Conservation in the time of coronavirus
Nature provided a much-needed source of comfort for millions of us during lockdown. But it wasn’t all positive, with wildlife organisations finding valuable sources of funding cut off and volunteers sent home. Lucy McRobert takes a look at the good, the b
that we have extended the offer. Over 8,500 new people took part, 500 new members joined, and almost everyone who already participated was happy to keep paying. You observe the birds, send your records in and feel valuable. We’ve also taken all of our training online, which has generated more income and engaged more people.”
What about wildlife?
While we must applaud the millions who actively support wildlife initiatives, our over-reliance on charities makes the natural world vulnerable in times of crisis. Non-governmental organisations (NGOs) were immediately impacted, with almost all restructuring work, laying off volunteers, cancelling surveys and halting conservation projects. Half of RSPB staff were furloughed at the highest point, and some Wildlife Trusts went as high as 60-70%.
Lizzie Bruce, RSPB Reserve Warden in Norfolk, said: “We had just two members of senior staff left across our team. We lost our volunteers, residential volunteers, almost everyone, including me. My head knows why we were furloughed, but my heart wanted to be there. What a great opportunity to get data, monitor, get work done. Instead, we had to shut down almost everything.”
Not everywhere closed, though, as Jake Fiennes, General Manager of
Conservation at the Holkham Estate explained: “Income for the nature reserve didn’t change, so we kept working. We wanted to track what would happen in the absence of people and see if our management changes over the last couple of years had worked. In two seasons, we’ve increased the population of waders by 50% and doubled their productivity, as well as successes with Western Cattle Egret and Eurasian Spoonbill.”
Frustratingly, we won’t know how wildlife fared in our absence. With surveys cancelled and staff on furlough, we don’t have the data. The likelihood is that some species did well due to lack of human disturbance, while others suffered. Nesting Common Cranes and Western Marsh Harriers near paths on nature reserves are to be celebrated; but this is countered by Himalayan Balsam exploding due to a lack of management. Worst hit were organisations who rely on face-to-face engagement and ‘transactional’ support, like visitor centres, events and cafés. Some 1,200 staff were laid off from the National Trust and the organisation has predicted losses of £200m this year. For others, fundraising, membership recruitment and education halted. The Wildlife Trusts estimated that collectively they could be losing up to £10m of income a month, although this eased as they drastically cut expenditure and furlough was introduced.
One of the worst hit was The Wildlife Trust for South and West Wales, where two-thirds of staff were furloughed.
Gina Gavigan from WTSWW told me: “Lockdown hit our busiest time. We had to stop membership recruitment; close four visitor centres; shut the islands of
Skomer and Skokholm. As time went on, things worsened. As well as having cashflow problems, with so many staff on furlough, our capacity to plan was severely limited. It’s going to take us years to recover.”
Fortunately, there are silver linings. Fifteen Wildlife Trusts recently received emergency grants worth £1m from the National Heritage Lottery Fund. Supporters rallied round, including for WTSWW: “We got £400,000 from emergency grants and over £80,000 from public appeals. We broadcast
Skomer Live on Facebook, presented by Lizzie Daly and
Iolo Williams, bringing the islands to supporters when they couldn’t go themselves.
David Gray donated a song to us called Running on the Waves, which raised £12,000. And amazingly, Leonardo Di Caprio shared an interview with our CEO with his 40 million Instagram followers! It was a humbling moment.”
Another worrying statistic is the increase in bird of prey persecution. The RSPB received a surge in reports (56 in total) of raptors being illegally killed during lockdown, with the
majority on or close to shooting estates. Police were called out to investigate multiple cases involving the shooting, trapping and suspected poisoning of birds of prey, including Hen Harriers, Peregrine Falcons, Common Buzzards, Red Kites, Northern Goshawks and a Barn Owl.
Eden realised?
As lockdown lifted vast numbers of people flooded to natural spaces: beaches, national parks, greenspaces and nature reserves were inundated. Horrific stories followed: crowding, littering, packed parking scenes.
Unclear government guidance made for chaotic scenes. “We got three days’ notice to adapt to reopening. It felt like the entire Midlands decided to descend on the north Norfolk coast. We had gridlock. No car parks, no cafés, no pubs. People didn’t understand that we were not prepared,” said Jake.
