@chilternsnl.bsky.social @colnevalley.bsky.social @chilternstreams.bsky.social @riverthamect.bsky.social

👉 If you’re a councillor who would like to find out more about what councils can do to help local chalk streams, including motions and/or local plan policies, please get in touch at [email protected]

👉 Contact your councillor and ask them to consider proposing a Chalk Stream or River Rights Motion for your council, or including policies that would help chalk streams in the local plan.

You can find out who your local councillor is here: www.gov.uk/find-your-lo...

The new motion recognises the international importance of chalk streams and commits the council to protect and restore them.

Feeling inspired?

🐟 Described as Britain’s equivalent of the Amazon Rainforest, chalk streams are a rare habitat characterized by clear waters and a diversity of wildlife. The majority of the world’s chalk streams – around 85% – are found in England, but only 11 of the 220 habitats have any legal protections.

🪧 Become a Wildlife Ambassador. By signing up, we will provide you with information and resources for how you can speak up for nature both across our counties and on a national level: buff.ly/iEyHG7Q

By transitioning to a more sustainable diet, you can help to reduce pressure on how the land is used, and reverse the impact on nature and the climate.

📣 Share this report and tag your MP. Public awareness of these issues is critical if we are to take the necessary steps to secure our future.

🍽️ Eat more plant-based foods. The assessment states that 'The UK does not have enough land to feed its population and rear livestock: a wholesale change in consumer diets would be required.'

❓ What can we do? ❓

While this is a global issue, there are still actions we can take locally.

📧 Email/message your MP and ask them to hold the Government to account on how they will act on this assessment. Find out how: buff.ly/eBxfz73

'The impacts will range from crop failures, intensified natural disasters and infectious disease outbreaks to conflict within and between states, political instability, and erosion of global economic prosperity.'

Read the full report here: buff.ly/sW7RiaS

The assessment states:

'Nature is a foundation of national security. Biodiversity loss is putting at risk the ecosystem services on which human societies depend, including water, food, clean air and critical resources.

This visit allowed the students to be assessed on practical elements of their course, and we will be leading further groups across this month to enable the whole class to gain vital experience!

While scrub provides valuable shelter for birds and insects, too much of it can be a problem for many species which rely on open habitats. Therefore we selectively clear scrub between September and February so as to minimise disturbing wildlife, particularly nesting birds and reptiles.

Absolutely!

The BBOWT Community Network aims to bring together all the amazing individuals, groups and communities who are restoring and protecting nature, and during the afternoon there will be refreshments and an opportunity to chat with lots of local Bicester groups.

👉 Reserve your place: buff.ly/jgvxwHO

Our talk will be about the actions which we can all take to help wildlife in our own green spaces. Whether the space is a window box, a shared garden, or a substantial plot, there are important ways in which we can create habitats for wildlife.

🐝 Dave is Professor of Biology at University of Sussex, specializing in bee ecology. He has published more than 300 scientific articles on the ecology and conservation of bumblebees and other insects, and he founded the Bumblebee Conservation Trust in 2006.