Six years ago, I wrote with a certain amount of sadness a rather gloomy report for the National Trust, an UK-based charity for conservation, entitled “Natural Childhood.” It highlighted the barriers standing in the way of engaging young people with nature: primarily dangers from traffic, parental fears of “stranger danger” and a growing aversion to exposing children to any form of risk.
I concluded that we faced the very real danger of a “lost generation,” who might never engage with the natural world.
Young people were, and still are — we’re told — disconnected from nature, staring at screens when they should be out in the wild.
However, what I had not predicted back then is that it is these screens that are now enabling our children to join forces to save the natural world. The rise of new technology — especially social media — has allowed a new generation to connect with those who share their interests in a way that I never could have believed possible when I wrote “Natural Childhood.”
As one young ornithologist recently told me: “I thought I was the only birder at my school, but on Facebook I found half a dozen others in my local area.”
Another budding young naturalist, Abbie Barnes — who climbed Kilimanjaro in the same week she got her A-level results — introduced me to a young man working for conservation in Kenya. When I asked how long they had known each other, Abbie laughed, saying: “We’ve never actually met before, but we’ve connected on social media for the past couple of years.”
This enthusiasm can be seen up and down the UK and has resulted in some high-profile initiatives partly driven by younger campaigners, many of them involved in naturalist Chris Packham’s People’s Manifesto for Wildlife and People’s Walk for Wildlife, which was held in London in September last year.
Packham is in no doubt that this generation will make a real difference, saying: “They’re sharp, informed and very determined. Unleashing the brutal honesty and fabulous ideology of youth is the best chance we’ve got.”
So how did this movement evolve so suddenly and efficiently since my gloomy report? Much of the impetus behind it began at the annual British Birdwatching Fair, or Birdfair, in Rutland, England, in August last year, at which people from all over the world gathered in England’s smallest county to share their mutual passion for birds.
Until recently, one group was conspicuous by its absence: people aged 16 to 30. Then, thanks to some determined and far-sighted individuals, this began to change. Today, dozens of youngsters visit Birdfair each year, holding debates, swapping stories and forging careers in conservation, environment and the media.
Many are members of the organization A Focus on Nature (AFON), whose mission is “to connect, support and inspire young people across the UK with an interest in nature and conservation, and provide a voice for the youth conservation movement.”
The idea for AFON actually began at Birdfair in 2012, the same year I published my report.
A young birder, Lucy McRobert, asked Opticron to donate binoculars to young conservationists who might otherwise not be able to afford them. The company said yes, and soon the idea of a larger and more ambitious network emerged, connecting young people with more experienced mentors in areas such as nature writing, wildlife television and conservation. Yet the best guidance often came from the members themselves, who began to develop a peer-to-peer network, offering practical help and advice.
In 2015, AFON organized a conference in Cambridge, England, leading to the publication of the report A Vision for Nature. It contained a thoughtful, clear and workable set of proposals to save our natural heritage, written by the generation who will have to clear up the mess we made.
Predictably, despite endorsement from naturalist David Attenborough, the report was largely ignored by politicians and the media. Since then, however, AFON committee members have twice been invited to Downing Street to meet environmental advisers and British members of parliament.
AFON is not the only youth organization to spring up in recent years. Others include the Bristol Nature Network and the now-disbanded Next Generation Birders, who in 2017 inspired the Telegraph headline “The rise of the hipster bird-watcher.”
Then there is Mya-Rose Craig, aka Birdgirl, who at 16 years old has already made a real impact in encouraging minority ethnic youngsters to engage with the natural world.
So where does AFON go from here? As the problems facing the environment become ever more acute, it recently launched the #NowforNature campaign, reflecting the importance of social media in getting the message across.
AFON’s earliest members, now in their late 20s and early 30s, are beginning to wield more influence. Some hold positions in conservation organizations, while others work as research scientists, nature reserve wardens, wildlife filmmakers, journalists, bloggers and nature writers.
They include Matt Williams, public policy officer at the National Trust; Megan Shersby, editorial assistant at BBC Wildlife magazine; and Tiffany Francis, whose first book, Food You Can Forage, was recently published by Bloomsbury. Her second, Dark Skies, is due out this year.
Lucy McRobert, who stood down as creative director of AFON in 2016, is now communications manager for the Wildlife Trusts. She organized and helped to run the campaign 30 Days Wild.
McRobert is justly proud of what AFON has achieved and says: “I look forward to seeing the impact our members have, as politicians, business leaders, CEOs, artists, TV producers, land managers and in many other fields.”
She has recently taken time out to have her first child, Georgiana, who will come of age in 2036, by which time we will either have messed up the natural world beyond repair, or finally listened to what young people have to say, enabling them to save our planet at the 11th hour.
When I look at this generation and see their commitment, passion, hard work and inspirational actions, I’m inclined to think that they might just succeed.
Stephen Moss is a naturalist and author based in Somerset, England.
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