The Restore Nature Now March took place in Central London on Saturday 22nd June. The march saw the coming together of over 350 charities, businesses and direct-action groups calling on the government to work harder to protect biodiversity in the UK and Restore Nature Now! Some of the NHBS team travelled up from Devon and joined the estimated 100,000 people that took part in the march.
‘The Restore Nature Now march felt really galvanizing. It was heartening to walk with so many ecologists, scientists and activists and to dip into conversations about the amazing work people are participating in around the country to lead and assist in nature recovery. I was really moved by the impassioned speeches in parliament square from a host of brilliant speakers, and the sight of three peregrine falcons over Westminster was a potent and magical moment too!’ – Oli
‘It felt great to be a part of the march and join so many other people passionate about our nature and wildlife. The speakers at Parliament Square were inspirational, sadly I’m not sure if our politicians heard them, but we will be back and continue to be a voice for nature.’ – Adam
WHY DID THE DEMONSTRATION TAKE PLACE?
Restore Nature Now took place to call on political parties to act on the climate crisis and use the upcoming general election as a turning point. Their demands are as follows:
A PAY RISE FOR NATURE: To facilitate nature recovery, agricultural landowners need more support to make climate-friendly choices, and to do this, Restore Nature Now urged the UK government to double the nature and climate-friendly farming budget.
MAKE POLLUTERS PAY: Big business significantly contributes to environmental decline and the climate crisis, and to tackle this, organisers asked for new rules and regulations to be introduced to enforce greater contributions.
MORE SPACE FOR NATURE: Restore Nature Now campaigned for the expansion and improvement of protected areas and called for an improvement of public land and national parks to make a greater contribution to nature recovery.
A RIGHT TO A HEALTHY ENVIRONMENT: Calling for the creation of an Environmental Rights Bill, organisers are looking for the UK Government to drive better nature decisions to improve public health.
FAIR AND EFFECTIVE CLIMATE ACTION: To solve the climate crisis, and in turn save nature, more investment is required into effective climate action.
Restore Nature Now was a fantastic demonstration of hope and a call to action for the UK government. Our staff had an enlightening experience and thoroughly enjoyed the entertainment and talks throughout the day.