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A plea to my generation to help protect the New Forest

A plea to my generation to help protect the New Forest

PUBLISHED ON: 22 FEBRUARY 2022

14-year-old Fletcher Foot was crowned winner of the Young Photographer of the Year in the Campaign for National Parks Photography Competition 2021. In this moving and honest account, he explains how the New Forest has helped his mental health struggles, and he makes a plea to his own generation to understand and unite against climate change to help protect the Forest for the future.

“The New Forest is my safe place, a place where I feel free, unjudged and accepted … and alive.

You see, the New Forest is magical. She (as I fondly call her) knows when you need her and with no questions asked she opens up her arms and allows you to be at your most vulnerable … and then with her natural magical beauty she comforts you, heals you. And in return she asks for nothing.

My mental health journey over the past few years has meant that I have selfishly relied on her to help me … but on every occasion she has been there.

The days that I have needed to walk miles, she allowed me.  She gave me the peace I needed, whilst quietly showing me, at every step I made, of the beauty and life that is the heart of the Forest.  She guided me through, encouraging and allowing me to breathe and be free – processing the mix of emotions and thoughts I battled with. I will forever be in awe of the beauty that she showed and continues to show me when I walk those miles.

The days that I needed stillness, she offered tranquility – and allowed me to sit for hours whilst watching over me. I have found peace in the stillness, the rawness of the nature and the warmth of her bright sunshine. I have listened for hours to the birds talking ,the ponies cantering, the crickets chirping, the secret rustle of the adders … in the stillness she still reminds me that I am not alone.

Her loyalty is second to none.

But really, when I think about it – she’s always been there.

As a baby she was there, as a toddler she was there … when I had pre-teen boyish tantrums – she was there.  A constant in my childhood, helping create my childhood memories … the ones that I cherish.  The ones where I remember we ran for days, running along the coastline of Lepe and then jumping into the sea … The ones where we giggled so much it hurt my side as we hid from the dragon in the magical mythical woods at Acres Down … The ones where we ran down the hill at full blast dodging the cow pats as we went, before collapsing in a huddle at the bottom …The ones where we imagined we were being chased by giants as we explored the Tall Trees …The memories I have of the hot summer days sitting on my grandfather’s lap eating ice cream at Bolderwood.

She is a constant in my life, and I can imagine many can say the same thing. The days you needed to get away from it all, the days you wanted to create special memories with loved ones, the days you wanted to reconnect.  What would we do without her?

Now as I walk through the vast beautiful heathland, I notice something different  … a change that has been slowly creeping up on her.  My once beautiful New Forest is ageing … she’s never asked anything of us, yet it would seem that we have taken advantage of her … we’ve taken too much.

The message is clear, she hasn’t got long … and I’ll be honest, I need her.

I am of the generation that’s taught that climate change is here. Others can dismiss it, choose to ignore it – but at what cost? The effects are here and ever present. It is proven that climate change in the UK will bring hotter drier summers, summers with increased heat waves. With it, milder wetter winters come in hand in hand.  With the increase of wetter winters, we will see higher sea levels – meaning the loss of land, impacting on all that live there.  The reality is, our beautiful Forest, the New Forest, sits on the south coast… with the current climate change forecast, she is at risk of flooding, costal erosions, higher sea levels, heathland, grassland & woodland fires … Two words neatly sum it up: DESTRUCTION AND DEVASTATION, we will lose her and all that she has – plants, trees, wildlife … hope.

My heart breaks that my beautiful Forest, who asks for nothing and gives so much, is and will be destroyed if we as a generation do not unite. Surely you want your children to have the opportunity to fall in love with the Forest? For the next generation to have a place where they can feel free, and create memories – so that they too want to keep our Forest alive.

As I walk through the heathlands, I hear different songs from the Forest’s residents – new birds are making the Forest their home, whilst others are extending their stay. Through these beautiful songs, I try to listen out for our old guests … but I struggle to hear their striking chords.  A simple reminder that our winters are already milder, so many visitors from across the seas decide to stay. The natural migration patterns distorted.

The change is already here… but our generation can make a difference. We need to listen. We need to understand climate change and we need to take a stand.

Our beautiful Forest has never asked of anything of us, but now I’m asking on her behalf.”

 

A keen climate champion, Fletcher lives in Chandler’s Ford and uses sustainable transport including cycling, walking, buses and trains.

He won the Young Photographer of the Year with his image of a stonechat in the New Forest (below). Also featured are a selection of photos from Fletcher’s collection.

 

 

 

 

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