On the 18th September, I had the pleasure of attending the “Rewilding The Future” conference, presented by leading naturalist and TV presenter Chris Packham and organised by Climate Action North East.
Around 120 representatives from the business world attended this event, sponsored by Resilient Business Systems, with support from local and national organisations including WWT Washington, IEMA, Mohl Stephenson, JDM Earth and many more.
We were delighted to welcome Chris to the North East, as the guest speaker at this conference. Chris’s passion and expertise on rewilding are renowned and it’s a real privilege that he spent the day with us to share his thoughts on this important subject.
Rewilding is defined as the mass restoration of ecosystems and to achieve this goal on the scale that’s needed, it must be on the agenda and minds of everyone in a position to implement rewilding; this could include almost anybody, not least those in the business world.
This conference gave us a genuine opportunity to explore how rewilding can offer business benefits and opportunities.
Chris told us: “Every square metre of our landscapes has been modified over the years and now it’s undoubtedly failing in terms of the species that should be living and thriving there.
Addressing the loss of biodiversity and rectifying the problems in our landscapes is now the focus we need to take. There are no quick fixes, so the coordinated and cohesive approach to rewilding that businesses in the North East are looking to take is heartening, and I’m very much looking forward to being part of this exciting conference.”
Chris also announced the launch of “A Peoples Manifesto for Wildlife”, which was conceived to publish a set of informed ideas from a parliament of strong, independent voices. Ideas which, if implemented today, would make a huge difference for wildlife tomorrow. Check it out here:
To support Chris Packham’s Peoples Walk for Wildlife on the 22nd September (because not everyone could attend the Hyde Park, London event), Sharon Lashley of Enviro UK Consultants, organised our own Walk for Wildlife at the WWT Washington.
Sharon said: ” What an amazing week it’s been for Wildlife with our #rewildingthefuture event on Tuesday with Chris Packham then our NE #peopleswalkforwildlife today at WWT Washington Wetlands Centre to coincide with Chris Packham’s walk in Hyde Park.
Great to see such an amazing group of people all walking for wildlife and eager to make a difference.”
“Many small steps add up to big action for wildlife. The people are voting with their feet for a better world for wildlife” – Chris Packham
A study by the WWF and Zoological Society of London found that the number of wild animals on Earth has halved in the past 40 years. Here in the UK research has found that one in seven wildlife species are at risk of extinction.
“Between 1970 and 2013, 56% of UK species declined . . . of the nearly 8,000 species assessed using modern criteria, 15% are threatened with extinction. . . . this suggests that we are among the most nature-depleted countries in the world.”
There have been major international assemblies, protests and marches to fight poverty, stop wars, tackle climate change and in support women, science and gay pride. For some reason, until now, there has been no major gathering in support of wildlife that calls for action to halt the decline and extinction of species.
Tamma said: “What a pleasure & a privilege to be involved in the #PeoplesWalkforWildlife at the WWT Washington today – organised by Sharon Lashley to coincide with Chris Packham’s walk in #HydePark! Beautiful weather, brilliant people and a fight worth fighting #nature #wildlife #conservation”
