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Kent Wildlife Trust

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The conservation movement , also known as nature conservation , is a political, environmental, and social movement that seeks to manage and protect natural resources , including animal , fungus , and plant species as well as their habitat for the future. Conservationists are concerned with leaving the environment in a better state than the condition they found it in. Evidence-based conservation seeks to use high quality scientific evidence to make conservation efforts more effective.

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127-1020: Kent Wildlife Trust (KWT) is a conservation charity in the United Kingdom that was founded in 1958, previously known as the Kent Trust for Nature Conservation. It aims to "work with people to restore, save and improve our natural spaces" and to "ensure that 30% of Kent and Medway – land and sea – is managed to create a healthy place for wildlife to flourish". In 2023, they have reported over 30,000 members and an annual income of £8 million. KWT manages over ninety nature reserves in Kent, of which thirty-seven are Sites of Special Scientific Interest , three are national nature reserves , five are Special Areas of Conservation , four are Special Protection Areas , six are local nature reserves , thirty-eight are in Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty and one

254-478: A Living Planet Index and ecological footprint calculation. In addition, WWF has launched several notable worldwide campaigns including Earth Hour and Debt-for-Nature Swap , and its current work is organized around these six areas: food, climate, freshwater, wildlife, forests, and oceans. Institutions such as the WWF have historically been the cause of the displacement and divide between Indigenous populations and

381-407: A civic duty to maintain the environment for future generations, and that scientific, empirically based methods should be applied to ensure this duty was carried out. Sir James Ranald Martin was prominent in promoting this ideology, publishing many medico-topographical reports that demonstrated the scale of damage wrought through large-scale deforestation and desiccation, and lobbying extensively for

508-506: A social movement that seeks to influence the political process by lobbying, activism, and education in order to protect natural resources and ecosystems . An environmentalist is a person who may speak out about our natural environment and the sustainable management of its resources through changes in public policy or individual behaviour. This may include supporting practices such as informed consumption, conservation initiatives, investment in renewable resources , improved efficiencies in

635-546: A spaceship Earth on Earth Day, hereby referring to the ecosystem services the earth supplies to us, and hence our obligation to protect it (and with it, ourselves). Earth Day is now coordinated globally by the Earth Day Network , and is celebrated in more than 192 countries every year. The UN's first major conference on international environmental issues, the United Nations Conference on

762-493: A 1990 report, points out that little attention has been given to the significance of the colonial experience, particularly the European colonial experience, in shaping early European environmentalism. Grove argues that as European colonization expanded, so did the European interaction with land and indigenous people, providing Europeans with an awareness of the destructive consequences of their economic and colonial activities on

889-446: A country has been heralded its champion in the current times. Costa Rica hosts an astonishing number of species, given its size, having more animal and plant species than the US and Canada combined hosting over 500,000 species of plants and animals. Despite this, Costa Rica is only 250 miles long and 150 miles wide. A widely accepted theory for the origin of this unusual density of species

1016-405: A movement to control pollution or protect plant and animal diversity . For this reason, concepts such as a land ethics , environmental ethics , biodiversity , ecology , and the biophilia hypothesis figure predominantly. The environmentalist movement encompasses various approaches to addressing environmental issues, including free market environmentalism , evangelical environmentalism , and

1143-480: A national body to coordinate environmental conservation efforts across the country; the "National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty" was formally inaugurated in 1894. The organisation obtained secure footing through the 1907 National Trust Bill, which gave the trust the status of a statutory corporation. and the bill was passed in August 1907. An early "Back-to-Nature" movement, which anticipated

1270-422: A national priority, and has been at the forefront of preserving its natural environment with 28% of its land protected in the form of national parks, reserves, and wildlife refuges, which is under the administrative control of SINAC (National System of Conservation Areas) a division of MINAE (Ministry of Environment, Energy and Telecommunications). SINAC has subdivided the country into various zones depending on

1397-536: A nature which includes humans rather than excluding them from the necessity of conservation. While other conservation theories integrate some of the elements of convivial conservation, none move away from both dichotomies and capitalist valuation principles. Source: The early years of the environmental and conservation movements were rooted in the safeguarding of game to support the recreation activities of elite white men, such as sport hunting . This led to an economy to support and perpetuate these activities as well as

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1524-454: A part of nature. The emphasis on nature as for and by humans creates a human responsibility to care for the environment as a way of caring for themselves. It also redefines nature as not only being pristine and untouched, but cultivated by humans in everyday formats. The theory is a long-term process of structural change to move away from capitalist valuation in favor of a system emphasizing everyday and local living. Convivial conservation creates

1651-409: A politics of equity, structural change and  environmental  justice, convivial conservation is considered a radical theory as it focuses on the structural political-economy of modern nation states and the need to create structural change. Convivial conservation creates a more integrated approach which reconfigures the nature-human configuration to create a world in which humans are recognized as

1778-523: A precipitous decline in the US public's interest in 19 different areas of environmental concern. Americans are less likely to be actively participating in an environmental movement or organisation and more likely to identify as "unsympathetic" to an environmental movement than in 2000. This is likely a lingering factor of the Great Recession in 2008. Since 2005, the percentage of Americans agreeing that

1905-478: A racially weaker nation. This lead Roosevelt to support the passing of many immigration restrictions, eugenics legislations and wildlife preservation laws. For instance, Roosevelt established the first national parks through the Antiquities Act of 1906 while also endorsing the removal of Indigenous Americans from their tribal lands within the parks. This move was promoted and endorsed by other leaders of

2032-748: A rapidly increasing flood of new members to the Sierra Club and to the environmental movement in general. This Is Dinosaur , edited by Wallace Stegner with photographs by Martin Litton and Philip Hyde , prevented the building of dams within Dinosaur National Monument by becoming part of a new kind of activism called environmentalism that combined the conservationist ideals of Thoreau, Leopold and Muir with hard-hitting advertising, lobbying, book distribution, letter writing campaigns, and more. The powerful use of photography in addition to

