10 09, 2022

Talking about writing rewilding at the Into-the-Wild festival

By |2022-09-24T20:23:27+00:00September 10th, 2022|Blog, People & nature, Rewilding|Comments Off on Talking about writing rewilding at the Into-the-Wild festival

I spent an enjoyable weekend at the Into the-Wild Festival at the Chiddinglye estate in W.Sussex organised by Huw Wyn. By UK festival standards it is relatively small (max 5000): it is very family orientated and full of workshops, discussion, music and informal gatherings: its a place to do a bit of ‘rewilding the self’. I was

24 08, 2022

Thinking rewilding in place. A short trek in the West Caucasuses

By |2022-09-24T19:32:15+00:00August 24th, 2022|birdwatching, Blog, People & nature, Protected Areas, Rewilding|Comments Off on Thinking rewilding in place. A short trek in the West Caucasuses

I have been trekking in the Western Caucuses. Along the way I thought about rewilding and the processes that give rise to the landscape and vegetation. Here is an account which I hope some my find interesting. I welcome any comments, elaborations or corrections. Driving up the foothills from Zugdidi in northwest Georgia, I was struck by the

1 06, 2022

Rewilding and best in show gardens: agreeing & disagreeing with Monty Don and Joe Swift

By |2022-09-24T19:32:41+00:00June 1st, 2022|Blog, People & nature, Rewilding|Comments Off on Rewilding and best in show gardens: agreeing & disagreeing with Monty Don and Joe Swift

In episode nine of the BBC’s Chelsea flower show coverage, Monty Don questioned whether Rewilding Britain’s show winning garden was actually a garden. He argued that rewilding is unhelpful when it comes to gardening and that, in his view, rewilding means not interfering and having the ‘hand of man’ involved. I’m with Monty and Joe that a garden is

20 05, 2022

I’ve just spent eight days in Spain & Portugal and was blown away with the region’s rewilding potential.

By |2022-09-24T19:32:28+00:00May 20th, 2022|21st Century conservation, Blog, People & nature, Rewilding, Uncategorized|Comments Off on I’ve just spent eight days in Spain & Portugal and was blown away with the region’s rewilding potential.

I like nothing better than visiting areas with the rewilding thinkers and discussing the theory and practice of ecosystem recovery. I recently teamed up with four of Europe’s finest Deli Saavedra, Ignacio Jiménez Jordi Palau and Pedro Prata on a road trip to Eastern Portugal, Central Spain and the Pyrenees.  I went with three questions in mind: 1) is there an

16 03, 2022

Is time to revert to the original meaning of national parks in global protected area policy?

By |2022-03-16T18:27:22+00:00March 16th, 2022|Natural Assets, People & nature, Protected Areas, Uncategorized|Comments Off on Is time to revert to the original meaning of national parks in global protected area policy?

Turning off Iceland’s snow-covered route 34 into the packed car park of Thingvellir National Park it was clear we had arrived at a major international tourist destination. Squinting into the sun we followed the stream of tourists past the visitor centre with its cool orthogonal design to a viewpoint with a panoramic view of mountains, the

15 05, 2021

Eye of the Vulture

By |2021-05-15T16:11:06+00:00May 15th, 2021|21st Century conservation, birdwatching, Blog, Ecospace, People & nature, Rewilding, Uncategorized|Comments Off on Eye of the Vulture

During the lockdown summer of 2020 an immature bearded vulture took up residence in a rugged Valley of England's Peak District National Park. On a September Sunday, my birding buddy Steve and I set out at the crack of dawn and programmed WAZE to navigate us North. Three hours later we descended a windy road

1 08, 2020

Does rewilding expose a generation gap in the science of conservation?

By |2020-08-30T17:09:02+00:00August 1st, 2020|21st Century conservation, Blog, People & nature, Rewilding, Science Communication|Comments Off on Does rewilding expose a generation gap in the science of conservation?

The print edition of my new book on rewilding arrived last week and, looking for a place for it in my bookcase, I realised that I placed my last book next to three classic volumes edited by Andrew Warren and Frank Goldsmith. These volumes, printed in 1974, 1983 and 1993 contain collections of essays from scientists and policy

12 05, 2020

Backyard Rewilding

By |2020-08-30T17:08:41+00:00May 12th, 2020|Blog, People & nature, Rewilding, Uncategorized|Comments Off on Backyard Rewilding

This blog was first published on the Ecosulis web-site on 11 May 2020 There's never been a better time to rewild your garden. Rewilders great and small Wild nature is currently at a low ebb in Britain: once common birds and insects have suffered sharp declines because our landscapes are too intensively managed and treated

10 10, 2019

“New pastoralism”: a vision to revitalise our national parks

By |2020-01-16T21:11:55+00:00October 10th, 2019|Blog, People & nature, Protected Areas, Rewilding, Uncategorized|Comments Off on “New pastoralism”: a vision to revitalise our national parks

This article was first pulished on the Ecosulis blog on 8/10/2019 The UK's national parks were created as part of progressive policy to reimagine our national identity after empire. Seventy years on, it is time to rethink their meaning and purpose. New pastoralism and natural asset thinking could revitalise the UK's national parks. Time for

20 08, 2019

Check, clean, dry: how can canoers help control the spread of invasive species?

By |2020-01-16T20:51:26+00:00August 20th, 2019|Freshwater biodiversity, People & nature, Uncategorized|Comments Off on Check, clean, dry: how can canoers help control the spread of invasive species?

This article was first published on the Freshwater Blog on August 16 2019 On a hot Saturday in June I rolled up at the UK’s National Water Sport Centre. The place was abuzz with cars, kayaks, club flags and paddle-carrying athletes chatting bucket starts, heats, duck tape and Nelos. Everyone was readying to race on a

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