diff --git a/.gitignore b/.gitignore
index 7893a33..53bddc5 100644
--- a/.gitignore
+++ b/.gitignore
@@ -21,6 +21,7 @@
 !fish/environments
 !fish/environments/templates
 !fish/environments/templates/*
+!fish/environments/templates/**/*
 
 !atuin
 !atuin/*.toml
diff --git a/fish/environments/templates/cpp/activate.fish b/fish/environments/templates/cpp/activate.fish
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..eaefd18
--- /dev/null
+++ b/fish/environments/templates/cpp/activate.fish
@@ -0,0 +1,51 @@
+# Basic environment with custom prompt
+# Environment: {{ENV_NAME}}
+
+# Check if a previous initialization has occurred
+if test -n "$__ENV_INITIALIZED"
+    echo (set_color yellow)"Environment already initialized"(set_color normal)
+    return 0
+end
+
+# Mark as initialized
+set -gx __ENV_INITIALIZED "1"
+set -gx CURRENT_ENV "{{ENV_NAME}}"
+
+# Save the original prompt function if it exists
+# Only save if we don't already have a backup or if current prompt is not from an environment
+if not functions -q __env_orig_prompt
+    if functions -q fish_prompt
+        functions -c fish_prompt __env_orig_prompt
+    else
+        function __env_orig_prompt
+            echo -n (whoami)'@'(prompt_hostname)' '(set_color $fish_color_cwd)(prompt_pwd)(set_color normal)'> '
+        end
+    end
+else
+    # If we already have a backup, we're switching environments
+    # No need to create a new backup
+end
+
+# Define new prompt with environment prefix
+function fish_prompt
+    echo -n (set_color green)'({{ENV_NAME}})'(set_color normal)' '
+    __env_orig_prompt
+end
+
+# Add custom environment variables here
+# set -gx MY_CUSTOM_VAR "value"
+
+# Add custom paths here
+# fish_add_path /path/to/custom/bin
+set script_dir (dirname (status --current-filename))
+fish_add_path $script_dir/bin
+
+# Custom initialization commands
+echo (set_color green)"Activated environment: {{ENV_NAME}}"(set_color normal)
+
+# Optional: Define custom deactivation function
+function __env_custom_deactivate
+    # Add any cleanup commands here
+    # unset custom variables, restore paths, etc.
+    echo (set_color blue)"Custom cleanup for {{ENV_NAME}} completed"(set_color normal)
+end
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/fish/environments/templates/cpp/bin/bw b/fish/environments/templates/cpp/bin/bw
new file mode 100755
index 0000000..3d46c2a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/fish/environments/templates/cpp/bin/bw
@@ -0,0 +1,226 @@
+#!/bin/bash
+
+# Watch-build script for automatic rebuilding and restarting
+# Monitors source files and runs 'make prod' when changes
+# are detected
+
+set -e
+
+usage() {
+  echo "Usage: $(basename "$0") [MAKE_COMMAND...]"
+  echo "If MAKE_COMMAND is omitted, the default is: 'make clean && make prod'"
+  echo "Example:"
+  echo "  $(basename "$0") \"make debug\""
+  exit 0
+}
+
+if [[ "$1" == "-h" || "$1" == "--help" ]]; then
+  usage
+fi
+
+if [[ $# -gt 0 ]]; then
+  MAKE_CMD="$*"
+else
+  MAKE_CMD="make clean && make prod"
+fi
+
+# Colors for output
+RED='\033[0;31m'
+GREEN='\033[0;32m'
+YELLOW='\033[1;33m'
+BLUE='\033[0;34m'
+NC='\033[0m' # No Color
+
+# Process ID of the running program
+DEV_PID=""
+
+cleanup() {
+  echo -e "\n${YELLOW}Cleaning up...${NC}"
+
+  if [[ -n "$DEV_PID" ]]; then
+    echo -e "${YELLOW}Stopping running program (PID: $DEV_PID)${NC}"
+    kill $DEV_PID 2>/dev/null || true
+    wait $DEV_PID 2>/dev/null || true
+  fi
+
+  exit 0
+}
+
+# Trap cleanup on script exit
+trap cleanup SIGINT SIGTERM EXIT
+
+build_and_run() {
+  echo -e "${BLUE}Building project...${NC}"
+  echo -e "${BLUE}Running build command: ${YELLOW}$MAKE_CMD${NC}"
+
+  # Stop the currently running program if it exists
+  if [[ -n "$DEV_PID" ]]; then
