlight residents and their pieces.
Residency outcomes:
Open-access patterns linked to conservation themes in Mozambique (e.g., humpback whales, mangroves, coral reefs).
Limited-edition works (digital or physical) that contribute to awareness campaigns.
Visibility for knitters through publication, exhibition, and international conservation networks.
Why apply?
Your work will be spotlighted internationally, in digital exhibitions and open-access archives.
You’ll gain mentorship and coaching from experts across craft and science.
You’ll collaborate with peers who see knitting not only as craft, but as cultural storytelling and ecological action.
Most importantly: You’ll contribute your skills to a real-world conservation challenge.
Tip for applicants: Both traditional and experimental knitters are welcome. You don’t need to be a professional designer, but you should be curious, open to collaboration, and able to document your process clearly (patterns, notes, or visual records).
Mentors & Guests
1st cohort
Frequently Asked Questions
Knitters in Residence is the first program where knitting meets wildlife storytelling. It is:
Digital-first: Join from anywhere in the world.
Collaborative: Knitters, conservationists, and craft experts working together.
Impact-driven: Designs shine a light on real species and ecosystems.
UN Ocean Decade endorsed: Part of a global initiative for the ocean.
Instead of exhibitions for a few, this residency brings conservation stories into everyday culture; knitting clubs, cafés, Instagram feeds, and limited editions.
Knitting is slow, mindful, and social. It builds resilience, identity, and care; the same qualities needed in conservation. By linking knitting to wildlife:
Conservation becomes tangible. You can hold it, wear it, share it.
New audiences get involved. People who may never read a research paper will still knit a pattern.
Stories travel. Patterns and images live in cafés, homes, and feeds worldwide.
This residency is open to a wide spectrum of knitters:
Experienced designers who want to explore new narratives.
Passionate amateurs who care about wildlife and community.
Textile artists curious about connecting craft with global causes.
You don’t need to be a professional. What matters is your willingness to experiment, share your process, and contribute a final pattern/piece. Diversity of style and background is welcome, the residency thrives on different voices.
Portfolio-building: Add a unique project to your CV or creative portfolio, connected to an international, UN-endorsed initiative.
Expert mentorship: Learn from voices in textiles, sustainability, storytelling, and conservation.
Field context: Access to research, visuals, and stories from whale shark monitoring and coral reef restoration.
Visibility: Your work will be showcased through HoldFastX and partner networks.
Helping wildlife: Simply by participating, your design spotlights a species and case study, bringing it into everyday culture where conservation is rarely visible.
Extra opportunities: Selected works may also be featured in limited editions or kits, creating additional visibility and reach.
Community: Join a global network of knitters who combine craft and care for the planet.
The residency runs digitally over 2 months (mid Oct-mid Dec 2025).
Expect 1-2 touchpoints per week (webinars, meetups, or mentoring) plus time for your own creative process.
This is not a 40-hour commitment. It is designed to fit alongside work, studies, and family life.
The main goal is that you create one finished pattern or design inspired by Mozambique’s wildlife.
Mid-December: Open-access patterns go live (before Christmas).
Early 2026: Results are showcased in a digital publication.
- Applications open: 3-10 Oct 2025
Notifications: by 13 Oct 2025
Kick-off webinar: 17 Oct 2025
Work period: 20th October-12th Dec
Final files due: 12 Dec 2025
Open-access release: Mid-Dec 2025 (before Christmas)
Digital publication/portfolio: Feb 2026
Applications open: 3-10 Oct 2025
Notifications: by 13 Oct 2025
Send your application to: hello@holdfastx.org
Please include:
A short introduction (who you are and where you’re based).
Links to your Instagram/website (Ravelry optional).
3-6 images of your knitting or textile work (finished pieces or work-in-progress).
A short idea spark (100-150 words) about what you might want to explore.
Confirmation of your availability in November-December.
Email subject line: Knitters in Residence 2025
Selection:
Small cohort of ~5 residents.
Based on craft quality, story potential, reliability, and diversity of voices.
Panel includes OCEANhab, Love the Oceans, and invited mentors.
Creative ownership: you keep full rights to your work.
Shared impact: you agree to release one open-access pattern so others can join in.
Flexibility: attend key sessions (live or recordings) and complete one final pattern/piece.
Collaboration: some works may later be included in kits, exhibitions, or publications — always with your agreement.
This is about exploration, storytelling, and helping wildlife through craft.
NORTH ATLANTIC
Seabird decline.
Seabirds are messengers of the ocean. Their calls, colonies, and migrations tell stories about the health of entire ecosystems. Yet across the North Atlantic, puffins, shearwaters, little auks, and eiders are in decline. Challenged by climate change, shifting food webs, and loss of traditional stewardship.