2159-488: A rethinking of the dangers of environmental degradation to people's quality of life. The late 19th century also saw the passage of the first wildlife conservation laws. The zoologist Alfred Newton published a series of investigations into the Desirability of establishing a 'Close-time' for the preservation of indigenous animals between 1872 and 1903. His advocacy for legislation to protect animals from hunting during

2286-717: A specific conservation topic. This includes assessing the current effectiveness of different management interventions, threats and emerging problems and economic factors. Evidence-based conservation was organized based on the observations that decision making in conservation was based on intuition and or practitioner experience often disregarding other forms of evidence of successes and failures (e.g. scientific information). This has led to costly and poor outcomes. Evidence-based conservation provides access to information that will support decision making through an evidence-based framework of "what works" in conservation. Deforestation and overpopulation are issues affecting all regions of

2413-526: A supporting role in the decline of liberalism and the rise of modern environmentalism. Although Americans consistently rank environmental issues as "important", polling data indicates that in the voting booth voters rank the environmental issues low relative to other political concerns. The growth of the Republican party's political power in the inland West (apart from the Pacific coast) was facilitated by

2540-465: Is a foundation with 55% of funding from individuals and bequests, 19% from government sources (such as the World Bank , DFID , USAID ) and 8% from corporations in 2014. WWF aims to "stop the degradation of the planet's natural environment and to build a future in which humans live in harmony with nature." The Living Planet Report is published every two years by WWF since 1998; it is based on

2667-719: Is a scheduled monument . Kent is a county in the southeastern corner of England. It is bounded to the north by Greater London and the Thames Estuary , to the west by Sussex and Surrey , and to the south and east by the English Channel and the North Sea . The county town is Maidstone . It is governed by Kent County Council , with twelve district councils : Ashford , Canterbury , Dartford , Dover , Folkestone and Hythe , Gravesham , Maidstone , Thanet , Tonbridge and Malling and Tunbridge Wells . Medway

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2794-624: Is a form of activism in which the protester sits in a tree in an attempt to stop the removal of a tree or to impede the demolition of an area with the longest and most famous tree-sitter being Julia Butterfly Hill , who spent 738 days in a California Redwood, saving a three-acre tract of forest. Also notable is the Yellow Finch tree sit , which was a 932-day blockade of the Mountain Valley Pipeline from 2018 to 2021. Sit-ins can be used to encourage social change, such as

2921-506: Is a modern one but its practice has clearly defended some of the sub Arctic wildernesses and the wildlife in those regions for thousands of years, especially by indigenous peoples such as the Evenk, Yakut, Sami, Inuit and Cree. The fur trade and hunting by these peoples have preserved these regions for thousands of years. Ironically, the pressure now upon them comes from non-renewable resources such as oil, sometimes to make synthetic clothing which

3048-580: Is a tribe of hunters who were influential in establishing the Capitania del Alto y Bajo Isoso (CABI). CABI promotes economic growth and survival of the Izoceno people while discouraging the rapid destruction of habitat within Bolivia's Gran Chaco . They are responsible for the creation of the 34,000 square kilometre Kaa-Iya del Gran Chaco National Park and Integrated Management Area (KINP). The KINP protects

3175-407: Is advocated as a humane substitute for fur. (See Raccoon dog for case study of the conservation of an animal through fur trade.) Similarly, in the case of the beaver, hunting and fur trade were thought to bring about the animal's demise, when in fact they were an integral part of its conservation. For many years children's books stated and still do, that the decline in the beaver population was due to

3302-436: Is attempting to provide renewable energy to communities (especially solar energy ), reforestation , protecting water sources, planting gardens, promoting urban agriculture , creating wildlife reserves , water recycling , beekeeping , expanding public transportation and promoting environmental awareness within their communities. The Rebel Zapatista Autonomous Municipalities are firmly environmentalist and have stopped

3429-517: Is geographically part of Kent but is a separate unitary authority . The chalk hills of the North Downs run from east to west through the county, with the wooded Weald to the south. The coastline is alternately flat and cliff-lined. Download coordinates as: The marshes have a variety of wetland habitats; freshwater marshes, woodland, brackish and tidal reedbeds, wet grassland, scrub, and freshwater and saline dykes. Flowers include

3556-473: Is largely unaware of the customs and values held by those within the territory surrounding nature and their role within it. In Japan, the town of Shiraho had traditional ways of tending to nature that were lost due to colonization and militarization by the United States. The return to traditional sustainability practices constituted a “conservation near” approach. This engages those near in proximity to

3683-461: Is more of a bodily or "primitive" consciousness, which is associated with lower-intelligence and people of color. A new, integrated approach to conservation is being investigated in recent years by institutions such as WWF. The socionatural relationships centered on the interactions based in reciprocity and empathy, making conservation efforts being accountable to the local community and ways of life, changing in response to values, ideals, and beliefs of

3810-495: Is sometimes called the most influential book on conservation. Throughout the 1950s, 1960s, 1970s and beyond, photography was used to enhance public awareness of the need for protecting land and recruiting members to environmental organisations. David Brower , Ansel Adams and Nancy Newhall created the Sierra Club Exhibit Format Series, which helped raise public environmental awareness and brought

3937-696: Is the free mixing of species from both North and South America occurring on this "inter-oceanic" and "inter-continental" landscape. Preserving the natural environment of this fragile landscape, therefore, has drawn the attention of many international scholars and scientists. MINAE (Ministry of Environment, Energy and Telecommunications) and its responsible for many conservation efforts in Costa Rica it achieves through its many agencies, including SINAC (National System of Conservation Areas), FONAFIFO (national forest fund), and CONAGEBIO (National Commission for Biodiversity Management). Costa Rica has made conservation

