That richly complex melody of the nightingale is a rare presence in the UK nowadays, however it's different at Maple Farm. Back in 2020, a single nightingale could be heard at this secluded location in rural Surrey; lately, they were everywhere. “We were hearing them calling all night, from several zones,” notes Meg Cookson, top biologist for the eco-activist organization. A team of volunteers were camping out at the property, but the birds were so boisterous, “we were unable to rest all night,” remarks an engagement lead. “We were all worn out the next day, but it was so amazing.” An expert from the local conservation group came to help them capture and tag one of the songbirds the next morning, Cookson remembers: “He’d never held a nightingale in his possession before. He was crying.”
Habitat Revival Speeds Up at This Location
Ecological restoration is by nature a slow business, but at this site at Maple Farm, after only several seasons, the results are already visible, and audible. The land was once a sanctuary for horses. Currently it’s a example for the youth-led goal: to accelerate habitat revival, in one of the most nature-depleted regions in the world, and to engage youth (18-30-year-olds) with a environment they are often excluded from, and a climate crisis they are often ineffectual to stop. Global heating continues, habitat loss damages wildlife homes, and one more climate conference ends with a disappointing end in abroad – so what person could fault youth for wishing to act independently?
Our organisation was based on the idea that there were individuals prepared to let a bunch of youthful idiots on to their property
“The newer cohort is the most informed ecologically that there’s historically,” states the Youngwilders’ co-director, one organizer. They are also “the highly invested in the issues, and have played the least to their causing, and, then, are also going to experience consequences the greatest as a result.”
Transformation of the Landscape
Today, the organisation is expanding across the UK – and this location started it all, in every sense. “It’s our origin point, and the place we established our connections,” says another co-director, as she provides a walkthrough of the 12-hectare land. “This used to be six different fields,” she says, as we stroll through long grass featuring shrubs, bordered by established trees. “The main visible difference is that we’ve eliminated all the enclosures, over a kilometer of it, to make it feel like a unified landscape.” In the warmer months, they donned special clothing and removed large amounts of harmful weeds, an invasive species that can harm the skin. “We’ve established loads of bush lines,” says the director. “But the main thing is we’ve just given it space for a little bit. We’ve eliminated a significant amount of animal feeding and seen what’s come up.”
Low scrub and natural fences are a ideal nightingale habitat, she comments, although currently they’re managing some of the thorny plants to create a greater diversity of environments and to link up two parts of the land. New trees will take a while to establish, but new growth from the nearby oaks are already growing in the fields; the team have been installing protectors to protect them from animals.
Animals Reappears in Abundance
There's more than the nightingales – animals is reappearing in droves. This year they’ve observed reptiles, slowworms, flyers and bugs, explains another co-director, as he lifts up one of their survey equipment (similar to a mat over a small hollow in the earth). “You get snakes and wildlife sheltering under there, but it’s probably a slightly cool for them now.” Organic nests, constructed from hollowed-out parts of wood and active with insects, are attached to some of the plants. The absence of livestock has allowed insects opportunity to prosper in the overgrown areas. When they came to this summer, says he, “I’d not once encountered so countless lepidoptera. There were just masses of them. We were like, ‘What is happening?’”
Origins of the Project
The first participants – Bennett, Jack, Easton and additional members – united as students, pursuing or having an interest in ecology. In the recent past, the climate experts was forecasting that the safe limit of one and a half degrees of climate change was seeming out of reach, a prominent figure was guiding the youth protests for climate movement, and campaigner another voice was talking about young people suffering from “eco-worry”. It was also the era of Isabella Tree’s book, Wilding, on how they revitalized the Knepp Estate from a struggling agricultural business into a thriving wildlife haven. “We were highly motivated by the case study, but what could be the role for young people?” says Easton. “So we developed a platform and contacted loads of wildlife trusts and were saying, ‘Do you ever get your landowners wishing to do something and you are short on capacity?’”
Jack continues the account: “Our whole organisation was essentially founded on the belief that there were people who were ready to let a collection of young idiots on to their estate freely, to make significant decisions that would affect land value
