Being in nature is so important for us as human beings. Whether it’s a place to find some peace or somewhere to enjoy some breathtaking scenery, a lot of us spend time in nature in ways that greatly benefit our day to day lives. 

We know that nature is vital for our well-being. People who have access to nature see benefits in both their physical and their mental health, and our Wildlife Trusts-led health programmes have shown those great results in action when it comes to nature and health. And even if our time in nature isn’t as structured as a programme like those mentioned, we can still spend time in green and blue spaces on our own and enjoy those mental health benefits of nature. 

However, we also know that not everyone has equal access to nature, and not everyone feels included in natural places. Just 35% of households with annual incomes below £10,000 are within a 10-minute walk of a publicly accessible natural green space, for instance. Meanwhile, research like Included Outside by Natural England shows that some groups of people may not feel welcome – or not feel safe – in nature.  

That’s why we at The Wildlife Trusts are working to make sure that nature is a space for everyone. This means living up to our commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion, creating spaces where everyone feels included and supported. Some of this has been supporting our colleagues across the Wildlife Trusts with training and development, such as providing training on how to challenge discriminatory behaviour and be allies to all. It has been so heartening to see enthusiasm from across the moment for how we can improve inclusion in conservation. 

This work also means thinking about the way that we do things. It can be seen in our Nextdoor Nature projects, bringing communities together to help nature flourish where they live and work. We have started working on our reserves too, sharing best practice around accessibility and reviewing our reserves to make sure that we remove as many barriers to enjoying time in nature as possible. 

One of the things we’ve been looking at is how digital tools could help, through The National Lottery Heritage Fund’s Explore programme. After all, being part of nature isn’t always in the here and now: there are all sorts of digital options for how people can engage in green and blue spaces, whether enjoying what nature has to offer digitally, taking part in citizen science or learning more about a nature reserve before visiting. We’re looking forward to having more to show here in the future, to help create more complementary tools like our Nextdoor Nature Hub. 

In fact, there is so much more to come from us on this vital journey, as we help do our part in making natural spaces open to everyone. We’re excited to have you with us as we work to make nature open for all, and as we show how we are wild about inclusion.