Knit for Wildlife will spotlight these species through digital residencies, transforming conservation knowledge into cultural touchpoints: Patterns, designs, and collaborations that live in cafés, knitting clubs, and social media feeds. The aim is simple but ambitious; to make seabirds part of daily conversation.
Residencies don’t end with patterns. They create ripple effects: Pop-up events, knit-alongs, and tourism pilots where visitors engage with local culture through craft. Imagine a Vega knitting retreat around eider ducks, or puffin-inspired workshops in Iceland. Seabird conservation becomes not only urgent, but also experiential and accessible.
Conservation often preach to the converted. Knitting reaches elsewhere: Younger audiences, craft communities, influencers, lifestyle media. By framing wildlife through pop culture, we bring seabirds into spaces they’ve never been before.
Residency outcomes are open-access patterns, limited editions, and curated campaigns. A puffin beanie sold in Reykjavík, an eider mitten workshop on Vega, or a shearwater-inspired design going viral on TikTok. Each creation carries layered meaning; wearable conservation stories that people can share, gift, and wear.
She specializes in place-based development, partnerships, and regional cooperation, ensuring that local value creation and cultural identity are central to the project.
A cultural heritage expert and former director of Stiftelsen Vegaøyan Verdensarv; responsible for safeguarding and promoting the UNESCO World Heritage linked to the eider down tradition.
Architect and founder of Biotope, the world’s first architectural office dedicated to birding and nature-based design.
A senior advisor at BirdLife Norway, specializing in seabird ecology, coastal management, and conservation polic
Caretaker of the traditional eider down practice on Lånan in Vegaøyan World Heritage Site. She continues the centuries-old work of protecting nesting eiders, linking living heritage with seabird conservation.
A researcher at the Greenland Institute of Natural Resources and an award-winning wildlife photographer; using photography to highlight the cultural and ecological importance of Greenland’s seabirds.
Local Biodiversity
Community & Conservation
HOLD FAST MITTENS
An anchor in wool.
Love The Oceans’ end goal in Mozambique is to support the community in establishing a Marine Protected Area in the Inhambane Province, using a bottom-up, community-led approach through research, education and diving.
Love the Oceans is a non-profit marine conservation organisation supporting Jangamo Bay. Jangamo Bay, whilst home to a huge host of marine life, has never been studied in depth for any prolonged amount of time. Love The Oceans is supporting the community in protecting and studying the diverse marine life found here, including many species of sharks, rays and the famous humpback whales. We use research, education and diving to drive action towards a more sustainable future. Our ultimate goal is to establish a Marine Protected Area for the Inhambane Province in Mozambique, achieving higher biodiversity whilst protecting endangered species.
https://youtu.be/0uiSg5N0Y5w
https://youtu.be/o2TKEStPOP8
This first cohort (2025) will run as a fully digital residency, designed to fit around daily life but still provide professional-level support and collaboration.
Program structure:
Kick-off webinar with marine biologists and conservation partners.
1:1 coaching with textile designers, cultural practitioners, or scientists.
Group workshops exploring narrative techniques in knitting (e.g., lace for fragility, cables for strength, stranded colorwork for biodiversity).
Mid-term sharing of works-in-progress with open feedback.
Final exhibition & digital publication to spotlight residents and their pieces.
Residency outcomes:
Open-access patterns linked to conservation themes in Mozambique (e.g., whale sharks, mangroves, coral reefs).
Limited-edition works (digital or physical) that contribute to awareness campaigns.
Visibility for knitters through publication, exhibition, and international conservation networks.
Why apply?
Your work will be spotlighted internationally — in digital exhibitions and open-access archives.
You’ll gain mentorship and coaching from experts across craft and science.
You’ll collaborate with peers who see knitting not only as craft, but as cultural storytelling and ecological action.
Most importantly: you’ll contribute your skills to a real-world conservation challenge.
Tip for applicants: Both traditional and experimental knitters are welcome. You don’t need to be a professional designer, but you should be curious, open to collaboration, and able to document your process clearly (patterns, notes, or visual records).
The residency is supported by mentors who bring expertise from craft, culture, and conservation. Participants will receive both group sessions and individual guidance tailored to their projects.
Confirmed mentor:
Jessica Hemmings: Professor of Craft & Vice-Prefect of Research at HDK-Valand, Gothenburg University. Hemmings writes widely about textiles and craft, with a focus on how making connects to culture and storytelling.
- Ingun Grimstad Klepp:
Additional mentors (in dialogue) will include:
Conservation practitioners with field experience in Mozambique.
Designers and textile artists with a focus on sustainability.
Cultural researchers working at the intersection of craft and identity.
Why this matters: Knitters will not only develop new work but also gain critical tools to frame, document, and communicate their practice — skills that extend beyond the residency.
