Environmental Perspectives Episode 1
Diversity in tree planting initiatives
VME communities and lacking race equality in nature
I grew up in a family that loved nature and birds, so we went out as a family all my life. My older sister, Ayesha, is 12 years older than me and was a huge influence. If she wanted to go out on nature walks, so did I.
When I was 13 years old, I organised a nature camp for teenagers. I just wanted to spend time with other people my age who were into nature and who would enjoy the same activities I loved. I had lots of teenagers booking on, but I realised that they were all middle-class white boys. Whilst this was normal at the time, I felt disappointed by the lack of ethnic diversity: this was my lightbulb moment.
My realisation was that everyone should be able to enjoy nature, so I contacted everyone I knew within Bristol’s Visible Minority Ethnic (VME) communities and finally found five teenagers to attend the camp, whom I engaged with nature by making nature relevant. The following year, I organised a “race equality in nature” conference and then set up my charity, Black2Nature.
The importance of inclusivity in conservation
During the end of the lockdown, we had the opportunity to do several tree-planting days on a local piece of land. We had huge numbers of families attending, with some coming to plant trees for family members who had died of COVID-19. I found that the act of putting your hands into the soil and planting a growing thing has a profound impact. These tree-planting days were a massive success and therefore it is something we have done for families every winter since then.
This is why the work of 9Trees is so important in funding tree planting with a social aspect. As a sector, we need to ensure equal access to nature for all - for everyone. Going out into nature is essential for everyone for many reasons - especially for our mental health. VME people are particularly vulnerable and more likely to be living in inner-city areas of deprivation, with more degraded green spaces. People in these areas are three times more likely to be admitted into mental hospitals.
In my memoir, “Birdgirl”, I write about growing up with a mum with severe bipolar disorder and the impact this had on my own mental health growing up. I also recall how going birding in South America helped us cope as a family. The book is fundamentally about my passion for birds, becoming an environmental and social activist, and founding my charity, Black2Nature.
Incorporating social justice in tree-planting initiatives
Due to the cost of living crisis, our nature days include three large meals a day plus takeaway food for the children to take home. It’s important that we move with the times and support families as much as possible. Last year, we found that teenagers were arriving hungry and consuming huge amounts of food which was shocking.
I think that tree planting and other types of rewilding should be done in a way that incorporates social justice. Nature should improve the lives of everyone - that means that tree-planting organisations and groups try to engage those living in poverty or without access to nature. This is not easy, but I would encourage them to connect with groups like Black2Nature.
Mya-Rose Craig (AKA, “Birdgirl”) is a 21-year-old British-Bangladeshi environment and social activist who set up her charity Black2Nature at the age of 14 years old. Her memoir Birdgirl comes out in paperback on 5th October.
Views of Guest writers allow us to build a more diverse picture of the world around us and may not necessarily align with the values of 9Trees as a CIC