Climate change is having an increasingly palpable effect on the world around us, as weather patterns grow more destructive and erratic; wildfires in California and hurricanes in the Delta have illustrated the clear dangers of pollutive practice and had a profound altering effect on natural environments and habitats. Beyond efforts to curb reliance on fossil fuels, activists are hoping to redress the balance in a more hands-on way: rewilding.
What is Rewilding?
Rewilding describes a specific corner of conservationism, which recognizes the multiple devastating effects the intervention of man has had on the environment. We typically think of climate change and pollution as a major driver for the destruction of natural habitats and the threat of extinction – however, other forms of intervention have been just as impactful on a local level, from logging in the Amazon to livestock agriculture in the UK.
Rewilding is an attempt to return land to its natural state, through the re-introduction of flora and fauna and the cultivation of natural ecosystems with human assistance. Support for rewilding projects has grown steadily in recent years, with thousands of projects around the world aiming to do their part for local and national landscapes.
Rewilding Projects of Note
Exodus Travels x Rewilding Europe
Adventure vacation specialists, Exodus Travels, partnered with not-for-profit organization Rewilding Europe, as part of a wider package of programs that seek to recognize and counter the impact of international travel on environments and cultures around the world. The partnership with Rewilding Europe sees 100 square meters of land rewilded for each passenger that books with the travel agency – as well as the launch of the Rewilding the Apennines trip, which directly funds Rewilding Europe’s efforts in the region while allowing visitors the chance to see the impact of that same funding.
Patagonia Project
The Patagonia Project is one of many projects underway by Rewilding Argentina, a foundation comprising activists and conservationists that hopes to reverse an extinction crisis gripping the region. The Patagonia Project hopes to link two Patagonia National Parks either side of the Argentina-Chile border, creating a binational park for the rewilding of land and conservation of species like the Puma.
The Mogollon Wildlife Corridor
The Mogollon Wildlife Corridor is a work in progress by the Rewilding Institute, a U.S. foundation focused on the renewal of land across North America. The Mogollon Wildlife Corridor is a proposed conservation area, a large swathe of land stretching from Arizona to New Mexico that would pull together individual conservation efforts on a large scale – and potentially provide a lasting habitat for the re-introduction of endangered jaguars.
In Conclusion
Rewilding is but one of many approaches to the long-lasting effects of mankind on the planet and its natural habitats. Global initiatives are in place to accelerate development of green technologies, while a push for sustainable material sourcing aims to put an end to deforestation. Rewilding, though, points to a bright future for conservation as well as the fight against climate change.
