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Leading Environmentalist Joins Wicken Fen Vision

The National Trust is delighted to welcome renowned environmental campaigner Tony Juniper as an Ambassador for the Wicken Fen Vision.

Described as 'One of the top ten environmental figures of the last 30 years' by the The ENDS Report 2008, Tony has spent his career campaigning for a more sustainable society at local, national and international levels. For example, he ran successful campaigns for new laws to protect the UK's finest wildlife habitats, to encourage more recycling and to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, as well as helping to bring about policy changes in the transport and farming sectors.

The Wicken Fen Vision is a 100 year project by the National Trust to create a landscape scale nature reserve and green lung for Cambridgeshire and the East of England, covering 53 sq km, from the existing Wicken Fen National Nature Reserve to the outskirts of Cambridge. The Vision will see the re-creation of a mosaic of fenland habitats to help protect and conserve endangered species of wildlife whilst providing a vast area for public access for leisure, relaxation, exercise and education.

Speaking on his support for the Vision Tony said:

"The Wicken Fen Vision is one of the most inspiring environmental initiatives in the country, giving hope that over time we can restore even the most degraded of our natural habitats. Only about one third of one per cent of the original natural fenland survives, and putting in place a long term plan to restore and reclaim our lost world of East Anglian wetlands is a bold step and I am delighted to be supporting the National Trust in this hugely important work".

In lowland Britain, particularly the fens only small isolated pockets of natural habitat remain. The only way to protect many rare and endangered species is to restore large areas of habitat argues Tony.
"If we are to hang on to much of our wildlife at the same time as our climate undergoes rapid change, then we will need to restore large areas of more natural habitats. Small isolated patches of wildlife havens will be more vulnerable to change, losing species as they suffer from droughts, fires as well as the gradual changes that will come with warmer conditions. Bigger patches will enable animals and plants to better adapt, will be more resilient to change and will enable wildlife to move more easily".

Whilst acknowledging that a small minority of people have reservations about the removal of agricultural land from production he passionately believes that as a nation we should tackle the amount of food we waste annually as the best way of resolving the nature versus food argument.
"I find it quite amazing how some people argue that the vision for Wicken Fen in some way undermines food security. On this subject the best place to start is in the kitchen. We waste about a third of our food in this country. This basically means that a third of the land growing food for us is feedings bins rather than people. In any event, the global obesity epidemic reminds us that we are not collectively short of food, it is more a question of how it's distributed. Even if the vision is 100 per cent successful, it will make only the tiniest difference to food production, while creating a massive positive impact for our quality of life and our ability to cope with climate change."

A Cambridge resident, Tony Juniper is a former Director of Friends of the Earth. He now works as an independent environmental advisor, including as a senior associate with the Cambridge University Program for Sustainability Leadership and a special advisor to The Prince of Wales' Rainforest Project.

Wicken Fen Property Manager, Chris Soans said:
"We are delighted that Tony will be joining the Trust to help promote the Vision. He is one of the mostly widely respected environmentalists in the world and we are looking forward to working together to bring the Vision to reality".

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Notes to Editors
1. Wicken Fen was acquired by the National Trust in 1899, making it one of the first nature reserves in the country. Today Wicken Fen is designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest, a National Nature Reserve, a Special Area for Conservation and an international Ramsar Wetland. 8111 species have been recorded at Wicken Fen, making it one of the most species rich single nature reserves in the country.
2. The Wicken Fen Vision is being developed by the National Trust in association with a number of strategic partners including, Cambridgeshire County Council, East Cambridgeshire District Council, South Cambridgeshire District Council, Cambridge City Council, Department for Communities and Local Government, East of England Development Agency, Cambridgeshire Horizons, Greater Cambridge Partnership, Environment Agency, Natural England, Sustrans, Esmee Fairbairn Foundation, The Tubney Charitable Trust and Heritage Lottery Fund.
3. The National Trust is Europe's biggest conservation organisation and looks after special places across England, Wales and Northern Ireland for ever, for everyone. People and places are at the heart of everything it does. 3.5 million members, 50,000 volunteers, 500,000 school children, and millions of visitors, donors and supporters help the Trust look after its 300 historic houses and gardens, 700 miles of coastline and 250,000 hectares of open countryside. www.nationaltrust.org.uk.
4. Further information on Tony Juniper can be found at www.tonyjuniper.com