Leaping forward for reptiles and amphibians
Our Scottish Green Pathways project are bringing their pond dipping supplies along for you to explore the local ponds and encourage the community to create more ponds in their area.
The ‘Pond Doctor’ will also be there to answer any of your pond-related questions.
The car park for Doune Ponds is located here.
For further enquiries, please contact: louise.smith@froglife.org or 07985 566381
Join our Scottish Green Pathways project for a family-friendly nature walk around Summerford Park in Falkrik to find and record the wildlife there.
The meeting point is at the park entrance on Summerford Road, Falkirk.
Any enquiries to: Louise.Smith@froglife.org or 07985 566381.
Inspired by Nature is a themed Croak to entertain you with some of our favourite artwork based on nature and the outdoors. We hope it will stimulate you to get creative and produce something yourself. If you do and would like to share them with us, please post them on our Facebook page, Twitter account, or email us at info@froglife.org
This months feature has been written by Rebecca Neal our Conservation Youth Worker on the Peterborough Green Pathways project, funded by BBC Children in Need.
“It is interesting to contemplate an entangled bank, clothed with many plants of many kinds, with birds singing on the bushes, with various insects flitting about, and with worms crawling through the damp earth, and to reflect that these elaborately constructed forms, so different from each other, and dependent on each other in so complex a manner, have all been produced by laws acting around us … Thus, from the war of nature, from famine and death, the most exalted object which we are capable of conceiving, namely, the production of the higher animals, directly follows. There is grandeur in this view of life, with its several powers, having been originally breathed into a few forms or into one; and that, whilst this planet has gone cycling on according to the fixed law of gravity, from so simple a beginning endless forms most beautiful and most wonderful have been, and are being, evolved” On the Origin of Species by means of Natural Selection Charles Darwin 1859.
Since wildlife and the environment are my passion, I read a lot of books on the subject. I have also been thinking a lot about inspiring books, particularly for children, recently having just written a children’s story that hopefully Froglife will “publish” (see last month’s “Inspired by Nature”). Origin of Species is probably the most influential book I have read and I urge you to try it. Darwin’s style is very readable and I like how logically he puts his argument. The theory of evolution has itself evolved and some of the problems he highlights we can now explain or have new evidence that suggests an alternative way of thinking about it. However, the basic premise remains.
I particularly like this passage which comes right at the end of the book. It uses much more poetic language than the rest of the book and every time I read it, I can imagine standing next to, and contemplating such a bank. (The bank I imagine is usually in Devon as this is the part of the country I believe has the best hedges…ooh, I feel a hedge war coming on!) I also get a comedy image in my head of Darwin standing by the side of a road staring at a hedge with his finger on the side of his lips in a “hmm” kind of manner. Hares are giving him funny looks from the field next door. I feel I have Darwin’s approval whenever I find myself doing just this.
This week I was given an English lesson by a Year 3 child with selective mutism. We read a sentence together about frogs and she whispered in my ear that there were several adjectives in the sentence: frog’s legs were “long” and “stripy” and their skin was “wet”. I think this is what stands out in Darwin’s paragraph for me and makes the imagery so strong; the insects are “flitting”, the worms are “crawling” and the earth is “damp”. The bank is alive.
I like the bit about how living things are all different but follow the same basic laws and are dependent on each other in complex ways. To me, this suggests a lesson in how people should view each other and also how we should view the environment. We don’t know how losing species will affect how ecosystems work and yet we are losing species at an alarming rate. We all depend on functioning ecosystems and yet we are doing our best to ensure they don’t.
We would love to know what books about nature really inspire you. Tweet us @froglifers, email us info@froglife.org or tell us on our Facebook page.
Froglife have some exciting news to share: Pudsey Bear still loves us!
Last week we found out that we have successfully secured a further three years of funding for our Peterborough Green Pathways project from BBC Children in Need.
This support means that we can continue to offer outdoor therapy to vulnerable and disadvantaged young people in the city. It will be the third time that we have run this project in Peterborough which shows that funders understand the importance and impact of the work we are doing.
In the current project, which finishes at the end of 2014, we have improved green spaces across Peterborough for wildlife and people by, for example, designing wildlife-themed murals, digging ponds, providing information boards, surveying for snakes and working in community gardens. All of these projects have been achieved by teenagers with extra difficulties in their lives. We also delivered fun sessions to those with limited access to the outdoors, doing things like climbing trees and building dens. Young people have improved their confidence, behaviour and social skills whilst learning about the natural environment, gaining new skills and having fun outdoors.
The new project has additional funding attached to it which means that as well as doing our usual projects and outdoor activities; we will also be able to take young people further afield to visit museums, universities and important wildlife sites. The new funding means we will be able to offer a traineeship to help someone take their first step into a career in the conservation sector.
Our Conservation Youth Worker for the current Green Pathways project, Rebecca Neal, said:
“I am so pleased that the work we do with young people can continue. Connecting people with nature has such a huge impact on wellbeing, yet so few organisations are out there working with the people who could benefit the most. I am looking forward to getting Peterborough’s young people out there feeling the dirt!”
