It seems that scientists studying reindeer have found that the animals have lost weight over the past 20 years and are now 12 per cent lighter. The Times reports this from the British Ecological Society’s annual meeting which said that reindeer numbers were up and that competition for food could be a factor as could warmer winters, which meant they could…
Birmingham Forst OAKS is holding its AGM on January 21st (1400 to 1600). All welcome at Kings Heath Park House. The OAKS is a voluntary organisation (formed in 2004 as the Birmingham FEI) which gathers together groups and individuals involved in Outdoor Learning in Birmingham. The group seeks to promote the educational use of local woodlands and…
Earthworm Watch is a collaboration between Earthwatch Institute (Europe) and the Natural History Museum in London. The project is in association with the Earthworm Society of Britain. Earthworm Watch is a national citizen science project that sets out to empower young people, whether as part of a school class, outdoor learning group, home…
The Council for Learning Outside the Classroom says that there has never been a better time to take up membership of the Council for Learning Outside the Classroom (CLOtC) as membership will not be due for renewal until April 2018 and you will have access to a package of benefits to help you improve the quality of…
Today’s Blog is contributed by Diane Vukotic who is an outdoor enthusiast who encourages parents to take their children camping to reconnect with nature, learn respect for wildlife, and develop self-esteem. She blogs at www.momgoescamping.com and you can also follow her on Facebook and Twitter. Entomology as a Gateway Nature is often viewed as something which is…
The National Wildflower Centre is a seasonal eco-visitor attraction in Knowsley which began in 1975. Its trustees issued a statement on Thursday saying: “Finances have been increasingly challenging during this time of continuing austerity and it is with great sadness that its Trustees have decided to wind down all business operations by February 2017. During these…
John Muir is regarded as the ‘father of America’s national parks’ and is a towering figure in the history of that country’s involvement with ecology, wilderness and all things natural. Born into a harsh disciplinarian home in Dunbar, Scotland (not the US as often thought), as a young boy he would often escape the grit of…
Here’s a link to the 2016 Communicate website and all the presentation slides from the recent conference. Communicate 2016 had the theme of Swapping Spectacles, and was held on 02 & 03 November, at Bristol Zoo Gardens. And here’s a link to the next conservation lecture at the zoo given by Ben Garrod.
Click here for an update from Groundwork West Midlands on their latest activities. This includes Charlotte’s story, and an anti carrier bag story c/o Tesco.
Green spaces are at a tipping point says The Parks Alliance in a comment on a recent report funded by Heritage Lottery: State of UK Public Parks 2016. The Alliance began its comment: “The Parks Alliance (TPA), the UK’s voice of parks, today responded to the Heritage Lottery Fund’s (HLF) report ‘State of UK Public Parks 2016’ by…
The BBC has reported that Scottish children are among the least active in the world. It says that Scotland has been placed joint last in an international study of physical activity among children. However, the Active Healthy Kids Report Card praised Scotland’s policies on encouraging physical activity, which were ranked joint second-highest of the 38 countries. The global study…
The World must urgently take action to cut a further 25% from predicted 2030 emissions, says a recent UN Environment report. This comes on the same day that the newspapers are full of stories about the terrible smog in Delhi. The two are, of course, inter-linked. UNEP also released a report from the One Gigatonne Coalition, about which…