Words by Smiley Team
Kickstarting a campaign to restore 30 per cent of the UK’s nature by 2030, The Wildlife Trusts hopes to give us a fighting chance against the climate crisis. So far the trusts have raised over £8 million to drive the initiative forward, with the support of its president, Sir David Attenborough.
The 30 by 30 ambition aims to rewild a minimum of 30 per cent of land and sea around the country. If successful, the initiative will rebalance ecosystems and help threatened species recover in order to combat the environmental degradation that accompanies climate and ecological breakdown.
Emphasising its importance, The Wildlife Trusts’ campaigning and communities director, Nikki Williams, said: “The 30 by 30 campaign is vital for the environment at the moment, because we know that nature is taking some crushing blows. We’ve been extracting more resources out of the planet than we have been able to put back. That means the planet is struggling to support the human race and we need to redress the balance.
“We don’t have to think all is doom and gloom though, because it is possible to rebalance nature. It would mean that people will become happier and healthier. But just as importantly, we will see lots more species running around.”
Echoing these sentiments, Sir David Attenborough said: “We are facing a global extinction crisis which has implications for every one of us. It’s tempting to assume that the loss of wildlife and wild places is a problem that’s happening on the other side of the world. The truth is that the UK is one of the most nature-depleted countries on the planet and the situation is getting worse.”
To reverse the decline of British wildlife, the organisation hopes to mobilise individuals, households, farmers and other landowners to rewild their green spaces.
By searching for their local Wildlife Trust online, individuals can learn how best to support the initiative. Anyone with a green space can help by planting local plant species to nurture other forms of wildlife. Farmers and landowners can support it by rewilding larger areas, including letting hedges grow out to attract small animals, and cutting back on pesticides.
Such efforts can help restore natural ecosystems to form a positive feedback loop, allowing nature to regenerate. To demonstrate this, Williams explained that if we protect pine martens, a predatory bird species local to the UK, they feed on invasive species and help indigenous forest life to thrive.
The initiative would also protect animals such as beavers, known as “nature’s engineers”, who naturally clean up rivers and enable other water-dwellers to prosper in a chain of natural support systems.
“The more we can establish these kinds of networks, the healthier the planet will become, which supports us too, because we’re all interconnected,” said Williams.
As part of the funding raised for the initiative, the public has contributed over £900,000. To boost this total donate here.
Get involved with the effort to restore the UK’s nature by volunteering.
Find more information about the 30 by 30 campaign on The Wildlife Trusts’ website.