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4064-457: The Dauerwald (best translated as the "perpetual forest") which included concepts such as forest management and protection was promoted and efforts were also made to curb air pollution . In 1949, A Sand County Almanac by Aldo Leopold was published. It explained Leopold's belief that humankind should have moral respect for the environment and that it is unethical to harm it. The book

4191-688: The American bison . The death of the last passenger pigeon as well as the endangerment of the American bison helped to focus the minds of conservationists and to popularise their concerns. In 1916, the National Park Service was founded by US President Woodrow Wilson . The Forestry Commission was set up in 1919 in Britain to increase the amount of woodland in Britain by buying land for afforestation and reforestation . The commission

4318-629: The Gaia hypothesis ; it proposes that life on earth can be understood as a single organism. This became an important part of the Deep Green ideology. Throughout the rest of the history of environmentalism there has been debate and argument between more radical followers of this Deep Green ideology and more mainstream environmentalists. Environmentalism continues to evolve to face up to new issues such as global warming , overpopulation , genetic engineering , and plastic pollution . Research demonstrates

4445-647: The Pittman–Robertson Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act was signed into law, providing funding for state agencies to carry out their conservation efforts. Environmental reemerged on the national agenda in 1970, with Republican Richard Nixon playing a major role, especially with his creation of the Environmental Protection Agency . The debates over the public lands and environmental politics played

4572-643: The United States Forest Service , signed into law the creation of five national parks, and signed the year 1906 Antiquities Act , under which he proclaimed 18 new national monuments . He also established the first 51 bird reserves , four game preserves , and 150 national forests , including Shoshone National Forest , the nation's first. The area of the United States that he placed under public protection totals approximately 230,000,000 acres (930,000 km ). Gifford Pinchot had been appointed by McKinley as chief of Division of Forestry in

4699-473: The Wilderness Society and many others. After a focus on preserving wilderness in the 1950s and 1960s, the Sierra Club and other groups broadened their focus to include such issues as air and water pollution, population concern, and curbing the exploitation of natural resources . The prevailing belief regarding the origins of early environmentalism suggests that it emerged as a local response to

4826-490: The environmental conservation movement . At its crux, environmentalism is an attempt to balance relations between humans and the various natural systems on which they depend in such a way that all the components are accorded a proper degree of sustainability . The exact measures and outcomes of this balance is controversial and there are many different ways for environmental concerns to be expressed in practice. Environmentalism and environmental concerns are often represented by

4953-556: The grey mouse-ear . This site has chalk grassland, woods and scrub. Grassland flora include autumn gentian , pyramidal orchid and broad-leaved helleborine , and there are butterflies such as the chalkhill blue and marbled white . The Wilder Blean project, headed up by the Wildwood Trust and Kent Wildlife Trust, is introducing European bison to a 2,500-acre conservation area in Blean, near Canterbury. The reintroduction to

5080-413: The sustainable management of resources, and the protection (and restoration, when necessary) of the natural environment through changes in public policy and individual behaviour. In its recognition of humanity as a participant in ecosystems, the movement is centered around ecology , health , and human rights . A concern for environmental protection has recurred in diverse forms, in different parts of

5207-668: The "taint of manufacture or the canker of artificiality", were enthusiastically revived, including the Morris dance and the maypole . These ideas also inspired various environmental groups in the UK, such as the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds , established in 1889 by Emily Williamson as a protest group to campaign for greater protection for the indigenous birds of the island . The Society attracted growing support from

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5334-533: The "taungya" system, in which Karen villagers provided labor for clearing, planting and weeding teak plantations. After seven years in Burma, Brandis was appointed Inspector General of Forests in India, a position he served in for 20 years. He formulated new forest legislation and helped establish research and training institutions. The Imperial Forest School at Dehradun was founded by him. Germans were prominent in

5461-544: The 18th century, especially in Prussia and France where scientific forestry methods were developed. These methods were first applied rigorously in British India from the early 19th century. The government was interested in the use of forest produce and began managing the forests with measures to reduce the risk of wildfire in order to protect the "household" of nature, as it was then termed. This early ecological idea

5588-538: The 1960s. The Fauna Preservation Society of Ngamiland (FPS) was formed in 1962 by the husband and wife team: Robert Kay and June Kay, environmentalists working in conjunction with the Batawana tribes to preserve wildlife habitat. The FPS promotes habitat conservation and provides local education for preservation of wildlife. Conservation initiatives were met with strong opposition from the Botswana government because of

5715-531: The 20th century turned to the wilderness to escape the industrialization of cities. However, many of these early conservationists became part of and influenced the Nazi party . Like elite and influential Americans of the early 20th century, they embraced eugenics and racism and promoted the idea that Nordic people are superior . Although the conservation movement developed in Europe in the 18th century, Costa Rica as

5842-491: The 9th to 13th centuries dealt with environmentalism and environmental science , including the issue of pollution. The authors of such treatises included Al-Kindi , Qusta ibn Luqa , Al-Razi , Ibn Al-Jazzar , al-Tamimi , al-Masihi , Avicenna , Ali ibn Ridwan , Ibn Jumay , Isaac Israeli ben Solomon , Abd-el-latif , Ibn al-Quff, and Ibn al-Nafis . Their works covered a number of subjects related to pollution, such as air pollution, water pollution , soil contamination , and

5969-499: The Alkali Order 1958 which placed all major heavy industries that emitted smoke , grit, dust and fumes under supervision. In industrial cities, local experts and reformers, especially after 1890, took the lead in identifying environmental degradation and pollution, and initiating grass-roots movements to demand and achieve reforms. Typically the highest priority went to water and air pollution. The Coal Smoke Abatement Society