+    echo -e "${YELLOW}Stopping running program (PID: $DEV_PID)${NC}"
+    kill $DEV_PID 2>/dev/null || true
+    wait $DEV_PID 2>/dev/null || true
+    DEV_PID=""
+  fi
+
+  # Build the project using the provided command and capture output
+  TMPOUT=$(mktemp)
+  # Record build start time (epoch seconds) to filter processes started during the build
+  BUILD_START_TS=$(date +%s)
+  if bash -c "$MAKE_CMD" 2>&1 | tee "$TMPOUT"; then
+    echo -e "${GREEN}Build successful! Determining output binary...${NC}"
+
+    # Try to find the output file from the last '-o <file>' in build output
+    # Use portable awk parsing to avoid non-GNU grep issues on some systems
+    OUT_FILE=$(awk '{
+      for(i=1;i<=NF;i++){
+        if($i=="-o"){ if(i+1<=NF) print $(i+1) }
+        else if($i ~ /^-o/){ print substr($i,3) }
+      }
+    }' "$TMPOUT" | tail -n1)
+
+    # If not found, fall back to newest file in out/
+    if [[ -z "$OUT_FILE" ]]; then
+      OUT_FILE=$(ls -t out/* 2>/dev/null | head -n1 || true)
+    fi
+
+    # Final fallback to previous default
+    if [[ -z "$OUT_FILE" ]]; then
+      OUT_FILE="./out/prod"
+    fi
+
+    # Normalize path (if relative and doesn't start with ./ or /, prefix ./)
+    if [[ "$OUT_FILE" != /* && "$OUT_FILE" != ./* ]]; then
+      OUT_FILE="./$OUT_FILE"
+    fi
+
+    echo -e "${BLUE}Resolved output binary: ${YELLOW}$OUT_FILE${NC}"
+
+    # If the build itself already started the program, detect an existing PID
+    EXISTING_PID=""
+
+    # Gather candidate PIDs by matching the basename
+    if command -v pgrep &> /dev/null; then
+      CANDIDS=$(pgrep -f "$(basename "$OUT_FILE")" || true)
+    else
+      CANDIDS=$(ps aux | grep "$(basename "$OUT_FILE")" | grep -v grep | awk '{print $2}' || true)
+    fi
+
+    if [[ -n "$CANDIDS" ]]; then
+      # Resolve the canonical path of the output binary if possible
+      if command -v realpath &> /dev/null; then
+        REAL_OUT=$(realpath "$OUT_FILE" 2>/dev/null || true)
+      else
+        REAL_OUT=$(readlink -f "$OUT_FILE" 2>/dev/null || true)
+      fi
+
+      for pid in $CANDIDS; do
+        # Skip non-numeric entries
+        if ! [[ "$pid" =~ ^[0-9]+$ ]]; then
+          continue
+        fi
+
+        # Check process start time and ignore ones that started before the build
+        # Use ps lstart to get human-readable start time and convert to epoch
+        PID_LSTART=$(ps -o lstart= -p "$pid" 2>/dev/null || true)
+        if [[ -n "$PID_LSTART" ]]; then
+          PID_EPOCH=$(date -d "$PID_LSTART" +%s 2>/dev/null || true)
+          if [[ -n "$PID_EPOCH" && "$PID_EPOCH" -lt "$BUILD_START_TS" ]]; then
+            # process started before build, skip
+            continue
+          fi
+        fi
+        # Prefer checking /proc/<pid>/exe for an exact match (Linux)
+        if [[ -r "/proc/$pid/exe" ]]; then
+          PID_EXE=$(readlink -f "/proc/$pid/exe" 2>/dev/null || true)
+          if [[ -n "$PID_EXE" && -n "$REAL_OUT" && "$PID_EXE" = "$REAL_OUT" ]]; then
+            EXISTING_PID=$pid
+            break
+          fi
+        fi
+
+        # Fallback: check the process cmdline contains the output path or basename
+        if [[ -r "/proc/$pid/cmdline" ]]; then
+          CMDLINE=$(tr '\0' ' ' < /proc/$pid/cmdline 2>/dev/null || true)
+          if [[ -n "$CMDLINE" && ( "$CMDLINE" = *"$OUT_FILE"* || "$CMDLINE" = *"$(basename "$OUT_FILE")"* ) ]]; then
+            EXISTING_PID=$pid
+            break
+          fi
+        fi
+      done
+    fi
+
+    # if [[ -n "$EXISTING_PID" ]]; then
+    #   DEV_PID=$EXISTING_PID
+    #   echo -e "${YELLOW}Program already running (PID: $DEV_PID). Reusing it.${NC}"
+    # else
+      if [[ -x "$OUT_FILE" || -f "$OUT_FILE" ]]; then
+        # Start the program in background
+        "$OUT_FILE" &
+        DEV_PID=$!
