On Wednesday 29th June, a group of The Wildlife Trusts’ youth ambassadors handed in a 60,000-strong petition, and over 10,000 personal views shared by the public, all calling for more ambitious Government targets to halt and reverse nature’s decline.
The Government will soon set legally binding targets for nature’s recovery. This is urgently needed because the UK is one of the most wildlife-depleted countries in the world and habitat loss and degradation continue to blight people’s lives and affect nature’s ability to store carbon.
The long-term target currently being proposed for nature’s recovery aims to have just 10% more nature in 2042 than 2030 levels – by which time the state of our natural world is expected to have declined even further. The Wildlife Trusts have written a letter to the Prime Minister expressing serious concern and calling instead for a 20% increase on 2022 levels.
The Wildlife Trusts invited responses to the recent public consultation on the Environment Act targets. Over 60,000 people backed The Wildlife Trust’s view that the target is far too low.
Young people will suffer most from the consequences of continued nature declines in their lives. The youth ambassadors that handed in the petition include author, activist and The Wildlife Trusts’ ambassador, Mya-Rose Craig, and nine other youth ambassadors from different parts of the UK, including Megan and Charlie, members of Suffolk Wildlife Trust's Youth Board.