6096-612: The Association on the failure of agriculture in India. These lectures influenced the government under Governor-General Lord Dalhousie to introduce the first permanent and large-scale forest conservation program in the world in 1855, a model that soon spread to other colonies , as well the United States . In the same year, Cleghorn organised the Madras Forest Department and in 1860 the department banned

6223-648: The Department of Agriculture. In 1905, his department gained control of the national forest reserves. Pinchot promoted private use (for a fee) under federal supervision. In 1907, Roosevelt designated 16 million acres (65,000 km ) of new national forests just minutes before a deadline. In May 1908, Roosevelt sponsored the Conference of Governors held in the White House, with a focus on natural resources and their most efficient use. Roosevelt delivered

6350-834: The Environment, founded in 1972 in the Swiss canton of Neuchâtel . The first national green party in Europe was PEOPLE, founded in Britain in February 1973, which eventually turned into the Ecology Party , and then the Green Party . Protection of the environment also became important in the developing world ; the Chipko movement was formed in India under the influence of Mhatmas Gandhi and they set up peaceful resistance to deforestation by literally hugging trees (leading to

6477-464: The Great Race, or The Racial Basis of European History", which based its premise on eugenics and outlined a hierarchy of races, with white, "Nordic" men at the top, and all other races below. The German translation of this book was used by Nazi Germany as the source for many of their beliefs and was even proclaimed by Hitler to be his "Bible". One of the first established conservation agencies in

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6604-659: The Greensboro sit-ins, a series of protests in 1960 to stop racial segregation, but can also be used in ecoactivism, as in the Dakota Access Pipeline Protest. Before the Syrian civil war , Rojava had been ecologically damaged by monoculture , oil extraction, damming of rivers, deforestation , drought , topsoil loss and general pollution. The DFNS launched a campaign titled 'Make Rojava Green Again' (a parody of Make America Great Again ) which

6731-638: The Human Environment (also known as the Stockholm Conference), was held on 5–16 June 1972. It marked a turning point in the development of international environmental politics. By the mid-1970s, many felt that people were on the edge of environmental catastrophe. The back-to-the-land movement started to form and ideas of environmental ethics joined with anti-Vietnam War sentiments and other political issues. These individuals lived outside normal society and started to take on some of

6858-1127: The Smoke Abatement Act to include other emissions, such as soot, ash, and gritty particles, and to empower local authorities to impose their own regulations. It was only under the impetus of the Great Smog of 1952 in London, which almost brought the city to a standstill and may have caused upward of 6,000 deaths, that the Clean Air Act 1956 was passed and airborne pollution in the city was first tackled. Financial incentives were offered to householders to replace open coal fires with alternatives (such as installing gas fires) or those who preferred, to burn coke instead (a byproduct of town gas production) which produces minimal smoke. 'Smoke control areas' were introduced in some towns and cities where only smokeless fuels could be burnt and power stations were relocated away from cities. The act formed an important impetus to modern environmentalism and caused

6985-608: The U.S. and on how to structure the Forest Service. Both conservationists and preservationists appeared in political debates during the Progressive Era (the 1890s–early 1920s). There were three main positions. The debate between conservation and preservation reached its peak in the public debates over the construction of California's Hetch Hetchy dam in Yosemite National Park which supplies

7112-557: The UK in 2022, the first time in 6000 years, will consist of a herd of 3 females and 1 male. Conservation movement The early conservation movement evolved out of necessity to maintain natural resources such as fisheries , wildlife management , water , soil , as well as conservation and sustainable forestry . The contemporary conservation movement has broadened from the early movement's emphasis on use of sustainable yield of natural resources and preservation of wilderness areas to include preservation of biodiversity . Some say

7239-703: The United States began in the late 19th century, out of concerns for protecting the natural resources of the West, with individuals such as John Muir and Henry David Thoreau making key philosophical contributions. Thoreau was interested in peoples' relationship with nature and studied this by living close to nature in a simple life. He published his experiences in the book Walden , which argues that people should become intimately close with nature. Muir came to believe in nature's inherent right, especially after spending time hiking in Yosemite Valley and studying both

7366-518: The United States is the National Audubon Society . Founded in 1905, its priority was to protect and conserve various waterbird species. However, the first state-level Audubon group was created in 1896 by Harriet Hemenway and Minna B. Hall to convince women to refrain from buying hats made with bird feathers- a common practice at the time. The organization is named after John Audubon , a naturalist and legendary bird painter. Audubon

7493-613: The United States. In the 1970s, the environmental movement gained rapid speed around the world as a productive outgrowth of the counterculture movement. The world's first political parties to campaign on a predominantly environmental platform were the United Tasmania Group of Tasmania, Australia , and the Values Party of New Zealand. The first green party in Europe was the Popular Movement for

7620-649: The adverse impacts of industrialization in Western nations and communities. In terms of conservation efforts, there is a widespread view that the conservation movement began as a predominantly elite concern in North America, focusing on the preservation of local natural areas. A less prevailing view, however, attributes the roots of early environmentalism to a growing public concern about the influence of Western economic forces, particularly in connection with colonization , on tropical environments. Richard Grove , in

7747-546: The belief that newly "discovered" lands, especially tropical ones, had the potential to be heavenly paradises. In 1962, Silent Spring by American biologist Rachel Carson was published. The book cataloged the environmental impacts of the indiscriminate spraying of DDT in the US and questioned the logic of releasing large amounts of chemicals into the environment without fully understanding their effects on human health and ecology. The book suggested that DDT and other pesticides may cause cancer and that their agricultural use

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7874-403: The belief that the cities, industries and factories that were overtaking the wilderness and threatening the native plants and animals were also consuming and threatening the racial vigor that they believed white Americans held which made them superior. Roosevelt was a big believer that white male virility depended on wildlife for its vigor, and that, consequently, depleting wildlife would result in

