environmental commentator
It’s not a tribal blog, it’s a dialogue
Every so often, I aim to produce a pithy (under 800 words) piece always with links to references.
Do apply to do a guest blog – note same word count and references if possible. Be prepared for ‘light touch edit’ to ensure positive, rather than divisive, engagement with the widest range of views.
I am an unaffiliated commentator/moderator so I wasn’t sure if this was the sort of gig for me to argue against the House in an Oxford Union-style debate in a room of agricultural lawyers and surveyors. In the end, I thought it a worthy experiment to see if I could walk in the shoes of … Continue reading Walking in the shoes of other views
The big wide open skies of East Anglia greeted me with birds of prey, wet peaty fields and sea fret on my latest ‘field intel’ trip garnering information as to what’s going on ‘out there’ in the flat lands of the east. Harrier Bridge Stepping onto previous farmland and now marshland, demonstrates how much potential … Continue reading Marsh harriers and wet fields
“/ disruptor /: a person or thing that prevents something, especially a system, process, or event, from continuing as usual or as expected”. Some creative thoughts for 2025 : click those pics+ for links AGM (active game management) Being invited to address a Scottish wildlife manager‘s AGM gave me an opportunity to explore some topics … Continue reading Creative disruption
In a short two-part conversation with Professor Sir Charles Godfray, Part 2 is about land use, farming, food, sharing/sparing and trade-offs. Part 1 is about the role of scientists as honest brokers/advocates and scientific research around environmental issues. This is a lightly edited version from a transcript of a recording from our meeting in Oxford in January 2023 and … Continue reading Godfray interview – part 2 – land use issues
In a short two-part conversation with Professor Sir Charles Godfray, Part 1 is about the role of scientists as honest brokers/advocates and scientific research around environmental issues. Part 2 is about land use, farming, food, sharing/sparing and trade-offs. This is a lightly edited version from a transcript of a recording from our meeting in Oxford … Continue reading Godfray interview – part 1 – role of science
A short two-part conversation with Professor Sir Charles Godfray. Part 1 is about the role of scientists as honest brokers/advocates and scientific research around environmental issues. Part 2 is about land use, farming, food, sharing/sparing and trade-offs. (The two parts are not mutually exclusive) This is a lightly edited version from a transcript of a … Continue reading A conversation with Professor Sir Charles Godfray
“Why not come over to Ireland to participate in our ‘Changing Landscapes’ conference and summer school”. And so I headed west – while diverting on the way to garner some relevant field intel. Rocky terrain I probably overinvest in ‘field intel’. To visit people on their own turf helps glean information as to what they … Continue reading Wild Atlantic way thinking
Oh, to the bright lights of London for conversations about the environment! It’s where people live, environmental organisations have their offices, books are launched, and rural government civil servants work. Plus a trip along the Marches uncovers more environmental intel. A melting pot of an urbanising nation who have long disengaged with the land, food … Continue reading Piccadilly Marches
What do stoats and a letter to the Editor of The Times have in common? Both are tricky to ‘catch’ as they are both suspicious of the anything too obvious – whether a trap or correspondence. The trick on the latter is to be pithy. Though this brevity to secure publication tends to bleed out … Continue reading Conservation context
‘The environment in which managers do their job is being transformed: this new landscape rewards some skills more and some less than in the past‘. A line from an article in a magazine last year which resonates with many of today’s rural and environmental issues. ‘If we want things to stay as they are, things … Continue reading an uncertain superhero
#WoodofStones – a year’s worth of tweets of a tiny National Nature Reserved in Wales