We need more environmental activists to save our green spaces | Patrick Barkham | Society
Like many people who care about the environment, I’m sometimes guilty of assuming that others don’t care enough to take grassroots action. My prejudices are shared by 64% of environmental activists, who think other people don’t join them because “they believe someone else will take care of itâ€. But we are wrong. A report by the Fabian Society that follows focus groups in three cities finds that a potentially great green blob â€" an environmentally aware one-third of society â€" never coalesces around local campaigns because of a lack of information, a lack of people asking them to help, cliquey campaigners and activities that aren’t family friendly.
This is uncomfortable reading for both environmental campaigners and local councils. But it is also hopeful. Here, in theory, lies a vast cohort of people “yet to be mobilisedâ€, beyond the familiar community stalwarts of well-educated early retirees. Unlike these usual suspects, the Fabian Society’s focus groups consisted of environmentally aware voters from socio-economic groups B, C1, C2 and D. Two of their top three local environmental priorities will not surprise any local politician: litter-free streets and an end to dog mess. But austerity-hit councillors’ eyes may light up at the second priority: protecting parks and green spaces.
By the year’s end, most local authorities will have endured a 40% reduction in central government funding since 2010. Environmental budgets have been slashed far more to protect other services. It takes a few seasons for us to notice the impact of this haemorrhaging of professional expertise, from countryside rangers to tree officers, but we see it now. And parks and nature reserves are going to deteriorate further. Bristol city council says its expenditure on parks will be cut to zero in 2019. Liverpool is investigating handing management of its parks to the private sector. Park space is now routinely given over to private companies to raise funds or, worse, flogged to developers. In Stockport, 70 homes are being built on part of a country park.
Newcastle has cut its parks budget by 90% over the past seven years. So the fact that the Fabian report includes a forward jointly written by Nick Forbes, the leader of Newcastle city council, is interesting. Volunteers already support some parks, but do councils hope to manage them almost exclusively with volunteers, just as volunteers increasingly prop up closure-threatened libraries?
The caveats are obvious. A volunteer cannot make the decisions of qualified arboriculturalists or ecologists. I shouldn’t determine which street tree is axed or the best mowing regime for a wildflower meadow (although like most enthusiasts I reckon I could do a better job than commercial contractors, given 30 seconds to prune a park shrub).
As well as professional limitations, there are also practical political considerations. How can the genuine cares of people who aren’t active be harnessed by councils and environmental groups? The Fabian report highlights how would-be volunteers need to see tangible local benefits. People are suspicious of “devolutionâ€, regarding it as a cover for cuts, and suspicious of fake consultations.
As the Fabians warn, bad consultations are worse than no consultations, and lead to even more disengagement. “It looked like the councillors weren’t interested at all,†said one participant in the Truro focus group of their foray into a planning meeting. “There was a councillor sitting there and he wasn’t bothered at all, and he was asleep. It was like ‘Ah well, it’s going to go ahead anyway.’â€
I’ve felt that too and despaired of local politics. But environmentalists need to take heed. No one seeking to bring back sea eagles or lynx or even plant more trees on sheep-ravaged uplands will succeed without significant local support. And so we return to money. Authentic work on the ground â€" genuine consultations, projects to engage people and harness their views and talents â€" requires resources and paid professionals to do it properly. So awakening a great green blob of new activists is not as cheap as it first appears. But it might just save our green spaces.
0 Response to "We need more environmental activists to save our green spaces | Patrick Barkham | Society"
Posting Komentar