8001-475: The colour green , but this association has been appropriated by the marketing industries for the tactic known as greenwashing . Environmentalism is opposed by anti-environmentalism , which says that the Earth is less fragile than some environmentalists maintain, and portrays environmentalism as overreacting to the human contribution to climate change or opposing human advancement. Environmentalism denotes

8128-463: The conservation movement is part of the broader and more far-reaching environmental movement , while others argue that they differ both in ideology and practice. Conservation is seen as differing from environmentalism and it is generally a conservative school of thought which aims to preserve natural resources expressly for their continued sustainable use by humans. The conservation movement can be traced back to John Evelyn 's work Sylva , which

8255-428: The conservation movement, including Frederick Law Olmsted , a leading landscape architect, conservationist, and supporter of the national park system, and Gifford Pinchot , a leading eugenicist and conservationist. Furthering the economic exploitation of the environment and national parks for wealthy whites was the beginning of ecotourism in the parks, which included allowing some Indigenous Americans to remain so that

8382-485: The continued wilderness conservation to support the corporate interests supplying the hunters with the equipment needed for their sport. Game parks in England and the United States allowed wealthy hunters and fishermen to deplete wildlife , while hunting by Indigenous groups, laborers and the working class, and poor citizens - especially for the express use of sustenance - was vigorously monitored. Scholars have shown that

8509-432: The dawn of the industrial revolution, possibly making him one of the first predictors for climate change. He also observed the damage done from deforestation and hunting. Kropotkin's writings would become influential in the 1970s and became a major inspiration for the intentional community movement as well as his ideas becoming the basis for the theory of social ecology . In 1893 Hill, Hunter and Rawnsley agreed to set up

8636-458: The destructive impacts of colonization on the environment did not halt the expansion of colonization itself, it did pave the way for a different approach to colonization – one focused on the preservation and protection of foreign natural resources. This phenomenon can be linked to the emergence of Edenic thinking, or the quest for Eden on Earth. This quest to locate Eden gained prominence in the 15th century, coinciding with colonization, and fostered

8763-437: The ecological diversity of that region - as seen in figure 1. The country has used this ecological diversity to its economic advantage in the form of a thriving ecotourism industry , putting its commitment to nature, on display to visitors from across the globe. The tourism market in Costa Rica is estimated to grow by USD 1.34 billion from 2023 to 2028, growing at a CAGR of 5.76%. You know, when we first set up WWF, our objective

8890-498: The ecology and geology. He successfully lobbied congress to form Yosemite National Park and went on to set up the Sierra Club in 1892. The conservationist principles as well as the belief in an inherent right of nature were to become the bedrock of modern environmentalism. In the 20th century, environmental ideas continued to grow in popularity and recognition. Efforts were starting to be made to save some wildlife, particularly

9017-491: The environment . It was formerly named the "World Wildlife Fund", which remains its official name in Canada and the United States . WWF is the world's largest conservation organization with over five million supporters worldwide, working in more than 100 countries, supporting around 1,300 conservation and environmental projects. They have invested over $ 1 billion in more than 12,000 conservation initiatives since 1995. WWF

9144-454: The environment should be given priority over economic growth has dropped 10 points; in contrast, those feeling that growth should be given priority "even if the environment suffers to some extent" has risen 12 percent. Nevertheless, a recent National Geographic survey indicated strong desire for commitment across a dozen countries, indicating a majority were in favour of more than half of the Earth's land surface being protected. Tree sitting

9271-494: The environment. Mahavira's teachings on the symbiosis between all living beings—as well as the five elements of earth, water, air, fire, and space—are core to environmental thought today. In West Asia, the Caliph Abu Bakr in the 630s AD commanded his army to "Bring no harm to the trees, nor burn them with fire," and to "Slay not any of the enemy's flock, save for your food." Various Islamic medical treatises during

9398-503: The environment. With this new interest in environment came interest in problems such as air pollution and petroleum spills, and environmental interest grew. New pressure groups formed, notably Greenpeace and Friends of the Earth (US) , as well as notable local organisations such as the Wyoming Outdoor Council , which was founded in 1967. From 1962 to 1998, the environmental movement founded 772 national organizations in

9525-464: The establishment of the U.S. national parks , while setting aside land for preservation, was also a continuation of preserving the land for the recreation and enjoyment of elite white hunters and nature enthusiasts. While Theodore Roosevelt was one of the leading activists for the conservation movement in the United States, he also believed that the threats to the natural world were equally threats to white Americans. Roosevelt and his contemporaries held

9652-468: The extraction of oil, uranium, timber and metal from the Lacandon Jungle and stopped the use of pesticides and chemical fertilisers in farming. The CIPO-RFM has engaged in sabotage and direct action against wind farms , shrimp farms , eucalyptus plantations and the timber industry . They have also set up corn and coffee worker cooperatives and built schools and hospitals to help

9779-432: The federal government at the expense of resource conservation. In 2019, convivial conservation was an idea proposed by Bram Büscher and Robert Fletcher. Convivial conservation draws on social movements and concepts like environmental justice and structural change to create a post-capitalist approach to conservation. Convivial conservation rejects both human-nature dichotomies and capitalistic political economies. Built on

9906-455: The five-volume Manual of Forestry (1889–96) on silviculture , forest management , forest protection , and forest utilization, which became the standard and enduring textbook for forestry students. The American movement received its inspiration from 19th century works that exalted the inherent value of nature, quite apart from human usage. Author Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862) made key philosophical contributions that exalted nature. Thoreau

10033-426: The foreign ideals that are often imposed by foreign activists. Evidence-based conservation is the application of evidence in conservation biology and environmental management actions and policy making. It is defined as systematically assessing scientific information from published, peer-reviewed publications and texts, practitioners' experiences, independent expert assessment, and local and indigenous knowledge on

