To mark its 130th anniversary, the U.K.'s National Trust unveiled an ambitious initiative to restore nature across the country, per the Guardian.
The goal? To revitalize 250,000 hectares of land — roughly one-and-a-half times the size of Greater London — into thriving natural spaces. If successful, this could be a game-changer for the environment.
The project, described as "audacious" and "a moonshot" by Harry Bowell, director of land and nature for the Trust, aims to create healthier wildlife habitats, improve ecosystems, and slow the impacts of climate change.
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Definitely 👍 The National Trust underscored the plan's scope by sharing that it would be 10 times the amount of landscape that it has restored over the last decade, including peatlands, meadows, wetlands, woodlands and salt marsh.
This effort goes beyond protecting isolated pockets of nature. The conservation charity plans to build large, connected landscapes that benefit both the environment and local communities. Over the past decade, the charity has restored a fraction of the land it now aims to focus on. With new partnerships and support from farmers and communities, it's ready for a much larger challenge.
In ceremonial county Shropshire, the Trust is working to connect two nature reserves, giving endangered birds (like the threatened curlew) more space to breed. In Merseyside, 90,000 trees are being planted across 193 acres to create a wildlife corridor, allowing species to move safely between habitats.
As part of its anniversary celebrations, the National Trust is inviting the public to "adopt" plots of land at iconic sites like Killerton in Devon and the Peak District in the north of England. The charity is also partnering with mental health organization Mind to make nature more accessible to everyone, particularly in light of the ongoing mental health crisis.
"Today, nature is declining before our eyes and climate change is threatening homes and habitats on a colossal scale," said Hilary McGrady, director general of the National Trust, per the Guardian. "We will ramp up our work to restore nature, both on our own land and beyond our boundaries."
Bowell added that the project is "practically achievable because of the mapping we've done, because of the work that we've done over the last 10 years and some of the emerging relationships and partnerships which we can bring to bear."
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