Renowned Scottish sea shanty singer Nathan Evans has lent his support to a new campaign urging the Scottish government to declare Scotland as the world’s first rewilding nation and commit to rewilding 30% of the country’s land and seas.
In a message to his combined 2.2 million followers on Instagram and TikTok, the 28-year-old from Airdrie, Lanarkshire expressed his love for Scotland and its influence on his music. He is now encouraging his fans to sign the Scottish Rewilding Alliance’s Rewilding Nation Charter, which calls on the Scottish government to take action towards restoring the country’s natural environment.
This public endorsement comes after the Scottish Rewilding Alliance, a coalition of over 20 organizations, presented its “vision of hope” to Scotland’s climate action minister Alasdair Allan at a reception in Edinburgh two weeks ago.
Steve Micklewright, co-convenor of the Scottish Rewilding Alliance and CEO of Trees for Life, expressed gratitude towards Evans for adding his name to the charter and hopes that it will inspire others to do the same. He emphasized the importance of rewilding in addressing the nature and climate emergencies and highlighted the potential benefits for people such as job creation, improved health, and a cleaner environment.
The Scottish Rewilding Alliance’s Rewilding Nation pathway, presented to the government on December 3rd, outlines proposals for restoring various habitats such as peatlands, native woodlands, wetlands, rivers, and seas, while also supporting productive farmland. The alliance is calling for the Scottish government to make nature recovery the primary purpose of protected landscapes and seascapes and to establish wild zones around rivers and coastlines. Other proposals include doubling native woodland cover, restoring peatlands, and restricting damaging activities such as dredging and bottom trawling in Marine Protected Areas.
The alliance also emphasizes the importance of involving local communities in rewilding efforts and supporting land managers and farmers. They believe that declaring Scotland a Rewilding Nation would lead to meaningful action with the government committing to restoring the natural environment through legislation and funding.
The Rewilding Nation campaign has received wide support from individuals and organizations across Scotland, including Scottish actor Brian Cox and Hollywood star Leonardo DiCaprio. The Scottish Rewilding Alliance is calling on people from all walks of life to sign the Rewilding Nation Charter at rewild.scot/charter.
Distributed by https://pressat.co.uk/