10160-504: The forest produce the largest amount of whatever crop or service will be most useful, and keep on producing it for generation after generation of men and trees." Theodore Roosevelt's view on conservationism remained dominant for decades; Franklin D. Roosevelt authorised the building of many large-scale dams and water projects, as well as the expansion of the National Forest System to buy out sub-marginal farms. In 1937,

10287-493: The forestry administration of British India. As well as Brandis, Berthold Ribbentrop and Sir William P.D. Schlich brought new methods to Indian conservation, the latter becoming the Inspector-General in 1883 after Brandis stepped down. Schlich helped to establish the journal Indian Forester in 1874, and became the founding director of the first forestry school in England at Cooper's Hill in 1885. He authored

10414-440: The fur trade. In reality however, the decline in beaver numbers was because of habitat destruction and deforestation, as well as its continued persecution as a pest (it causes flooding). In Cree lands, however, where the population valued the animal for meat and fur, it continued to thrive. The Inuit defend their relationship with the seal in response to outside critics. The Izoceño - Guaraní of Santa Cruz Department , Bolivia ,

10541-415: The government created a stringent animal-protection law and in 1934, Das Reichsjagdgesetz (The Reich Hunting Law) was enacted which limited hunting. Several Nazis were environmentalists (notably Rudolf Hess ), and species protection and animal welfare were significant issues in the regime. In 1935, the regime enacted the "Reich Nature Protection Act" ( Reichsnaturschutzgesetz ). The concept of

10668-496: The groups involved with establishing this protected land were involved with hunting and were motivated by their personal observations of declining wildlife and habitat. Environmentalism Environmentalism or environmental rights is a broad philosophy , ideology , and social movement about supporting life , habitats , and surroundings. While environmentalism focuses more on the environmental and nature-related aspects of green ideology and politics , ecologism combines

10795-512: The growth of cities, and worsening air and water pollution . Starting with the formation of the Commons Preservation Society in 1865, the movement championed rural preservation against the encroachments of industrialisation. Robert Hunter , solicitor for the society, worked with Hardwicke Rawnsley , Octavia Hill , and John Ruskin to lead a successful campaign to prevent the construction of railways to carry slate from

10922-584: The hunters participating in the program has provided CABI with important data required to make educated decisions about the use of the land. Hunters have been willing participants in this program because of pride in their traditional activities, encouragement by their communities and expectations of benefits to the area. In order to discourage illegal South African hunting parties and ensure future local use and sustainability, indigenous hunters in Botswana began lobbying for and implementing conservation practices in

11049-491: The ideology of social ecology and environmentalism. Ecologism is more commonly used in continental European languages, while environmentalism is more commonly used in English but the words have slightly different connotations. Environmentalism advocates the preservation, restoration and improvement of the natural environment and critical earth system elements or processes such as the climate , and may be referred to as

11176-415: The institutionalization of forest conservation activities in British India through the establishment of Forest Departments . Edward Percy Stebbing warned of desertification of India. The Madras Board of Revenue started local conservation efforts in 1842, headed by Alexander Gibson , a professional botanist who systematically adopted a forest conservation program based on scientific principles. This

11303-461: The lands in the conservation efforts and holds them accountable for their direct effects on its preservation. While conservation-far drills visuals and sight as being the main interaction medium between people and the environment, conservation near includes a hands-on, full sensory experience permitted by conservation-near methodologies. An emphasis on observation only stems from a deeper association with intellect and observation. The alternative to this

11430-620: The lands they inhabit. The reason is the organization's historically colonial, paternalistic, and neoliberal approaches to conservation. Claus, in her article "Drawing the Sea Near: Satoumi and Coral Reef Conservation in Okinawa", expands on this approach, called "conservation far", in which access to lands is open to external foreign entities, such as researchers or tourists, but prohibited to local populations. The conservation initiatives are therefore taking place "far" away. This entity

11557-566: The large volume of industrial chemical discharges added to the growing load of untreated human waste. The first large-scale, modern environmental laws came in the form of Britain's Alkali Acts , passed in 1863, to regulate the deleterious air pollution ( gaseous hydrochloric acid ) given off by the Leblanc process , used to produce soda ash . An Alkali inspector and four sub-inspectors were appointed to curb this pollution. The inspectorate's responsibilities were gradually expanded, culminating in

11684-456: The locals. Japanese seascapes are often integral to the identity of the residents and includes historical memories and spiritual engagements which need to be recognized and considered. The involvement of communities gives residents a stake in the issue, leading to a long-term solution which emphasizes sustainable resource usage and the empowerment of the communities. Conservation efforts are able to take into consideration cultural values rather than

11811-478: The materials economy, transitioning to new accounting paradigms such as ecological economics , renewing and revitalizing our connections with non-human life or even opting to have one less child to reduce consumption and pressure on resources. In various ways (for example, grassroots activism and protests), environmentalists and environmental organisations seek to give the natural world a stronger voice in human affairs. In general terms, environmentalists advocate

11938-725: The mating season led to the formation of the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds and influenced the passage of the Sea Birds Preservation Act in 1869 as the first nature protection law in the world. During the Spanish Revolution , anarchist-controlled territories undertook several environmental reforms, which were possibly the largest in the world at the time. Daniel Guerin notes that anarchist territories would diversify crops, extend irrigation , initiate reforestation , start tree nurseries and help to establish naturist communities . Once there

12065-468: The mishandling of municipal solid waste . They also included assessments of certain localities' environmental impact. In Europe, King Edward I of England banned the burning and sale of " sea-coal " in 1272 by proclamation in London, after its smoke had become a prevalent annoyance throughout the city. This fuel, common in London due to the local scarcity of wood, was given this early name because it could be found washed up on some shores, from where it

