Ethos

Fontis works toward a world where places nourish the communities that inhabit them, where culture strengthens belonging, and where landscapes carry memory, beauty and future possibility at the same time.

The practice believes that the environmental, cultural and social challenges of our time are closely linked to fragmentation. Disconnection between people and place, culture and nature, past and future.

Fontis seeks to address this fragmentation by developing initiatives, environments and narratives that restore coherence between community life, cultural identity and the living landscapes that sustain them.

The aim is not to return to the past, nor to pursue novelty for its own sake, but to cultivate futures that feel both rooted and imaginative, grounded in heritage while open to experimentation and renewal.

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Mission

Fontis develops ideas, strategies, environments and community initiatives that reconnect culture, landscape and people.

The practice operates through two complementary structures.

Studio

Creative practice that develops identity systems, research, strategy, interpretation and spatial thinking. The studio helps reveal the deeper character of places and organisations through design, storytelling and cultural framing.

Explore Studio

Initatives

Community platform that enables projects, programmes and initiatives to operate in real-world settings. Through partnerships, funding and local collaboration, our CIC helps translate ideas into tangible outcomes that benefit communities and landscapes.

Explore Initatives

Guiding Principles

All work carried out within the Fontis ecosystem is guided by a shared set of principles.

Stewardship

Places, landscapes and cultural assets should be cared for and strengthened over time rather than treated as short-term resources.

Coherence

Culture, community and environment are interconnected systems. Meaningful change requires understanding how these relationships work together.

Meaning

Places gain strength when they carry narrative, memory and identity. The work of Fontis seeks to deepen the cultural meaning embedded within environments.

Beauty

Beauty is not superficial decoration but a powerful contributor to wellbeing, pride and long-term care for the places people inhabit.

Continuity

The future should grow from the character of what exists. Heritage, landscape and cultural memory provide foundations for new forms to emerge.

Renewal

Healthy places evolve over time. Renewal requires both long-term stewardship and the willingness to experiment with new ideas and possibilities.

Stewardship

Shan Oakes

Director

Shan works across education, community development and international collaboration.

Her experience includes senior roles in local government and over two years working in Uganda with ActionAid and the Forum of Education NGOs.

She brings a strong commitment to inclusive practice and amplifying voices that are often overlooked.

Bill Rigby

Director

Bill brings a background in education, public service and civic leadership.

He has held senior roles across local government and development policy, and is a former Mayor of Knaresborough.

His work is grounded in stewardship, community and long-term civic responsibility.

George Eglese

Director

George is a designer and place strategist working at the intersection of culture, landscape and identity.

His work spans physical, digital and narrative layers to shape meaningful relationships between people and place.

He brings a creative and systems-led approach rooted in ecology, culture and belonging.

Background

Fontis builds on over a decade of work led by Shan Oakes and Bill Rigby through Voice International, focused on education, community development and international collaboration.

In 2025, this work came together with George Eglese and the development of Fontis, forming a shared framework that brings creative practice and community delivery into closer alignment.

Today, Fontis operates as both a creative studio and a community platform, working together to develop and realise projects for public good.