A pertinent quote

  One of the many good things about writing a blog is that one learns things from the wise comments of one’s readers. This quote was posted by reader, Northern Diver (and I am very grateful to him or her) on my blog Too little, too late about NGO feebleness: ‘You have two babies very…

Too little, too late

The RSPB and the Wildlife Trusts have just woken up to the fact that this government isn’t doing much for the environment – and doesn’t intend to – and that it is the job of NGOs to put pressure on decision makers to do the right thing.  The best time to put on the pressure…

A rather fluffy gauntlet – the event

Last Tuesday a bunch of NGOs launched their ‘Response for Nature’ report (or reports actually – one for each UK nation) at an event in London.  I’ll comment on the reports later today but the event was a room full of wildlife conservation organisation staff talking to themselves. There were speeches: from Steve Backshall, Josie…

Wildlife NGOs in 2013

This year has been difficult for our wildlife NGOs.  Money is tight and the government is hostile to nature. The Grasslands Trust disappeared from the Tangled Bank of wildlife NGOs and many others have had to cut their expenditure (and their staff). There have been encouraging signs of NGOs working more closely together – most…

New Networks for Nature

I attended the fifth New Networks for Nature meeting in Stamford on Friday and Saturday.  It’s a different type of meeting – refreshingly different.  Where else would you get organic food for lunch, haikus, a panel debate with leading thinkers on environmental matters, the President of the SWLA, three talks about non-native/introduced/alien species, some young…