Category:

1. 5 easy ways to make a difference to climate change from the National Trust

   Posted on 9:00pm Monday 3rd Feb 2020

   As a member of the National Trust, I receive its magazine. One of the things the Spring 2020 magazine covers was climate change and what the Trust is doing to care for the places in its care as they are affected by it. Things like daffodils appearing earlier; rope bridges being closed to visitors more frequently because of high winds; paintings being affected by the temperatures in the summer all point to a changing climate.  Houses close because of the heat, since it affects collections and the fabric of the building.  More pests and diseases are having an impact on the plants in the garden.  Together they make a picture that’s uneasy and that the Trust is trying to deal with.   The National Trust itself is taking measures to tackle climate change, such as a renewable energy investment programme. It’s pledged to reduce its use of fossil fuels by 50% by 2021.  It’s creating or restoring 25,000 hectares of natural habitats because areas such as wetland and woodland can capture and store thousands of tonnes of carbon.  And the Trust has created Fit for the Future, which brings together some of the UK’s largest charities and landowners to fight the impact of climate change and rising energy costs. So there’s lots the National Trust is doing, but as it points out, we all need to start lowering our impact on the world and start making changes.   The National Trust says there are five easy ways to make a difference are: Waste less – less food, less energy and less water Turn heating down and layer up (this is something Polar Bears International ask us all to do – they even have a Thermostat Challenge) Use an online carbon calculator to find out your carbon footprint and to work out how you can reduce it.  Can you walk, bike, car share or use public transport? Get involved in Leap for Nature on 29 February and make a promise for nature this year. Read the National Trust's 2019 wildlife and weather review A great and truly giving way to help them is to dig deep and be willing to make changes ourselves to help wildlife. Do it for the koalas, the polar bears, the penguins, the puffins…. your favourite wildlife...

2. Double your money with a donation to ZSL by 31 December 2019

   Posted on 3:00pm Sunday 15th Dec 2019

   Saving wildlife starts with people. ZSL have established a project to help both people and wildlife on the edges of national parks in Nepal and Kenya. Life is very difficult here. Elephants trample crops; tigers attack livestock.   Families risk their lives as they enter the forest to gather firewood and graze their cattle.  These activities damage wildlife habitats. Unfortunately, some people become involved in wildlife crime, such as hunting bushmeat, to feed their families.  Worse, they can be exploited by the international illegal wildlife trade. For People For Wildlife So ZSL are tackling the problem with a project to help people – and so help wildlife – with a project For People For Wildlife ZSL are teaming up with communities to help them establish sustainable livelihoods.  They will help with start-up costs e.g. training nature guides, fencing to safeguard crops, starting a salon – and also develop ways to live alongside wildlife peacefully. The plan is that families will then have a reliable, sustainable income and escape poverty, and thus be better placed to help protect the forest and its wildlife, and indeed to help it survive and thrive. The donations will help tackle various threats to people and wildlife.  And they will help wildlife through science, education and conservation. £1 really does = £2 if you donate by 31 December 2019! Donate here You can help by making a donation - and for every £1 donated by 31 December 2019, the UK Government will MATCH your donation, up to £2 million.  Find out more and DONATE here

    

3. Slipped up with plastic? Donate your guilt!

   Posted on 5:00pm Wednesday 28th Aug 2019

   So with the best will in the world, there will be times when we forget to bring along a re-usable bag, or we need to buy a plastic bottle of water. And we think, “Oh dear, I shouldn’t have done that.  I must be more organised next time,” or “Oh dear, that’s one more bottle to add to the millions that will end up in a whale’s stomach…” or “I must do better next time” or “Oh well, it doesn’t happen very often”  etc etc Well, the Marine Conservation Society have come up with a way to help us all overcome those moments of guilt! Donate your guilt to the Marine Conservation Society!!  Yes, you can now donate your guilt and help the MCS continue its work to stem the plastic tide. You can donate in different ways: Donate money Donate your time – clean up a local beach, for instance Donate a share online with this idea – let’s spread it about! Remember, Refuse, Reduce, Reuse Repurpose, Recycle.  I repurpose all the water we don’t use e.g. in water glasses – it goes straight onto the garden.  Donations will help the MCS organise more beach cleans and run more campaigns to encourage the UK government to bring in vital legislation.  It will also help them hold companies, industry and governments to account. Find out more here Make a donation here

    

    

4. Polar bears heading to unusual places as sea ice melts

   Posted on 2:00pm Thursday 9th May 2019

   I had an interesting email from Polar Bears International (PBI) today. They have noticed that polar bears are showing up in odd places.   An exhausted polar bear was seen recently in a village on Russia’s far eastern Kamchatka Peninsula – and that’s 600 kilometers plus from its home range. Their Senior Director of Conservation, Geoff York, thinks this could be that the bear hitched a ride on an ice floe and drifted south, as the ice broke up earlier in the Bering and Chukchi seas this spring.  Unusual and fast ice loss this year has displaced polar bears form their preferred hunting areas.   Seals give birth to their pups in spring In snow lairs or on the sea ice surface.  This makes the polar bear’s dinner more abundant and accessible than at any other time of the year. However the Russian polar bear was far from this area. It was decided to air-lift him back north, to Chukotka in the Russian Arctic. But there have been other unusual occurrences in the region over several months.  Some have been far from the sea.   This could be because of unstable ice cover. Sustained early sea ice is bad news for polar bears Polar Bears International know from other regions that sustained early sea ice break up doesn’t do polar bears any good.  Fewer hunting opportunities Decreased body condition Impacts on reproduction which aren’t good Negative impacts on survival, especially the old and  young If there’s less sea ice in the Arctic, it gets more difficult for polar bears to make a living from the frozen ocean.  Of course people living on the Arctic rely on stable ice to get around on, and to gather food.  We all need a frozen Arctic ecosystem to regulate our climate.    So we ALL need the Arctic to be in good health. Polar Bears International works in 3 ways: Education and outreach.  As more polar bears appear onshore, the charity works to help keep polar bears and people safe, with outreach on best practices for avoiding human-polar bear conflict.   These include getting rid of things such as open garbage dumps and installing bear-proof ones.  Research – the charity is studying the effectiveness of using surveillance radar to detect approaching polar bears.  This means alerts can be given before a bear enters town.  PBI help with research on the best deterrants – and that includes putting together a  history of polar bear attacks, and their causes to help avoid future conflicts. Climate Action. PBI is one working to solve the climate crisis, sharing their knowledge of polar bears and coming up with solutions.  This includes the Climate Alliance training program for zoo staff members, outreach to motivate citizen involvement, and advocacy to policy makers on the urgent need to act. Get involved and help polar bears

    

    

5. Children take part in air pollution study - pollution affects us all

   Posted on 9:00pm Tuesday 26th Mar 2019

   Did you know there’s research being undertaken to find out how badly school children are affected by pollution every day? The Daily Mail reports that 250 pupils in schools across London are gathering data for one week.  They are carrying pollution sensors made by Dyson in lightweight backpacks.  The sensors only weigh just over 1kg and take one pocket, so the rest of the space in the backpack can be used for books etc. The sensors can measure both particulate matter and nitrogen dioxide (NO2) levels and will enable the researchers to gain a better understanding of which pollutions are the most harmful.  The study is being run by King’s College London and it’s hoped that the findings will discover at which points and on which routes youngsters are most exposed to toxic pollutants.  As I’m so fond of saying, you can’t expect to be healthy if your environment isn’t healthy too.  If we can improve the air for people, it will help animals as well.