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I have had this idea which I am calling Natures Guardians.

There there are a lot of people with a passion for THEIR OWn environment and a bit of spare time. I am thinking that if nationwide people were appointed guardians of their natural local neighbourhood that they could monitor it, be an interested party and get in the way of any unenvironmental developments whilst aiming to improve the bio-diversity of that area.

People could be in charge of just their garden, their street, their village, town or whatever depending on how much time and energy they had to devote to this project.

The trouble with this idea is that I don't really know how to start it, I could see it really being an umbrella organization for a lot of others to give them more power. For example transition towns, the local allotments, the local WI and the local FOE parties would have much more power to lobby the council/government to keep an allotment than any one of these groups on their own. It would probally not be until the winter time that I can manage to put enough time into a project like this but would be happy if someone stole the idea and did it themselves. Is it a workable idea though?

Talk to Faye Scott at Green Alliance and I think that she will point you in the right direction. They've just done work with older people and the environment and have loads of contacts, funding, networks, ideas. Good a place as any to start with for ideas.

Great contact, cheers flo!

I think it sounds like a fantastic idea! After the summer hols I'm going to be out of a job and was thinking about looking for something environmental, so it's something I'd be interested in being involved in.

It is a brilliant idea... If I didn't move around so much, I'd do it myself!

Hey Andy, great idea. It will surely work out. Brilliant thought.

i think its fantastic...where i have moved to people dont do green..luckily my housing officer is trying to get things moving so me and her are on the councils back about getting allotment spacs round here and getting the local kids involved in keeping the area nicer...

Hello Andy
Just a word of caution - sorry to be the only one. I was active in this type of thing in the UK - without mentioning too much that would identify the "offender" - we identified a very biodeversity rich hedgerow. We were all very pleased especially as it had a footpath by the side of it and it was on the land of one of the main promotors of organic farming. It was immediatetly cut down to below earth level - ie not cut back for regeneration. We cried. If only we had left things alone! Perhaps some areas need to be left to just be...

remember "the observer effects the observations"

Back burner for this idea I am afraid. I think I am doing too much and something has to give. I don't mind if anyone else wants to run with it as I think it could work and work very well.

Healer - You now have to get planning permission before cutting down a hedgerow, perhaps something to do with your hedge? - who knows. Anyway, it means that legally no-one can do that anymore so I would not foresee a problem there.