Starting in the New Year we will be looking for referrals of young people aged 5-18 who can be considered vulnerable or disadvantaged in some way and who would benefit from getting outdoors and doing something practical. We can work with individuals, groups or families; through schools, youth groups or charities; during school time, after school or during the holidays. We always appreciate the help that volunteers can provide and need new green spaces to work in. Please get in touch if you think you can help.
To find out more about the Peterborough Green Pathways project you can visit www.froglife.org or contact the Green Pathways’ Conservation Youth Worker Rebecca Neal on rebecca.neal@froglife.org or 01733 602102. We would love to hear your thoughts on the new project on our Facebook page or tweet us your comments @Froglifers.
We are excited to announce the launch of our Green Pathways project in Glasgow. Thanks to successful funding from Young Start and The Robertson’s Trust, this fantastic new project will offer exciting opportunities for vulnerable young people to enjoy wildlife and be involved in outdoor activities.
Outdoor education is proven to positively influence the behaviour and self-discipline of young people and also enhances emotional development. Contact with nature has also been linked to reduced crime and aggression, and improved community integration and mental health. Green Pathways will use both of these tools to help young people with difficult lives work together to improve their communities and their own futures.
Jenny Leon, our Learning Coordinator at Froglife says:
“I am so pleased we are able to offer this opportunity to Glasgow’s young people. It’s really important that they get the opportunity to have positive experiences in the great outdoors. The benefits are huge to the young people themselves and it also helps us protect local wildlife and habitats- everyone wins!”
Green Pathways will reach out to disadvantaged or vulnerable 10-15 year olds in the Glasgow area – with scope to work to a lesser degree with other ages – who may be exhibiting challenging behaviour, lacking in confidence or could simply benefit from extra help to achieve their full potential. The target audience is wide ranging and could cover, for example, teenagers living in deprived areas, those not in mainstream education or with a difficult home life, young carers or refugees. We will be working with these young people as part of our integrated approach to youth work in the city; we already run a successful Green Pathways project in Peterborough, working with young offenders and people not in employment, education or training.
Each young person will work with Froglife for 2 hours a week for 6 to 12 weeks on a project that could involve anything from surveying for amphibians to clearing scrub or making a wildlife garden. The scheme will increase the confidence of participants by involving them in the planning and design of their project and encouraging them to work as a team. In conjunction with these longer term projects, Green Pathways will also be offering drop in sessions after school and during the holidays as well as outreach sessions where we will go out to local green spaces and parks, into schools and youth centres to deliver practical or classroom based sessions.
Our new team member and Conservation Youth Worker, Lauren Lochrie says:
“What a fantastic project to be involved in! I have been busy developing local partnerships and educational activities, now I’m keen to start delivering these fun and interactive sessions in order to benefit and enhance the lives of Glasgow’s disadvantaged youths”
The project will be working to improve green spaces for wildlife and people across the city for the next 2 years. If you are interested in getting involved or just want to find out more, please visit www.froglife.org/greenpathways or contact Lauren Lochrie on 0141 339 0737 or lauren.lochrie@froglife.org
Bullet points on Young Start
Young Start is a grants programme that distributes money from dormant bank accounts. It aims to create opportunities for children and young people aged between 8 and 24 to help them realise their potential.
The programme is delivered by the Big Lottery Fund on behalf of the Scottish Government.
We are delighted to announce that we have been shortlisted in the Octavia Hill Awards 2014 ‘Wild Organisation’ category. It is now down to a public vote to decide the winner. Please show your support for our work with young people by voting here.
The Octavia Hill Awards are organised by the National Trust, the Wild Network and BBC Countryfile Magazine and celebrate people who work to protect and enhance green spaces for wildlife and local communities.
“This year, the Octavia Hill Awards are looking for heroes who have helped children and young adults connect with the outdoors and wildlife – passing on their own experience, enthusiasm and love of nature. We want to celebrate the people who have made a real difference to the youngsters around them – helping to inspire a life-long love of the outdoors and wildlife.
The Wild Organisation award is for a group or organisation, large or small, that have championed the importance of reconnecting children with nature. Voting closes midday Sunday 31st August.” (taken from the Countryfile website)
Why should you vote for us?
Froglife is a conservation organisation whose work is instrumental to the conservation and protection of native amphibians and reptiles. Over its time, the organisation has initiated a whole host of regional and national projects and has been highly successful in its attempts to reconnect children with nature. Most notably, through its Green Pathway project, funded by the BBC Children in Need, Froglife provides young disadvantaged people with opportunities that inspire and empower them to partake in positive wildlife orientated activities. Their work “clearly demonstrates that it is championing the importance of reconnecting children with nature, and moreover they are focusing on those children and young people that wouldn’t normally access these opportunities because of social, cultural or financial barriers”, says a nominator.
For more information about our Learning Projects please click here
We need your vote so please show your support by voting here
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