A few meandering thoughts about rewilding today, one of the subjects I’m completely fascinated with (but also acknowledge its complications (and opportunities) regarding food production, employment for farmers etc…).

Today’s book recommendations:

• Wilding: The Return of Nature to a British Farm
• Wild Fell: Fighting for nature on a Lake District hill farm
• Feral: Rewilding the Land, Sea and Human Life
• Land Healer: How Farming Can Save Britain’s Countryside

This is a voice note I found on my phone, filled with delight and espresso, after hearing the 5am dawn chorus of birds at the Knepp rewilding site in Sussex…

“There are a thousand different ways I could try to do my bit to save the world, have fun, and feel fulfilled. There are also a thousand different ways I could earn a living. But the Russian saying of “the man who chases two rabbits will end up with none,” reminds me that I must choose, and that’s okay.
Those of us lucky enough to have the freedom to strive for happiness, purpose, and sufficient money have to make choices.

I often struggle with this notion because I’m greedy—I want it all. I want to go everywhere, see everything, do everything, be everything, feel everything. But at times you have to pick a card, any card, and go with it.

I’m buzzing from caffeine and the English April sunshine, arguably my favourite of all possible sunshines, because this morning I visited the Knepp rewilding site to listen to the dawn chorus and watch the sunrise. It was a simple, joyous, hopeful, and free experience. Let me try to describe it to you.

You hear a volume, intensity, and variety of birdsong that is astonishing and surprising for someone raised in this country over the past century where we have destroyed so much of our nature. We have sleepwalked into a silent tragedy, destroying our wild places and depleting our land of wildlife, leaving behind a barren, sterile, silent green desert.

Almost all of us now live in levels of luxury that would have been astonishing a century ago. We have indoor flushing toilets, Wi-Fi, and fridges full of food, including once scarce luxury items like meat, cheese, and delicious ice cream. Yet this morning, hearing nightingales, birds I never hear in the fields and woods around where I live, I felt a profound joy and fulfilment which didn’t require any gadgetry or spending. I want experiences like this, not just on special outings, but daily.

Is it too much to ask to walk in the woods, watch the sunrise in spring, and be surrounded by birds? It doesn’t seem to me a greedy or unreasonable request, but is it possible to get that back?

And is there any significant value in it beyond the gentle ravings of a privileged, middle-aged outdoorsman? Yes, it matters. The destruction of nature on our watch is morally appalling. The impacts of climate change and the loss of nature are going to be astronomically expensive and catastrophic for millions, perhaps even billions, of people. And saying “What can I do? I’m just an individual” is lazy and self-exonerating.

What I experienced this morning in a landscape that has had just 20 years to rewild is the type of environment I want to live in, and which I want my grandchildren and their grandchildren to consider as normal—a place where wildlife thrives and rivers aren’t polluted.

The farm I visited today, typical of British farms since the Second World War, worked hard, focused on output and was propped up by subsidies. It proved disastrous for the natural world. Twenty years after allowing the farmland to return to the wild, Knepp now generates sustainable income from tourism, leisure, rewilding subsidies, and forms of regenerative agriculture. The impact of our diets on land use, nature loss, greenhouse emissions, and water pollution is horrendous and unsustainable.

But it’s entirely possible to eat a diet that is far less harmful to the planet, requiring far less land use, while still enabling farmers to earn a living through diversification of income streams and a rethink on the distribution and allocation of subsidies.

Freeing up this land is great for nature and rewilding, providing space for human leisure and recreation, which is good for mental and physical health. By getting more people connected with the natural world, we can motivate them to consider their own land use footprints and vote for government policies that support more nature-friendly farming practices. This creates a positive feedback loop.

As I head home from the dawn chorus and the birdsong, I can’t help feeling that rewilding ticks a lot of the boxes in my quest to find purpose and joy in life. It shows that change is not just wishy-washy, airy-fairy, hippie nonsense but is pragmatically viable for everyone.

It shows that change is not just wishy-washy, airy-fairy, hippie nonsense but is financially viable for everyone. If we do not change the way we farm and use our land, in a generation or two’s time, there will be so many climate problems that farming may not be possible.

Rewilding brings that joy and purpose I’m yearning for.”

Thank you for reading! Please do hit reply if you have any comments, criticisms, or suggestions for future topics I should address…

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