Town to Trees

Here’s a few thoughts I’d like to share with you this week…

As I’ve focussed my efforts on my chosen five activities, however, I’ve been evolving and learning too.

For example, I’ve modified ‘Local Adventures’ into ‘Local Outdoors/Connection’.

I love talking about regenerative farming, and think it is not only important, but also full of hope. Yet I realised that it’s not the most useful topic for me to bang on about in these newsletters. If you own a farm, you already know much more than me. If you don’t own a farm, you don’t need to know my opinions on silvopastures!

We also had an interesting discussion about the right to roam, and increasing access to the countryside. It helped me see that whilst I support the campaign, I’m more passionate about getting people into the nearby nature 15 minutes from their home than increasing open access land in the Lake District uplands.

I love rewilding. (Have you read Feral and Wilding yet?) But it’s unlikely you own loads of land that I can persuade you to rewild.

And whilst simplifying life feels like an admirable aim in my own life – and probably in yours – it feels like a bit of an outsider on my Big Five list. I’ve been struggling with what I want to articulate about the idea.

Where next?

So where does this leave me, or lead me? I certainly want to keep exploring ideas related to rewilding our depleted countryside, increasing access to the outdoors, and the impact of our food choices on our health and planet.

But what has struck me while writing these articles, and also wandering around my town which feels a million miles from the nearest wild wood (but really isn’t), is that the most useful thing I can apply myself to is trying to get more people in more places to spend more time in nature, more often.

The Great Outdoors +

Once I get them (you?) there, I can move on to trying to get people to pay attention, connect with nature, care about what they learn, and take action to fix stuff.

It’s about enjoying the Great Outdoors, which I’ve been yakking on about ever since I wrote Microadventures, but now with a ‘plus purpose’ whacked on the end.

But first of all I need to get folk from the town into the trees*.

What do you think? Is this a good mission? Do you have any advice or suggestions? Please let me know!

* with a nod to Trees for Cities who are bringing the trees into the towns!