nature restoration:
an intergenerational approach
empowering young people to restore nature for future generations.
The UK is one of the most nature-depleted nations on the planet. It is also home to the unhappiest population of teenagers in Europe.
Every opportunity to restore nature should be an opportunity for young people to improve their well-being, learn new skills and develop the connection to nature that will make them far more likely to take active steps to protect and restore the living world we all rely on.
Sadly, however, young people in the UK are too often excluded from conversations and decisions made about the future of our ecosystems. Many also lack access to quality green spaces or the means to improve them.
To ensure young people have the opportunity to bring fresh energy and ambition to tackling the interconnected climactic, ecological and social crises, AFC has developed new approaches that embed youth leadership in the design, development and delivery of ambitious nature restoration across the UK.
Our innovative intergenerational co-design approach utilises eco-cultural mapping to bring together young people, farmers, landowners, foresters, gardeners, fishers and many others to develop new understandings of place, make shared plans and pursue nature’s restoration.
Developed and facilitated at our flagship, the Penpont Project, this participatory approach has now been adopted at project sites in Bristol and Matlock, where Youth Leadership Groups and partners are creating and pursuing their own ambitious visions for nature and community.
Interest in our approach has grown substantially within the environmental sector since the launch of the Penpont Project in 2019. We are encouraging partners nationwide to embrace methods that ensure young people have a seat at the table and can take up shovel, compass, quadrat, camera or book in service of the restoration of our living planet and future generations of all species.
Intergenerational Action for Climate and Nature
In 2024 we launched the Intergenerational Action for Climate and Nature project, which is led by Action for Conservation, alongside partners Avon Wildlife Trust and Heartwood Social Farm CIC.
Over three years, 45 young leaders aged 13-18 will have the opportunity to co-design and deliver nature restoration with more than 700 local community members across 650-acres of land at three sites: Penpont in Wales, Heartwood in Derbyshire and Grow Wilder in Bristol.
Young leaders will work with expert ecologists, farmers and local community members to create new, multigenerational visions for nature restoration. They will then turn these into reality by restoring lost habitats like woodlands that capture carbon and wetlands that protect areas from flood and drought.
At our flagship Penpont Project, 100% of young leaders who have been part of the project since 2019 reported that they experienced an improvement in their wellbeing thanks to their involvement in the project.
This new 3-year project will enhance green spaces that help other young people enjoy similar benefits long into the future.
This project has been made possible thanks to National Lottery players. Action for Conservation, Avon Wildlife Trust and Heartwood have received over £870,000 from The National Lottery Community Fund, the largest community funder in the UK.
penpont project
The UK’s largest intergenerational nature restoration project, located in the Bannau Brycheiniog National Park, Wales. Since 2019 a partnership of landowners, farmers, young people and charity, Action for Conservation have been restoring the site’s 500-acres of land.
heartwood project
A 160-acre farm located near Matlock in Derbyshire which aims to grow food, restore nature and offer therapeutic opportunities for the surrounding community.
green shoots at grow wilder
A 5-acre brownfield site, located just outside Bristol’s city centre, a stone's throw from Grow Wilder, Avon Wildlife Trust’s thriving urban nature reserve and food-growing hub.
