Around the world, the realities of climate change are becoming more and more stark. When the UN delegates meet in Glasgow, they will be considering how best to tackling this crisis, while simultaneously protecting biodiversity, which is also facing a severe threat. Grasslands may offer a unique solution. A third of all terrestrial carbon is stored in grassland soils but many are degraded. By working collectively to restore them, we can sequester carbon from the atmosphere and increase our resilience to extreme weather events. In the UK, Plantlife has been working to protect and restore species-rich grasslands, and, around the world, farmers and ranchers are working to manage their grasslands in harmony with nature. Our expert panel will discuss the objectives and challenges that they face in promoting species rich grasslands as a climate solution.

Speakers:

Gill Perkins, CEO of the Bumblebee Conservation Trust

Gill has been an enthusiastic conservationist from a young age, starting with building footpaths in Devon as a volunteer, an ecologist for the Lake District Special Planning Board and the highlight of her early career, counting puffins for the Icelandic National Park (there were about a quarter of a million).  

After a career in business Gill eventually found her way back to conservation taking a sabbatical in Borneo working with a local community to restore rainforest and reporting to the United Nations on the project. 

As CEO for the Bumblebee Conservation Trust, Gill has found the perfect channel through which to promote her passion for bumblebees and their protection. An enthusiastic vegetable gardener and amateur botanist Gill knows we can ALL help reverse the declines in bumblebees by taking small actions and the importance of understanding how these special creatures give so much to us human beings through the simple act of pollination.

India Stephenson, Assistant Editor, British Ecological Society.

The British Ecological Society (BES) is the oldest ecological society in the world, with a vision for nature and people to thrive in a world inspired by ecology. An ecologist by training, India now works as an Assistant Editor for the BES journal Methods in Ecology and Evolution and also works closely with their policy team, supporting the Society’s members to promote ecological science and evidence-informed solutions. 

Precious Phiri, Earth Wisdom

Precious is a training and development specialist in regenerative agriculture issues, an educator of Holistic management and a seasoned community organizer from Zimbabwe. She founded an organization and network – EarthWisdom – to inspire change. She is also a steering committee member and African Coordinator for Regeneration International    

David Wedin, University of Nebraska 

David has been a faculty member in University of Nebraska’s School of Natural Resources and a co-operating faculty with the Center for Grassland Studies since 1998.  With roots in Iowa and Minnesota, he has worked with grassland ecology and conservation since his time at St. Olaf College in the 1970’s. Dave’s PhD research focused on the interactions of grasses with soil carbon and nitrogen cycling, in particular the destabilizing effect of atmospheric nitrogen deposition on high-diversity grasslands. Dave oversees research, teaching and management at University of Nebraska’s Nine-Mile Prairie and Dalbey Prairie.      

Honor Eldridge is the Policy Lead for Plantlife International, focusing on agriculture and farming policy. Her areas of focus include grasslands and climate, international agri-food trade policy and agri-tech innovation. She has written briefings on grasslands as a climate solution, potential food implications from a transatlantic trade deal, and on migrant labour in large-scale horticulture. In addition to her Plantlife role she is the Chair of GM Freeze, board member of the Organic Research Center and participatory board member of Bristol Food Producers. She was previously Head of Policy for the Sustainable Food Trust, worked on post-Brexit policy at the Soil Association and was the Legislative and Government Affairs Coordinator in Washington D.C. for the Center For Food Safety. A full list of her publications can be found at honormayeldridge.com  

Plantlife relies on its members and donors. This event is free but if you would like to donate to support our work you can add an optional donation. The more you give, the more plants we can save. Thank you.

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