Daisy's 30 Days Wild

Daisy Vasanthakumar shares her experience with 30 Days Wild - and encourages everybody to join in with #30DaysWild this June!

I have to keep pinching myself at the thought of how lucky I am to be sandwiched between the green hills of the South Downs and the deep blue sea. Even after five and a half years of living in Brighton, I am still in awe when finding new wild areas of nature that I haven’t yet explored.

I first got involved with The Wildlife Trust and 30 Days Wild at University, when I helped volunteer a few times at The Centre for Wildlife Gardening in Peckham, London. It felt amazing to meet new people, help out planting veggies, and identifying insects.

I took part in 30 Days Wild last year as a way to reconnect with nature

I took part in 30 Days Wild last year as a way to reconnect with nature and focus on something that I could take control of during the uncertainty of Covid. My time was spent mostly running, beach cleaning, watching the sunrise on the beach, and listening to the birds at our local nature reserve.

a photo of Daisy's feet paddling in the sea — Daisy Vasanthakumar

I have always felt intense emotions when being in nature. I am truly absorbed in it, grinning from ear to ear when I’m outside exploring. Whether it be on a rainy walk in the downs, picking elderflower for cordial or taking close up photos of butterflies.

It has also helped me get through university when I had depression and some difficult moments in the last few years.

It helps bring a sense of perspective when I’m worried and makes me realise that there’s a bigger reality beyond these worries. It takes me back to my childhood, through fond memories of jumping in puddles, family walks, the smell of salty seas and people watching in parks.

It’s amazing how easy it is to participate in a wild activity each day, because wildness can be found in small spaces such as a tree or small parks. There’s a small nature reserve woodland that I used to visit a lot last June. I would wake up at 5am with the sunrise and run to the woods to listen to the dawn chorus.

I took part in lots of beach cleans. Solo beach cleans not only helped protect our sacred oceans, beaches and wildlife but I found it therapeutic. I was in my own little world most of the time, in search of glimmers of small plastic pieces.

A view of a forking path within a woodland, the sun is shining through the trees. — Daisy Vasanthakumar

I’m also very lucky to share my birthday during 30 Days Wild. Last year I dipped in the sea and made homemade lemon and elderflower cake with nasturtiums that I got from a nearby garden.

I love this quote from my favourite book ‘Braiding Sweetgrass’ - “It’s not just land that is broken, but more importantly, our relationship to land.”

30 Days Wild made me feel alive, grounded and reconnected. It made me think about how much I have grown as a person in the last few years and how much is yet to be discovered.

I ended up doing things that brought out my creativity which I would have otherwise ended up hiding, and I stopped to appreciate how bloody beautiful nature can be when in gentle hands.

30 Days Wild definitely inspired me to make changes in my life.

30 Days Wild definitely inspired me to make changes in my life. Since getting involved, I decided to reduce my single-use plastic intake, go plant-based in my diet, and get involved in #OceanActivism through volunteering with Surfers Against Sewage. I also attended marches such as The Wildlife March set up by Chris Packham.

I think 30 Days Wild made me realise how important it is to protect what we can: picking up litter, learning about what wildlife we have around us, or reducing our plastic.