Several organisations reported serious issues on fragile nature reserves, including vandalism, arson, littering and use of portable barbecues. There was a huge disconnection in how to enjoy wild places, even though millions had turned to wildlife for solace just weeks before. More dangerous, though, were the narratives that emerged in the media, which was quick to demonise visitors to beauty spots. Some groups were targeted more than others. City folk, lower social classes, ethnic minorities and young people were disproportionately blamed. Dr Anjana Khatwa, an earth scientist and TV presenter, explains: “Middleclass people had no idea what lockdown was like for families living in cramped conditions, in cities, without any access to nature. Those in the most deprived accommodations had the least access. People were craving the sun, nature, waves and the fresh air – and what is wrong with that?”
A survey of visitors to the Lake District this summer found that a fifth were visiting for the first time and just 13% were aware of the Countryside Code. But with the government spending less than £2,000 a year promoting the Countryside Code, is it any wonder that many can’t differentiate between a city park, a festival ground, a nature reserve and private land?
Anjana continues: “We have seen a huge disparity in class and race, particularly how we help people from lower socioeconomic backgrounds enjoy nature. None of the narratives celebrated that these people were visiting natural spaces for the first time. It was hostile with a clear message that people like them weren’t welcome.” Maxwell Ayamba is an environmental journalist and expert on introducing new groups, particularly ethnic minorities, to the countryside. “My experience has shown that ethnic minority groups are often not aware of the Countryside Code. I attribute this to urbanisation and historical exclusion from the country space. Part of this is about the language we use and creating the right narratives; however, a lot needs to be done with practical exposure and communication to raise awareness.”
Changing narratives
Despite the misuse of greenspaces, Gina said “there is evidence that more people are valuing high quality, local nature reserves,” and Jake agrees: “All these people who never dreamed of going to the Lake District, the Cairngorms, Durdle Door, the Norfolk coast – they’re coming now and hopefully they will return. We must share these spaces.” The barriers are systemic though and will require big shifts in how we view, use and talk about wild places. Maxwell doesn’t think this will be easy; “Culturally, environmental organisations viewed themselves as gatekeepers, and are reluctant to change when welcoming new audiences.”
Anjana agrees: “Many ethnic minorities are so disengaged from
British landscapes that they feel exotic. There aren’t physical barriers, but there are stares, micro-aggressions, comments, the feeling of being out of place.
It can be tinged with mockery, like laughing at woman for being dressed inappropriately, wearing a sari on a beach.”
Our nature reserves are our best communication tools. Never has it been more important to emphasise face-toface engagement: just adding more signs and tweeting won’t do. Equally, we must put much higher, stricter protection in place for more sensitive sites; access should either be for all or for no one. We forget that many lack any ecological knowledge. They ignore signs explaining that Ringed Plovers are nesting on a beach, because birds nest in trees, right? The growth of professional nature conservation happened as part of the Manpower Services Commission in the 1970s, and Andy thinks “we need something like that for a green recovery, that puts as much value on working in the environmental sector as in construction.”
Jake added: “The only way we can make a difference is people to people. Visitors haven’t seen the website, don’t know who owns the site, don’t read the signs. When they have a constructive conversation, they understand the importance of the landscape and the impacts of their behaviour. We need people welcoming visitors, explaining the rules, showing off the wildlife.” “Gone are the days of projects being delivered in a colonial way,” said Anjana, “where a white person is employed by a wildlife organisation to deliver nature to or at a community for a few years, then it’s done. The only way to enact meaningful change for nature is to employ people within those communities, understanding their cultures and working with and for them.”
Nature for all
We desperately need to see the recovery of nature, and for that we need more people to recognise and value our environment. If there’s one clear message from 2020, it’s that we need to and can reach beyond our echochamber.
Maxwell explains: “COVID-19 has demonstrated our reliance on nature for health and wellbeing. This presents golden, positive opportunities to open greenspaces to new audiences and introduce them to how and why conservation is done in Britain.”
Most people don’t understand the costs of maintaining wild spaces, so we need to place a value on them that visitors, and wider society, understand, emotionally and financially. We need to generate income and help people respect and value nature more highly. The budgets are currently tiny and policies contradictory. The government which promised to leave the environment in a better state for the next generation just assigned £27bn to road building projects, but just £40m for nature.
“The scale of the combined ecological and climate crises is enormous,” added Beccy. “We all need to tackle it. There is a huge opportunity to build relationships with people, with new audiences. Our challenge is meeting people where they are, connecting them to wider landscapes and nature. But it’s on us.”
Lockdown has altered how I experience nature. Alongside my birder-collector personality, I discovered a spiritual need for seasonality that roots me to the world. To truly take new and different audiences on a journey into caring for wildlife, we may be challenged to look at the most fundamental ways we talk about nature, moving away from scientific language and designations. Business as usual hasn’t saved nature; it’s barely halted the declines. But COVID-19 has created a ‘new normal’, and that could be a good thing: for us and for nature. ■