12192-489: The monies tied to big-game hunting. In 1963, BaTawanga Chiefs and tribal hunter/adventurers in conjunction with the FPS founded Moremi National Park and Wildlife Refuge , the first area to be set aside by tribal people rather than governmental forces. Moremi National Park is home to a variety of wildlife, including lions, giraffes, elephants, buffalo, zebra, cheetahs and antelope, and covers an area of 3,000 square kilometers. Most of

12319-606: The more radical environmental theories such as deep ecology . Around this time more mainstream environmentalism was starting to show force with the signing of the Endangered Species Act in 1973 and the formation of CITES in 1975. Significant amendments were also enacted to the United States Clean Air Act and Clean Water Act . In 1979, James Lovelock , a British scientist, published Gaia: A new look at life on Earth , which put forth

12446-712: The most biodiverse portion of the Gran Chaco, an ecoregion shared with Argentina, Paraguay and Brazil. In 1996, the Wildlife Conservation Society joined forces with CABI to institute wildlife and hunting monitoring programs in 23 Izoceño communities. The partnership combines traditional beliefs and local knowledge with the political and administrative tools needed to effectively manage habitats. The programs rely solely on voluntary participation by local hunters who perform self-monitoring techniques and keep records of their hunts. The information obtained by

12573-562: The newly "discovered" lands. As global trade expanded through colonization, the European concept of nature underwent a transformation, with the foreign tropical environments of their conquests evolving into romantic symbols of idyllic landscapes that required care and protection by Europeans. Examples of this impact of colonization on the Western mindset can be found in prominent cultural references, such as William Shakespeare's play " The Tempest " and Andrew Marvell 's poem "Bermoothes." Although this newfound self-awareness among Europeans about

12700-637: The opening address: "Conservation as a National Duty". In 1903 Roosevelt toured the Yosemite Valley with John Muir , who had a very different view of conservation, and tried to minimize commercial use of water resources and forests. Working through the Sierra Club he founded, Muir succeeded in 1905 in having Congress transfer the Mariposa Grove and Yosemite Valley to the federal government. While Muir wanted nature preserved for its own sake, Roosevelt subscribed to Pinchot's formulation, "to make

12827-474: The poet William Wordsworth travelled extensively in the Lake District and wrote that it is a "sort of national property in which every man has a right and interest who has an eye to perceive and a heart to enjoy". Systematic efforts on behalf of the environment only began in the late 19th century; it grew out of the amenity movement in Britain in the 1870s, which was a reaction to industrialisation ,

12954-613: The quarries, which would have ruined the unspoiled valleys of Newlands and Ennerdale . This success led to the formation of the Lake District Defence Society (later to become The Friends of the Lake District). Peter Kropotkin wrote about ecology in economics , agricultural science , conservation , ethology , criminology, urban planning, geography, geology and biology. He observed in Swiss and Siberian glaciers that they had been slowly melting since

13081-580: The rise of popular opposition to public lands reform. Successful Democrats in the inland West and Alaska typically take more conservative positions on environmental issues than Democrats from the Coastal states. Conservatives drew on new organizational networks of think tanks, industry groups, and citizen-oriented organizations, and they began to deploy new strategies that affirmed the rights of individuals to their property, protection of extraction rights, to hunt and recreate, and to pursue happiness unencumbered by

13208-459: The romantic ideal of modern environmentalism, was advocated by intellectuals such as John Ruskin , William Morris , George Bernard Shaw and Edward Carpenter , who were all against consumerism , pollution and other activities that were harmful to the natural world. The movement was a reaction to the urban conditions of the industrial towns, where sanitation was awful, pollution levels intolerable and housing terribly cramped. Idealists championed

13335-489: The rural life as a mythical utopia and advocated a return to it. John Ruskin argued that people should return to a "small piece of English ground, beautiful, peaceful, and fruitful. We will have no steam engines upon it ... we will have plenty of flowers and vegetables ... we will have some music and poetry; the children will learn to dance to it and sing it." Practical ventures in the establishment of small cooperative farms were even attempted and old rural traditions, without

13462-525: The suburban middle-classes as well as support from many other influential figures, such as the ornithologist Professor Alfred Newton . By 1900, public support for the organisation had grown, and it had over 25,000 members. The garden city movement incorporated many environmental concerns into its urban planning manifesto; the Socialist League and The Clarion movement also began to advocate measures of nature conservation . The movement in

13589-490: The term "tree huggers"). Their peaceful methods of protest and slogan "ecology is permanent economy" were very influential. Another milestone in the movement was the creation of Earth Day . Earth Day was first observed in San Francisco and other cities on 21 March 1970, the first day of spring. It was created to give awareness to environmental issues. On 21 March 1971, United Nations Secretary-General U Thant spoke of

13716-472: The tourists could get what was to be considered the full "wilderness experience". Another long-term supporter, partner, and inspiration to Roosevelt, Madison Grant , was a well known American eugenicist and conservationist. Grant worked alongside Roosevelt in the American conservation movement and was even secretary and president of the Boone and Crockett Club. In 1916, Grant published the book "The Passing of

13843-408: The trees necessary for shipbuilding. This promising start received a setback in the 1820s and 30s, when laissez-faire economics and complaints from private landowners brought these early conservation attempts to an end. In 1837, American poet George Pope Morris published "Woodman, Spare that Tree!", a Romantic poem urging a lumberjack to avoid an oak tree that has sentimental value. The poem

13970-704: The use shifting cultivation . Cleghorn's 1861 manual, The forests and gardens of South India , became the definitive work on the subject and was widely used by forest assistants in the subcontinent. In 1861, the Forest Department extended its remit into the Punjab . Sir Dietrich Brandis , a German forester, joined the British service in 1856 as superintendent of the teak forests of Pegu division in eastern Burma . During that time Burma's teak forests were controlled by militant Karen tribals. He introduced