+        echo -e "${GREEN}Program started with PID: $DEV_PID${NC}"
+      else
+        echo -e "${RED}Resolved output '$OUT_FILE' does not exist or is not executable.${NC}"
+        DEV_PID=""
+      fi
+    # fi
+
+    # clean up temp
+    rm -f "$TMPOUT" || true
+  else
+    echo -e "${RED}build failed${NC}"
+    DEV_PID=""
+    rm -f "$TMPOUT" || true
+  fi
+}
+
+clear_console() {
+  if command -v tput &> /dev/null; then
+    tput reset
+  elif command -v clear &> /dev/null; then
+    clear
+  else
+    printf '\033c'
+  fi
+}
+
+check_dependencies() {
+  if ! command -v inotifywait &> /dev/null; then
+    echo -e "${RED}error:${NC} inotifywait is not installed."
+    echo -e "Please install ${YELLOW}inotify-tools${NC}"
+    exit 1
+  fi
+}
+
+main() {
+  clear_console
+
+  check_dependencies
+
+  echo -e "${GREEN}watching on changes...${NC}"
+  echo -e "monitoring: ${BLUE}src/, lib/, makefile${NC}"
+  echo ""
+
+  build_and_run
+
+  # Watch for changes
+  while true; do
+    inotifywait -e modify,create,delete,move \
+      --recursive \
+      --quiet \
+      src/ lib/ makefile 2>/dev/null \
+      || {
+        echo -e "${RED}error:${NC} Failed to watch directories"
+        exit 1
+      }
+
+    echo -e "\n${BLUE}file change detected, rebuilding${NC}"
+
+    # Small delay to handle rapid successive changes
+    sleep 0.5
+
+    clear_console
+    build_and_run
+    echo -e "${BLUE}watching for changes${NC}"
+  done
+}
+
+main
diff --git a/fish/environments/templates/cpp/readme.norg b/fish/environments/templates/cpp/readme.norg
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..f2fdd19
--- /dev/null
+++ b/fish/environments/templates/cpp/readme.norg
@@ -0,0 +1,67 @@
+* Exported Fish Environment: {{ENV_NAME}}
+This directory contains a self-contained fish environment.
+
+** Environment-specific functions
+   This environment is meant to be used with C(++) projects. It provides the
+   following utilities:
+
+   - `bw` (build-watch): Continuously builds and runs the the project on source
+     file changes.
+
+** Files Structure
+   @code
+   .fish/
+   |-- activate.fish
+   |-- readme.norg
+   |-- bin/
+   @end
+
+** Usage
+
+*** Automatic Activation (Recommended)
+    The environment will automatically activate when you `cd` into this directory
+    if your Fish shell is configured with the auto-activation script.
+
+    @code fish
+    function check_and_source_activate
+      if test -f (pwd)/.fish/activate.fish
+        source (pwd)/.fish/activate.fish
+      elif test -f (pwd)/activate.fish
+        source (pwd)/activate.fish
+      end
+    end
+
+    function cd
+      builtin cd $argv && check_and_source_activate
+    end
+    @end
+
+*** Manual Activation
+    To manually activate the environment, run from the project root:
+    @code bash
+    source ./.fish/activate.fish
+    @end
+
+*** Deactivation
+    To deactivate the environment, run:
+    @code bash
+    env deactivate
+    @end
+
+    Or simply `cd` to a different directory if using auto-activation.
+
+** What This Environment Provides
+   - Prompt showing the environment name
+   - Environment-specific aliases and functions
+   - Custom environment variables
+   - Automatic cleanup when deactivated
+
+** Requirements
+   - Fish shell
+   - `bass` plugin (`fisher install edc/bass`) for compatibility with bash scripts
+
+** Sharing
+   This environment is completely self-contained. You can:
+   - Copy this directory to another machine
+   - Share it with others
+   - Version control it with your project (add .fish/ to your repo)
\ No newline at end of file