After five years, Roger Morgan-Grenville is handing over the reins as Chair of the Trustees. A huge thank you from the team, of course, but also a personal message of gratitude from me for five years of friendship, fun and sharing burdens.
Roger was there from the earliest days of Curlew Action, a stalwart and wise head who saw us through our first years of growth to become an established and dynamic charity. From discussing plans and fundraising in a coffee shop in Bristol, to larger meetings around kitchen tables, to where we are today, thank you, Roger, for being a fellow traveller on a wonderful journey; if Curlew Action is deemed a success, then you claim a lion’s share of that.
Roger is a talented and authentic voice in the nature-writing genre. If you haven’t read his books, then I highly recommend them, not only for their story telling prowess but because you will get a measure of the man. His personal style skilfully merges on-the-ground research, endeavour, humility and accomplishment as he searches for the right path in a confusing, tangled environmental world. Nothing about conservation is simple or obvious, there are many factors to consider and seemingly intractable conflicts to resolve; this is certainly the case for Curlew conservation. Roger took on the challenges of being Chair as he writes his books, with determination, grit, humour, a love of nature and an empathy for all living things, human and non-human.
Physically, he walked 1000 miles across Britian to find inspiring conservation stories which appear in his book Across a Waking Land. His love of the natural world shines through in Shearwater, his journey alongside an enigmatic long-distance migrant which rarely gets the seabird limelight. In Liquid Gold, Roger’s valiant attempt at beekeeping is original and funny, and remains a favourite. Last year, The Return of the Grey Partridge was met with wide acclaim, “This is an important book and it would be a shame if prejudice against shooting denied it the recognition that it deserves.” Times Literary Supplement. I’m glad there are more books to come.
So, thank you Roger, we know you will always be there, and all the Curlews salute you. We wish you well.
David Hill is our new Chair, and we warmly welcome him onto the Curlew Action team. I recently visited his home in North Yorkshire. It was springtime and the air was filled with birdsong, a constant accompaniment of fluting, chirruping music that filled the hedgerows, copses and meadows. Above it all, the bubbling of Curlews added drama to a peaceful scene, a half ecstatic, half soulful cry that ripples over fields and moors. Curlews woke me up in the morning and they serenaded me through the day. I can’t imagine what it is like to live with that call for months each year, it is no wonder David loves Curlews.
David also has a head for big finance and is pioneering the role of environmental markets in restoring nature and natural capital. He developed the concept of Biodiversity Net Gain and successfully lobbied for it to be mandated into planning law whereby developers now have to provide a minimum uplift of ten per cent in biodiversity as a result of the development. His work is helping to transform the value we place on nature, underpinning global economies whilst being essential in our everyday lives. It is a cliché to say we live in challenging and changing times, but we do, and the natural world depends on us to be its voice. Giving a real value to nature that recognises its role in all parts of life has been a passion for David, and the changes he has introduced through policy and business are groundbreaking and amazing.
Curlews breed on the ground and many migrate long distances, sometimes over whole countries and across seas. They are intricately bound to, and dependent upon, how we live our lives and make our livelihoods. As climate changes deepens and all landscapes become multi-functional and fought over for different uses, some space must be carved out for species which are loved and cherished simply for existing. We must find a way of making them count, too. By skilfully weaving all nature into our plans we can go a long way to ensuring they remain as a treasured part of life.
David is not only an accomplished naturalist he is also a superb photographer. It takes a calm mind, a deep wellspring of knowledge, technical ability, excellent field skills and an artistic eye to bring them together. It was a true education to take a walk with him on a spring day, and I am filled with optimism and hope that Curlew Action will play its own part in keeping this astonishing, wondrous planet burgeoning with life.
If you are a podcast fan, then check out David’s excellent How to Avoid Moving to Mars, a fascinating series of interviews with conservationists and big players, including an episode with our patron and ambassador, David Gray [Editor's note: and an episode with Mary Colwell]. We hope to bring you more of this in the coming year.
So, as we change guard and move into our next five years, I wish everyone a very fruitful, nature-filled 2025, and thank you for continuing to support us.