The strategy has been launched by Kent’s leading conservation charity outlining ways to make the county more resilient to the climate and nature crises.
Through increasing land in conservation, managed through wilding and paid for by “Nature-based Solutions” the charity believes it can create a better future Kent’s people and wildlife.
Kent Wildlife Trust has laid out its ambition to increase wildlife abundance and climate resilience across 30% of the county’s land and sea as they launch the Wilder Kent 2030 strategy.
The Trust is also calling for residents to champion nature in Kent as a way of safeguarding our own life support systems in a time of rapid change. It wants to work with more people to take more meaningful action for nature.
According to the State of Nature in Kent report, by 2030 summers in Kent and Medway will be, on average, 3 degrees hotter. In July 2022, temperatures soared past 40 degrees, in this time more human deaths were recorded in the UK, there were more wildfires, and nature struggled to cope. Insect numbers fell further and we lived through a false autumn with leaves turning brown in August as trees fought to survive the hot temperatures.
As we live through nature and climate crises, more must be done to protect wildlife and help our landscapes to be more resilient to the changes we face as a way of helping society become more resilient. The strategy outlines action that will help Kent to do just that.
Chief Executive Officer of Kent Wildlife Trust, Evan Bowen-Jones said: “Connecting people with nature and restoring nature at scale is fundamental to fighting the climate and biodiversity crises. It will take a concerted effort from us all to enact the change that now needs to be made. One organisation cannot do this alone. There are many ways people can help. They can join us as a member, volunteer with us, or create a wilder garden at home by not using insecticides and mowing less often. They can vote for politicians who want to act for nature and climate as well as writing to their MPs to support our campaigns. By working together, we can make Kent better placed to cope with the challenges we now face by harnessing the power of the natural world on which we all depend.”
More on:
Posted On: 28/04/2023