Kajal D. Patel
With nearly 85% of the UK population living in urban city dwellings, it can become increasingly difficult for young people to understand the role and value of nature. When we think of wildlife, most of us think of wild animals such as tigers and leopards, but wildlife includes plants and animals that live around us, not just those in tropical rainforests or savannahs across the world.
Wildlife is outside our doorsteps – our native plant biodiversity in the United Kingdom includes nettles, dock leaves, yarrow and much more. But wildlife is also inside our homes, in the forms of creams, oils, herbal medicines, teas, furniture, make-up items, drinks and food products. Living in the city, buying goods in a packaged and processed form distances us from the plants, the processes and the people involved in making the hundreds of products that are used every day.
Educating young people about the wild plants that contribute to their daily life enables and empowers them to act in a mindful and conscious way. When we understand the many mechanisms and forces that are behind the food we eat and the things we use, we have a deeper sense of gratitude and are more likely to want to sustain and preserve it.
FairWild Foundation is a non-profit organisation which has developed a certification system that specifically focuses on raising the sustainability and ethical standards of wild sourced plants from around the world. While FairWild primarily works directly with companies, encouraging them to adopt sustainable harvest and fair trade practices, they also aim to encourage and educate the public about the use of wild plant ingredients in finished products as these are often left unrecognised or unappreciated. Every single person uses wild plants in some way. As consumers, we have some power to influence and encourage companies to have more sustainable practices when it comes to wild plant species. We have the ability to question the brands we use by asking them about the wild ingredients they use, where they come from and how they factor in sustainability.
One of the most beneficial ways to allow pupils to connect to nature is of course for them to be immersed in the natural environment through farm visits, nature tours, orienteering and walks. However, awareness can also be created in the classroom about how the natural world contributes to the pupils’ livelihoods, their comfort and much more. One way of doing this is by encouraging students to read the labels of everyday items they use and find which ingredients may have come from the wild. Some of the key ingredients to look out for have been highlighted by TRAFFIC, a non-governmental organisation that works on wildlife trade issues worldwide. Explore the ‘Wild Dozen’ on our #IFoundWild page.
Up to 90% of medicinal and aromatic plants in trade may be wild collected and for most of these plants their conservation status is unknown. Growing awareness in our communities, schools and homes means that we can encourage more companies to harvest sustainably and be accountable for the wild plants they use and sell in their products. This will help preserve wild plants for generations to come, ensuring that the often vulnerable people collecting and harvesting these plants have their livelihoods for generations to come, and will also ensure the protection of the ecosystems and species which are reliant on wild plants.
Activities to connect pupils with wild plants
There are many fun educational activities which can be used to build and develop awareness about the wild plants which relate to our everyday lives. One way of doing this is by asking pupils to select one wild plant species that is used in a FairWild product in the UK. Pupils then create their own projects about this wild plant focusing on the key points (the 5 Ps):
Plant: Why is the plant used in this particular product? What is the history of the plant? Which region does the plant originate from and where has it been introduced? What are the benefits and potential problems with introducing wild plants to different parts of the world?
Place: Where does the plant come from? What habitat or environment is it grown in?
People: Who is responsible for collection of the plants? Are livelihoods dependent on the collection of this plant? What sort of communities harvest wild species? What are the social repercussions of this?
Process: How many steps or processes are involved in making the product?
Principles: What are the social and environmental issues connected with the plant? What are the FairWild principles and how do they contribute to the sustainability of the plant?
Information on the FairWild Standard, certified species, products and sites around the world can be found on our website (see below). Follow us on social media and visit the website to be kept up to date on plans for the annual FairWild Week. It would be great to see schools participating in this online celebration of wild plants and all they bring to our lives – get in touch to share your ideas!
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Kajal Darshan Patel is an independent researcher currently volunteering with the FairWild Foundation – a non-profit initiative with the mission to secure a fair and sustainable future for wild plant resources and people.
More information: fairwild.org
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This article was first published in Summer 2021 in Vol 127 of the NAEE journal which is available free to members.