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Giving back to nature - Pan reserves
Save the Earth - starting with your own backyard
Anyone who controls any patch of land or garden,
however small,
can declare their intention to manage it as a wildlife habitat.
It is a way in which we can give back to Nature
some of what we have taken from her,
and be better neighbours to the other life forms
with which we share this beautiful planet.
Your
initiative to encourage your members to create Backyard Wildlife Habitat sites sounds
great. Thanks!
David Mizejewski
Manager, Backyard Wildlife Habitat Program,
National Wildlife Federation, letter to Paul Harrison. |
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| Existing WPM reserves &
wildlife gardens FAQS about reserves
Your certificate:
Declaration of wildlife habitat
Application form
About the NWF Backyard
Wildlife Habitat scheme
NWF Backyard Wildlife
Habitats site |
Wild
nature developed its rich diversity of species and complex webs of interdependence over
millions of years. In only a few thousand years humans have seriously depleted this wealth
and picked large holes in the webs.
We have appropriated vast areas of
natural habitat for our own uses. We have replaced self-evolved habitats with impoverished
artificial systems that can only survive with vast inputs of energy and human effort.
Original forests give way to vast monocropped fields or manicured lawns dosed with
chemicals. Flower meadows disappear under tarmac and cement. Farms and pastures take up
almost two fifths of the world's land area. Every year a space three times the size of
Belgium is deforested.
Reversing this process can seem a
daunting task. What can one person or family do against the global trends? Fortunately, a
lot. Changing our human relationship with the environment is one area where you don't need
to reverse national or international policy or collect millions to buy up vast tracts of
rainforest. You can start in your own home. By making small changes in your own lifestyle
you can alter the part you play and set an example to your children, relatives, friends,
and neighbors.
By declaring even a small part of
your backyard as wildlife habitat, you can help to restore some stolen resources to Nature
and add the excitement of wild neighbours and visitors to the view from your window.
In March 2002 the
World Pantheist Movement launched a scheme to encourage members - and non-members - to
dedicate part of their land to wildlife. We issue a beautiful color declaration
certificate for your wall.
The declaration is a
public statement of personal intent to manage a patch of land or garden so as to encourage
diverse wildlife. It does not involve a change of ownership or control. Technical advice
is provided by the National Wildlife Federation. If you wish you may also allow
educational or environmental or pantheist groups or individuals to visit your reserve
- but that is entirely up to you.Anyone with even a small garden or section of
garden - even a patio planter or window box - can make a dedication, and can give back a
little of what humans have stolen from nature.
[Click on any name or image for larger pics and description]
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