East Africa drought – two things we can all do

The worst drought in East Africa for 60 years is causing famine in Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia.  Heart-rending images cross our TV screens as they have in previous years – do we react with action or by switching channels? The easier, but important, way to react is to send money to cope with the current…

This blog…

…will aim to cover a variety of subjects as time goes on – including peat, marine protected areas, raptor persecution, habitat recreation, politics, government agencies, valuing nature, forestry …will treat sensitively any information sent to it …would benefit from some decent photographs – does anyone have any suggestions? …will occasionally have guest blogs from invited…

Mellow farming

Yesterday I visited one of my favourite local farmers. Duncan Farrington has pulled off an amazing trick – he has made a commodity into a luxury.  And he has got Nigella Lawson to back him. I first met Duncan a good few years ago when I volunteered to do some bird surveys for the RSPB…

A walk in our woods

Yesterday I paid a late morning visit to Fermyn Woods in east Northants.  Mine was the 21st car parked on the grass verge on a small quiet road.  Clearly others had the same idea, and a bit of time to spare.  The stickers on the parked cars showed that there were plenty of birders there…

Are you a European?

I was just too young to vote in the referendum of 1975 but as a politically-aware sixth former I followed the debate and the arguments about whether the UK should stay in the European Economic Community (which the UK joined in 1973 (alongside Ireland and Denmark, swelling the original six members (France, Germany, Italy, Belgium,…