Some may consider humankind’s effects on nature as an inevitable and irreversible side effect of population growth. However, in the United Kingdom, conservationists hope to flip that assumption on its head and reintroduce a species that was eradicated from the country nearly 1,300 years ago: the lynx.

Why are things the way they are? Surely they could be better? This attitude often arises during student days - the liberation of independence comes along with the chance to grapple with big ideas and rub shoulders with people from different walks of life. These things along with the fact that young people haven’t had the chance to become jaded or cynical often makes them radical in their beliefs. Can we apply this to conservation?

Lucas Bainbridge, a Sixth Form student from London, shares his thoughts on rewilding and why it is an invigorating, exciting and important approach to restoring landscapes.