In Conservation...

We talk often of working towards a Wilder Future, something we all want to achieve for our children as well as for the wildlife and wild places in our areas. Meet some of our Youth Rangers – young people of secondary age who take an active role in helping wildlife near them – and find out what a Wilder Future looks like to them. Be prepared to be humbled by the truths they see about the world they are navigating, and inspired by their optimism and activism in the face of the anxiety many of us feel about our shared future.

Starting at the fascinating Fleam Dyke, an ancient earthwork that stretches for three miles through the Cambridgeshire countryside, join Martin Baker, Cambridgeshire Conservation Manager and podcast host Sophie Baker as they cover connectivity, community and chalk and discuss this site's place in our ambitious vision for the area. Working as part of the Cambridge Nature Network partnership, Martin has been at the heart of building real, actionable change that could restore large areas of our countryside for nature, and for the good of our community and economy, whilst enabling sustainable growth. A new Cambridgeshire Downs for all to enjoy and explore? Why not? Listen now to find out more.

The beaver family at the Nene Wetlands in Northants has been with us now for over a year. Find out what amazing, and surprising, work they've been up to in and around the water (enough to justify their clichéd characterisation as 'habitat engineers'?), and join us as we pay a visit to one of their amazing, freshly plastered lodges at Delta Pit.

Over 80% of the world's chalk streams are right here in the UK, and they are under increasing pressure, especially in Cambridgeshire. Water for Wildlife Officer Ruth Hawksley gives us the lowdown on makes a chalk stream so beautiful, why monitoring river flies can help give them the best chance of recovery, and what we're doing as a Trust to look after these special habitats. We hear from volunteers learning to be the eyes and ears for their local rivers, and why rivers need a whole host of people, projects and organisations to work together for their survival.

Giving children access to nature and wild spaces in their early years—and beyond—is vitally important, and, unfortunately, not something that can be taken for granted in our busy and modern lives. We chat to Debbie McKenzie, Communities & Education Manager at Paxton Pits Environmental Education Centre, about just how crucial it is. And, in celebration of the 15th anniversary of the centre, we also hear from other people involved about what it is that makes this place, and its people so special.