Hello!

I’m Emily, and I’ve recently joined the Biosphere team as the new Pledge for Nature Coordinator!

I’ve joined at an exciting time, as we have just launched our Biosphere Nature Recovery Plan and Declaration which has already been really well received by so many of you. In our first week we got over 150 signatures from wonderful individuals, businesses, schools, councillors, community groups, organisations as well as some visitors to the area. Thank you to everyone who has signed so far! This is an ongoing campaign, so please continue to encourage your family, friends, colleagues and others to pledge their commitment to nature’s recovery.

We are looking for Nature Recovery Declaration ‘Champions’ to help promote the Declaration! Do you know of places in your community/workplace/school where you could put our Declaration poster up and leave some physical copies of Declarations for people to sign? You can find copies of the poster and printable versions of the Declaration for different groups (e.g. individual/business/tourist) here. Would you be willing to promote the Declaration at an event in your area? If so, please get in touch! 

Why is signing the Nature Recovery Declaration important?

Despite the ongoing efforts of many conservation groups, nature continues to decline globally and across the North Devon Biosphere and our wildlife is a shadow of its former glory. Our Nature Recovery Plan outlines the key actions that must be taken over the next 10 years to reverse this trend so that nature is once again recovering. But we need everyone to engage - the Declaration is a sign of your commitment, but also outlines some of the key things you can help with. More detail can be found on the Pledge for Nature website.

Top Pledges during June

Every month we celebrate the fantastic pledges that have taken place, please continue to share photos of your completed pledges on the Pledge for Nature Facebook Group:

• Tarka Pottery is installing another bird box following from their two successful boxes this year;
• As well as creating a wildflower patch, Lynn and Gary in Sutcombe are also putting up boxes for owls, swifts and bats and creating a wildlife pond;
• Paul in Braunton is busy creating and maintaining a wildflower patch, volunteering through citizen scientist initiatives and creating a home for their resident hedgehogs! 

SEASONAL ACTIVITIES 

1)      Sign our Nature Recovery Declaration

This is the top priority for this quarter! Please sign and share as widely as you can.

2)      Become a Nature Recovery Champion

By stepping up in your community, you can play a really important role, encouraging others to engage. Consider setting up a community nature group and make a plan of how your area could be improved. We are ready to help you, including through our Community Nature Plan Challenge Fund.

3)      Create a wildflower meadow - ****SPECIAL OFFER OF YELLOW RATTLE SEEDS*****

If you’ve already started making a wildflower patch, now is the moment to think about how to improve it for next year. Or you can start thinking about starting to make one for next year!

Plantlife has an excellent Meadows’ Hub that is full of guidance on how to make and maintain wildflower meadows. We are also working closely with Moor Meadows in establishing a group of likeminded people in the Biosphere Reserve area who can assist with the promotion of creating nature-rich meadows. Watch this space! 

You don’t need loads of space to create a wildflower meadow. By cutting and removing grass at the right time, meadows can be created in gardens, parks, community spaces, on road verges and in fields. And you can boost them by collecting and spreading wildflower seeds.

Yellow rattle is the single most important plant you need when you want to create a wildflower meadow, since it parasitises and reduces the vigour of grasses. We have some yellow rattle seeds available to help you on your wildflower journey. If you would like 100 FREE Yellow Rattle seeds, please make a pledge on our website and send your name and address to emily.willoughby@devon.gov.uk. I’ll post the seeds to you before the end of September, with instructions.

Finally, we are hoping to launch a new action shortly so that you can help bring our rivers and streams back into good condition - watch this space!

Don’t forget to let us know what you are doing for nature in your garden, school, businesses or farm by making a Pledge for Nature.