14097-405: The water supply of San Francisco. Muir, leading the Sierra Club , declared that the valley must be preserved for the sake of its beauty: "No holier temple has ever been consecrated by the heart of man." President Roosevelt put conservationist issues high on the national agenda. He worked with all the major figures of the movement, especially his chief advisor on the matter, Gifford Pinchot and

14224-464: The world, throughout history. The earliest ideas of environmental protectionism can be found in Jainism , a religion from ancient India revived by Mahavira in the 6th century BC. Jainism offers a view that is in many ways compatible with core values associated with environmental activism, such as the protection of life by nonviolence , which could form a strong ecological ethos for global protection of

14351-407: The world. The consequent destruction of wildlife habitat has prompted the creation of conservation groups in other countries, some founded by local hunters who have witnessed declining wildlife populations first hand. Also, it was highly important for the conservation movement to solve problems of living conditions in the cities and the overpopulation of such places. The idea of incentive conservation

14478-485: The written word for conservation dated back to the creation of Yosemite National Park , when photographs persuaded Abraham Lincoln to preserve the beautiful glacier carved landscape for all time. The Sierra Club Exhibit Format Series galvanised public opposition to building dams in the Grand Canyon and protected many other national treasures. The Sierra Club often led a coalition of many environmental groups including

14605-619: Was a link discovered between air pollution and tuberculosis, the CNT shut down several metal factories. Early interest in the environment was a feature of the Romantic movement in the early 19th century. One of the earliest modern pronouncements on thinking about human industrial advancement and its influence on the environment was written by Japanese geographer, educator, philosopher and author Tsunesaburo Makiguchi in his 1903 publication Jinsei Chirigaku ( A Geography of Human Life ). In Britain

14732-582: Was a threat to wildlife, particularly birds. The resulting public concern led to the creation of the United States Environmental Protection Agency in 1970 which subsequently banned the agricultural use of DDT in the US in 1972. The limited use of DDT in disease vector control continues to this day in certain parts of the world and remains controversial. The book's legacy was to produce a far greater awareness of environmental issues and interest into how people affect

14859-467: Was also a slaveholder who also included many racist tales in his books. Despite his views of racial inequality, Audubon did find black and Indigenous people to be scientifically useful, often using their local knowledge in his books and relying on them to collect specimens for him. The ideology of the conservation movement in Germany paralleled that of the U.S. and England. Early German naturalists of

14986-655: Was also tasked with promoting forestry and the production of timber for trade. During the 1920s the Commission focused on acquiring land to begin planting out new forests; much of the land was previously used for agricultural purposes. By 1939 the Forestry Commission was the largest landowner in Britain. During the 1930s the Nazis had elements that were supportive of animal rights, zoos and wildlife, and took several measures to ensure their protection. In 1933

15113-566: Was carted away on a wheelbarrow. At the advent of steam and electricity the muse of history holds her nose and shuts her eyes ( H. G. Wells 1918). The origins of the environmental movement lay in the response to increasing levels of smoke pollution in the atmosphere during the Industrial Revolution . The emergence of great factories and the concomitant immense growth in coal consumption gave rise to an unprecedented level of air pollution in industrial centers; after 1900

15240-496: Was deeply committed to conserving natural resources. He encouraged the Newlands Reclamation Act of 1902 to promote federal construction of dams to irrigate small farms and placed 230 million acres (360,000 sq mi; 930,000 km ) under federal protection. Roosevelt set aside more federal land for national parks and nature preserves than all of his predecessors combined. Roosevelt established

15367-519: Was formed in 1898 making it one of the oldest environmental NGOs. It was founded by artist Sir William Blake Richmond , frustrated with the pall cast by coal smoke. Although there were earlier pieces of legislation, the Public Health Act 1875 required all furnaces and fireplaces to consume their own smoke. It also provided for sanctions against factories that emitted large amounts of black smoke. This law's provisions were extended in 1926 with

15494-616: Was in order to preserve the growth of delicate teak trees, which was an important resource for the Royal Navy . Concerns over teak depletion were raised as early as 1799 and 1805 when the Navy was undergoing a massive expansion during the Napoleonic Wars ; this pressure led to the first formal conservation Act, which prohibited the felling of small teak trees. The first forestry officer was appointed in 1806 to regulate and preserve

15621-560: Was interested in peoples' relationship with nature and studied this by living close to nature in a simple life. He published his experiences in the book Walden , which argued that people should become intimately close with nature. The ideas of Sir Brandis , Sir William P.D. Schlich and Carl A. Schenck were also very influential— Gifford Pinchot , the first chief of the USDA Forest Service , relied heavily upon Brandis' advice for introducing professional forest management in

15748-427: Was presented as a paper to the Royal Society in 1662. Published as a book two years later, it was one of the most highly influential texts on forestry ever published. Timbre resources in England were becoming dangerously depleted at the time, and Evelyn advocated the importance of conserving the forests by managing the rate of depletion and ensuring that the cut down trees get replenished. The field developed during

15875-402: Was set to music later that year by Henry Russell . Lines from the song have been quoted by environmentalists. Conservation was revived in the mid-19th century, with the first practical application of scientific conservation principles to the forests of India. The conservation ethic that began to evolve included three core principles: that human activity damaged the environment , that there was

16002-659: Was the first case of state management of forests in the world. These local attempts gradually received more attention by the British government as the unregulated felling of trees continued unabated. In 1850, the British Association in Edinburgh formed a committee to study forest destruction at the behest of Hugh Cleghorn a pioneer in the nascent conservation movement. He had become interested in forest conservation in Mysore in 1847 and gave several lectures at

16129-399: Was to save endangered species from extinction. But we have failed completely; we haven't managed to save a single one. If only we had put all that money into condoms, we might have done some good. The World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) is an international non-governmental organization founded in 1961, working in the field of the wilderness preservation, and the reduction of human impact on

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