environmental commentator
An unpublished letter to the Times Literary Supplement in response to an opinion article on the ‘latest crop of nature-writing books’ Dear Sir While Nick Groom found ‘fey living’ on a retro-farmed wheat field preferable to a ‘teen fantasy’ of rewilding, both his oversimplification and polarised nature of the piece made it almost misleading. It didn’t start well. … Continue reading Fey living
My wife and I had an argument a few years back. Not a big one but one large enough to have an impact on the local wildlife. When I heard the bump on the glass door after sensing the blur of a passing sparrow hawk, I knew the outcome. Yes, glass causes 250 million bird … Continue reading A cautionary tale
We need better social science to work closer with farmers and land managers – many of whom are conservationists. The pressures on farmers today are immense. Working out how farmers think is a seriously ignored matter and requires us to come closer together to work on common ground issues. Alas, there is still too much fear around being seen to agree … Continue reading Digging dialogue
On ringing the head office to query the language in the ‘Bob for Nature’ campaign letter I received. Could someone please explain this sentence to me: “despite our efforts…..ancient woodlands destroyed, hedgerows flailed and uprooted, fields forsaken – and a staggering 60% of our species in decline”? They were most apologetic. It was not intended … Continue reading Elite nature
When I chaired a discussion on the National Pollinator Strategy, things unfolded differently to what delegates expected. The Public Policy Exchange framed the conference around two words. Exchange – as in knowledge sharing, and communities. To include the diverse range of farming, urban, scientific, political, research council, environmental, farm advisor and beekeeper interests. Diversity in delegates Alongside … Continue reading Pollen counts
Gareth Dockerty worked for Natural Resources Wales as a Conservation Officer and Reserves Manager, and has qualifications in woodland, conservation grazing and ecology. He has also worked in North York Moors National Park on small rural business development and is currently Regional Officer for BASC in North Yorkshire. The uplands face an array of often … Continue reading Guest blog – Gareth Dockerty
Farm tenancies for a pound, controversial views on farming subsidies, ‘pricing out’ upland farmers – the National Trust hasn’t held back from headlines this year. (Updating Aug 17, Sept 19, Jan 20 infinitum) A quarter of a century ago, I worked for the trust as an … Continue reading Trusting times
Smarter engagement and co-design with more land managers could deliver more wildlife. Sometimes at little public cost. The collective skills, ‘public goods’ to use the modern parlance, of which farmers and land managers hold, have huge untapped environmental benefit. “I wonder if we recognise the tens of thousands of farmers in our own country as … Continue reading Collective skills
I’ve been coming up against a lot of fear recently. Fear of hearing about rewilding, fear of talk around predator control, fear within politics. We can outwit it. No one has said anything explicit, but I perceive there are some that dislike my providing the issue of rewilding with any airtime at all. The label, … Continue reading Bypassing fear
My article in The Field was one of the toughest pieces I’ve written to date. Does an unhealthy thirst for adversarial positions feed conflicts in conservation? Pitching the proposal was hard enough. Editors commission stuff that keeps their audience coming back for more. Whether to entertain, to reinforce views, to challenge (but not too close … Continue reading Harnessing tension
