AFON
My Vision for Nature – by Jack Plumb
Welcome to our series of blog posts in the run up to the general election (7th May 2015). Over this month AFON members will share their own Visions for Nature: what they want the natural world to look like by 2050 and how they want to get there. We have created a hashtag on Twitter so why not join the conversation? What’s your #VisionforNature?
At night I sit at home in my living room, lit dimly by the sun’s remnants captured that day; a day that was filled with sound and life spent roaming our city home with friends and family – captivated. Some sounds new and some old, heard from tree and bright water. Life seen long ago and still here, and life once lost – but not forgotten – now back again for a second chance.
It was my generation that remembered when life’s peril was our lifestyle itself and nothing natural at all, but our children were brought up in a place like this. Now they have children of their own to inherit it. Inherit hard work and innovation from a time of desperation, almost realised too late. Policy, technology and education now flow with nature, and not against the current; not encroaching but encompassing.
Cities and countryside were connected and life flourished nationally, and globally. A common agenda emerged through advocacy and a change in priorities. Youth led the way. Young empowered voices as raucous and loud as the rainforests and seabird colonies they wanted to save.
All my company acknowledged that day’s significance: that now every place people live, wildlife lives too; and every light lit at night is memory of day – nature in essence.
This is my Vision for Nature. It is a vision that is driven by renewable energy, with nature-rich cities that are sustainable for the very long term future, and connected nationally and internationally with nature reserves and agricultural expanses. Our biodiversity is maintained, and enriched with re-introduced species, tactfully undertaken to restore a balance that has undeniably been lost to intense farming, uncompromising industry and a lack of understanding. Most importantly though, it is a future where education in environmental concerns and their importance is a part of everyday life. Instilling a deep connection with nature at a young age develops a sense of why it matters, and this is critical in achieving my Vision for Nature.
