Gillian Keegan Letter – The Secretary of State’s response to questions from Teach the Future is online here.
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Wednesday 4 October – A reminder that, from this date, all schools, nurseries and colleges in England will be able to join the National Education Nature Park on a new website. They can celebrate the launch and get a taste of what the National Education Nature Park is all about by taking part in a Hidden Nature Challenge.
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Teacher Education – Teach the Future’s written evidence [TTR0032] to the Education Select Committee investigation into recruitment, training and retention has been published on the committee’s website.
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Environmental Literacy – NAAEE says dive into the 5-year partnership between it and the NOAA Office of Education. You can learn about the significant strides made in environmental literacy, and explore the objectives, outcomes, and lessons learned from this initiative.
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Water Voles – Citizen Zoo is recruiting volunteers for the Water Vole Task Force. The group will be in charge of carrying out regular checks on smart mink rafts, as well as ongoing light maintenance where needed for these rafts, in addition to traditional clay rafts and camera traps. If anybody is interested in finding out more, the role description can be found here. And here is a film by Molly McNamara Langton and Arran Moran focusing on the release of water voles last year.
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Tips and Tricks – We’re invited to Zoom with the Natural History Museum to learn tips and tricks for using outdoor learning to support students with science. This will include outlining the benefits of outdoor and environmental learning to support the curriculum and students, identification apps to support students monitor biodiversity and health and safety considerations of outdoor learning. It’s on Tuesday 10th October, 16:00-16:40. Here’s the sign-up form.
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Leave those Kids Alone – Unherd has an article about what the author, Niall Gooch, says is the exploitation of young people by eco-activists. It is a side to the discussion that isn’t normally heard.
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Waxcap Watch – Plantlife invites us all to explore the wonderfully colourful world of waxcap fungi.
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Cocoa Solids – It was International Chocolate Day last Wednesday, but it’s never too late to enjoy this long-established drink from the gods – and to reflect on some of the problems associated with the industry.
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Hedge Health – Defra is consulting on hedgerows. It says: Currently, farmers must not remove hedgerows without prior notice given to local planning authorities, must maintain a buffer strip along their hedgerows, and must not cut or trim hedgerows during bird nesting and rearing season. We want to ensure the regulations work for wildlife, the environment and for farmers. This consultation is seeking your views on the best way to maintain and improve existing protections, as well as our approach to enforcement. We are also seeking your views on where we should focus our ambitions for future hedgerow protections. We would like everyone who cares about hedgerows – including farmers, stakeholder organisations and members of the public – to read our consultation document and share their views on our plans. Closing date September 20th.
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World Rivers Day 2023 – Each year, World Rivers Day commemorates the immense values of our rivers and encourages river stewardship and conservation around the globe. This worldwide event involving more than 100 countries and millions of participants has its roots in British Columbia Rivers Day. It’s on September 24th.
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1.5 Degrees + The Climate Action Tracker tracks government climate action in around 40 countries and measures it against the 1.5°C Paris Agreement warming limit.
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Sewage Spills – The Office for Environmental Protection (OEP) is a public body that protects and improves the environment by holding government and other public authorities to account. It has found that the government may have broken the law on sewage spills. Details here.
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Ymddiriedolaeth Natur – The Wildlife Trusts have announced the launch of Wilder Marches – a nature recovery project across two countries, four counties and three major river catchments. Shropshire, Herefordshire, Montgomeryshire and Radnorshire Wildlife Trusts aim to create and restore habitats across the historic and distinctive Marches region running along the Welsh-English border. The scheme will help rare species such as curlew, pine marten and freshwater pearl mussel recover – through regenerative farming and emerging green finance opportunities. There’s a short film narrated by Iolo Williams here (in English) and here (in Welsh).