Landscape and Nature for All
6 July 2010
The National Association for Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (NAAONB) is meeting in Hythe, Kent, next week
Next week the National Association for Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (NAAONB) is meeting in Hythe, Kent. Particular highlights will include field trips on Tuesday 13th July to several places within the Kent Downs AONB, to the High Weald AONB, to the Surrey Hills AONB, and to several sites in the Caps et Marais d’Opale Parc Naturel Régional.
This is a national conference bringing together many UK and international professionals in the field of protected landscapes management. On the Wednesday, speakers will include Richard Benyon, Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Natural Environment and Fisheries at Defra, and working debates will focus on four themes, marine and water, community engagement including education and tourism, climate change and forestry, and biodiversity and the European landscape. These will conclude on the Thursday with speakers including Helen Phillips, Natural England chief executive, and Roger Thomas, chief executive of The Countryside Council for Wales.
The theme of the conference relates to 2010 as the International Year of Biodiversity (IYB). After ten years of concerted effort to halt the loss of biodiversity, it is apparent that traditional approaches to nature conservation are not the only answer. AONBs use an integrated approach to delivery and, by doing so, are a key tool to delivering the next round of biodiversity targets. At a time when a landscape approach is more important than ever, it is crucial that the role of the AONBs and their unique input into this internationally coordinated programme of work is emphasised. Speakers will address these issues.
There are, altogether, nine separate field trips on the Tuesday. One is in the High Weald AONB, focused on the Mayfield area, and one is in the Surrey Hills AONB, based around Reigate Hill and Gatton Park. Four are in the Kent Downs AONB: New products, new landscapes is based round farming locations with visits to Torry Hill Estate and Meopham Valley Vineyard and others, picking up on polytunnels and other issues; The Devil’s Kneading Trough visit will focus on the National Nature Reserves at Wye and some educational work; The Valley of Visions trip is based on the Medway Gap, looking in particular at biodiversity, conservation and access issues; and the fourth trip, the Chalk and Channel Coast field visit, is exploring coastal and marine issues in the Channel/Samphire Hoe area. The remaining three trips are all in the Caps et Marais d’Opale Parc Naturel Régional.
ENDS
Diary note to editors: If you would like to have further information on any of these events, please call Jill Smith, NAAONB Communications and Development Manager on 01451 862007 or 07815 118292 or jill.smith@naaonb.org.uk, or Frances Clayton, at the Kent Downs AONB on 01303 815172 or frances.clayton@kentdowns.org.uk, or John Rennie, Natural England communications specialist on 0300 060 2616 or email john.rennie@naturalengland.org.uk
Notes to editors:
The National Association for Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (NAAONB) was formed in 1998 as an independent organisation to act on behalf of Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONBs) in England and Wales. Its membership is largely composed of representatives from local authorities whose boundaries include AONBs and who are concerned to improve their management and funding arrangements. The NAAONB is administered by a Management Board. Its Annual Conference provides an opportunity for the AONB Family to join together and address issues of current concern. See: www.aonb.org.uk
Landscape and Nature for All is a partnership project supported by the European Regional Development Fund INTERREG IVA Programme, involving 20 organisations. On the UK side the Kent Downs Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty coordinates the UK partners, while in France the lead partner is the Parc Naturel Régional des Caps et Marais d’Opale. Building on and widening a new project partnership that began in 1997, the LNA project includes an extended partnership of 19 organisations working to conserve and enhance the Transmanche natural heritage and it supports a transfrontier network of similar protected landscapes for developing balanced environmental management.
Natural England works for people, places and nature to conserve and enhance biodiversity, landscapes and wildlife in rural, urban, coastal and marine areas. We conserve and enhance the natural environment for its intrinsic value, the wellbeing and enjoyment of people, and the economic prosperity it brings. See: www.naturalengland.org.uk
The Countryside Council for Wales (CCW) champions the environment and landscapes of Wales and its coastal waters as sources of natural and cultural riches, as a foundation for economic and social activity, and as a place for leisure and learning opportunities. They aim to make the environment a valued part of everyone's life in Wales. See: www.ccw.gov.uk
