Angelfish LIVE and Angelfish Films create and produce a 300 person sit down event with Britains leading rewilders and ecologists.
The Panel for this exciting one off event included the legendary George Monbiot, Simon King, Colin Tudge and some of Britains leading experts on Rewilding and deep ecology.
The live stream was a self funded project enabling people from around the world to log in and watch the talks, films and audience Q and A.
Rewinding LIVE was a self funded project but in the future we are aiming to gather investors who have an interest in promoting ecology and social change to the world!
To watch the recorded show on youtube click here – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s80mLeksSQw
Rewilding: what does it mean and why does it matter?
Rewilding was eloquently positioned in George Monbiot’s book ‘Feral’, an account of re-engagement with nature and discovering a new way of living. George emphasised how, by restoring and rewilding our damaged ecosystems on land and sea, wonder could return to human lives. Whether received favourably or less so, the essence of this vision will be explored and considered for its value tomorrow night.
The role we want guest to play is to listen with open hearts and minds to what is said. We have inherited our past but can collaborate on the future. There are times when great change requires great people and minds. No one is looking to criticise the past. We’re merely looking forwards together to the future. How we get there is up to us.
Many will be familiar with these statistics:
– 50% Loss in species in last 40 years (Living Planet Report 2014)
– 50% Human modification of Land (Hooke & Martin-Duque2012). In other words loss of fully functioning ecosystems.
– 70% Loss in Soil Productivity
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– Rising atmospheric temperatures globally
– Rising acidification of the Ocean (its compensating for CO2 in the atmosphere by absorbing but is almost at capacity so then the atmosphere will increase in temperature further)
– Fresh water withdrawal has tripled over last 50years.
– 1 in 8 global human deaths were caused by exposure to air pollution in 2012. The Worlds largest single environmental health risk.
– Water pollution globally is on the rise. Every day, 2 million tons of sewage and industrial and agricultural waste are discharged into the world’s water (UN WWAP 2003) the equivalent of the weight of the entire human population of 6.8 billion people.
Overwhelming?
It doesn’t need to be. REWILDING when understood from the perspective of reinstating nature and its processes offers hope but requires everyone to reconsider how things are done. And how things should be done hold benefits for us all.
Here’s some food for thought:
UK approx land allocation figures:
71% UK currently used for agriculture
7% UK currently used for Urban
13% UK land currently used for forestry (commercial enterprise not
biodiversity or ecosystem driven)
5% other
TOTAL LEFT: 5% of land available for natural systems to regulate, provide and sustain life as well as provide cultural value that enhances wellbeing.
Declining biodiversity and increased toxicity suggest that this current allocation of land is unsustainable.
But what does a sustainable model look like?
Proposing sustainable land use patterns
Theorists have suggested that 66 % of global land cover should be for ecosystems (44 % as intact natural ecosystems & 22 percent as agro-ecological buffers) and 34% dedicated for human use. Globally, human use takes up at least 50%. More work is required in this area.
But working to better understood limits would provide clear goals for the UK around ecosystem restoration and food production.
Tomorrow will showcase initiatives such as Rewilding Britain, Alladale Wilderness Reserve, Knepp Rewilding, Wildland Research Institute, The College of Real Farming and Food Culture and the Red List Revival. Their combination could contribute to redressing the environmental problems we face.
This is the beginning of a long but potentially fulfilling journey. Please bring open minds along for the ride.
Regards,
Dan Dobbie
ANGELFISH FILMS
www.angelfishfilms.com