Conservation and Science

Rewilding is a topic discussed many times on the podcast. However, we have never answered the question of what to do when someone owns a reasonably sized piece of land and wants to rewild it. In today's episode, we are answering that question, well, sort of...

Predictably, our conversation developed into a wider discussion about Ireland's land use policy and the state of the country's biodiversity. We didn't shy away from discussing social and environmental policy issues and their impacts, not only on nature but primarily on local communities. As we said many times over, without local community support, no conservation or nature restoration project will be successful.

Rewild Your Land with Pádraic Fogarty

What does it mean to 'rewild' a landscape in Ireland, one of Europe's most nature-poor countries? Can rewilding coexist with traditional farming practices, or must we choose between them? How do we balance the need for biodiversity recovery with the cultural and economic realities of rural communities? These questions are at the heart of this episode as we explore a movement gaining momentum despite misunderstandings about what rewilding actually entails and how it might transform our countryside.

Pádraic Fogarty returns to share his new initiative, "Rewild Your Land", a consultancy and growing network helping landowners transition their properties to more natural states. Unlike traditional conservation, which manages ecosystems for specific outcomes, rewilding focuses on kickstarting natural processes and letting nature determine the path forward. Pádraic explains how this approach fits within Ireland's specific context, where, despite our green image, we preserve just 1-2% of our native woodland compared to the 80% forest cover that once existed.

We discuss the tensions between farming and conservation, examining how rewilding isn't anti-rural but could diversify economic opportunities in rural areas. Pádraic emphasised the need for community buy-in, scientific backing, and government support to make meaningful environmental change. He outlines his vision for the future: landowners in every county embracing rewilding, NGOs and community groups participating and perhaps most ambitiously, a large-scale rewilding project that proudly declares its intentions rather than hiding behind different terminology.

201: Rewild Your Land with Pádraic Fogarty

Rewild!

A Viewer Got in Touch

After publishing a video about overfishing in Irish waters a couple of weeks ago, a viewer got in touch. We had a good exchange of emails where we shared and discussed our thoughts about some environmental issues. As it turned out, a few years ago, he wrote a rather interesting article that was published on the Salmon Watch Ireland website. See the link to the article below and let me know what you think.

Regenerating our salmon and rivers by Nicholas Grubb

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