Podcast Summary: Saving Britain's Wildlife

Podcast: LSE: Public Lectures and Events
Host: London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE)
Date: November 11, 2025

Episode Overview

This episode, part of the Philosophy Live series at LSE, explores the urgent crisis facing Britain's wildlife, the worrying declines in species and biodiversity, and innovative approaches being taken to reverse this trend. Featuring a panel of ecologists, philosophers, and conservationists actively engaged in both local and global projects, the discussion provides hope, pragmatism, and ethical reflection on rewilding, regenerative farming, community involvement, animal welfare, and the future of conservation.

Panelists

• Professor Jonathan Birch (C): Host; Professor of Philosophy, LSE
• Matt Phelps (B): Chief Ecologist, NEP Estate, Sussex
• Iris Berger (A): Agroecology Researcher, University of Cambridge
• Karen Kovanka (D): Philosopher, University of California, San Diego
• Luke Hecht (E): Wild Animal Initiative

Key Discussion Points and Insights

The Crisis Facing Britain's Wildlife

• Severe Insect Declines: Professor Birch introduces "splat count" surveys showing 75% drop in insect populations in two decades.

  “Something very bad and worrying has been happening to Britain's wildlife.” [00:16]

Rewilding at NEP: A Case Study

Project Overview

• NEP's History: 25-year rewilding initiative on unprofitable Sussex farmland, transitioning from intensive agriculture to a system where "nature leads the way."
• Key Methods:
  • Removal of farming machinery and arable crops.
  • Reintroduction of free-roaming cattle, pigs, ponies, and deer.
  • Focus on restoring ecosystem function, not just passive abandonment.

Results and Impact

• Biodiversity Gains:
  • Free-roaming animals transform landscapes and increase biodiversity.
  • "You put back bits of the jigsaw and you allow that puzzle to sort of unfold before your eyes." (Matt Phelps, 02:44)
• Human Role:
  • Humans act as surrogate apex predators (e.g., deer culling).
  • Ecotourism and sustainable meat as main income streams.

  "A third of the income comes from ecotourism… We still produce a lot of really good meat… So humans are in effect, the predator here." [07:28–07:57]

• Controversies & Pushback:
  • Concerns from farming lobby about loss of agricultural production.
  • Skepticism about scalability—could the NEP model be emulated nationwide?
  • Matt: “At the moment, there's no… slowing down in the sort of growth of this particular market. Ecotourism now is worth… something like 10 billion a year in the UK.” [08:59]

Ethical and Welfare Considerations

• Animal Welfare:
  • Welfare is paramount; active monitoring and veterinary care provided.
  • Refusal to let animals die slowly as in some hands-off rewilding models.

  “If there are no apex predators, I don't believe it's ethical to let animals just die in the field. Absolutely not.” (Matt, 17:07)

• Learning from Other Initiatives:
  • Reference to controversial hands-off approach in Netherlands (Oswaldersplassen).
  • Shift towards more NEP-like controlled population practices.

Regenerative Farming & Global Lessons

Andhra Pradesh and Zero Budget Natural Farming (ZBNF):

• What is ZBNF?
  • No synthetic fertilizers or pesticides; use of locally sourced inputs.
  • Social movement aimed at lifting farmers from poverty and distress.
• Findings:
  • Comparable yields to chemical farming with much lower costs—profits rise.
  • Dramatic improvements in bird (and likely insect) biodiversity. [19:09–21:26]
• Key Factors:
  • Top-down coordination and massive participation enable landscape-level change.
  • Bird biodiversity as an indicator of wider ecosystem health.

  “For birds, these are species that respond to quite larger scales. To actually see a response, you do really need whole villages… to transition at the same time.” (Iris, 22:16)

• Limits to Scaling:
  • No one-size-fits-all—success is context-dependent:
    “So I think we should step away from trying to find one single solution that's going to work everywhere but just work out what's going to be suitable in different contexts.” (Iris, 26:08)

Conservation Ethics and the Role of Intervention

Galapagos Islands Successes and Dilemmas

• Key to Success:
  • Aggressive eradication of invasive species—snipers, poisons, culling.
  • Intensive and sometimes ‘unnatural’ interventions (captive breeding, hand-rearing).

  “There really isn’t so much leaving nature alone these days, maybe eventually, but only through a pretty high intervention, high intensive pathway.” (Karen, 29:57)

• Community Involvement:
  • Conservation depends on local buy-in (e.g., permanent population relies economically on wildlife-based tourism).
  • Education as partnership and empowerment, not top-down instruction.

Conservation Narratives and Values

• Beyond Monetary Value:
  • Buy-in is not only about ecotourism and money; cultural and ethical values matter, too.

  “There is a place…for researchers, philosophers, environmentalists to make the case for the value of wildlife that is a bit farther removed from the economic aspect.” (Karen, 38:48)

Animal Welfare, Sentience, and Rethinking Biodiversity

• Wild Animal Initiative’s Approach:
  • Valorizing animal welfare, not biodiversity for its own sake.
  • Interventions should aim for net positive animal experiences, not just maximizing species count.
  • Early-life suffering often invisible in conservation models; must be considered.

  "If you imagine yourself being born into this species, you would probably wish that those conservationists were thinking about, like, early life challenges." (Luke, 49:36)

• Ethical Tensions:
  • Mainstream conservation prioritizes species (and “native” status) over individuaI animal welfare; is this justified?
  • Issues like invasive species management and extinction prevention become ethically complex (“What is it like to be an animal going extinct?”).

Policy, Economics, and Urban Conservation

• Natural Capital and Markets:
  • NEP working on biodiversity net gain, natural capital accounts, and considering carbon storage in scrubland versus planting trees. [62:21]
  • Adjusting messages for investors, pension funds, insurers, and policymakers.
• Urban Biodiversity:
  • Value in making cities more friendly—“you can rewild your garden…just not mow the grass.” (59:35)
• Habitat Connectivity:
  • Fragmentation, roads, and urban growth threaten corridor function for wildlife.
  • Strategic urban planning needed for habitat connectivity and wild animal welfare.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments (with Timestamps)

• Professor Birch on Insect Decline:

  “To estimate the insect population, they used the so called splat count…estimated that insect populations have fallen by about 75% in 20 years.” [00:16]

• Matt Phelps on the Rewilding Model:

  “You put back bits of the jigsaw and you allow that puzzle to sort of unfold before your eyes.” [02:44]
  “Ecotourism is the biggest [income], arguably now… Still produce a lot of really good meat…So we are having to act as that predator.” [07:28–07:57]

• Iris Berger on Agroecology’s Promise:

  “I found basically it has the same yield as conventional agrochemical based farming…but the profits drastically increased because the input costs were a lot lower.” [19:09]
  “We should step away from trying to find one single solution… just work out what's going to be suitable in different contexts.” [26:08]

• Karen Kovanka on Conservation Practice:

  “Open mindedness about the effectiveness or otherwise of interventions…there really isn’t so much leaving nature alone these days.” [29:57]
  “Buy-in of local communities being absolutely central.” [33:31]

• Luke Hecht on Sentience and Welfare:

  “I value biodiversity to the extent that it brings benefits to wild animals and also to humans as fellow animals.” [44:49]
  “What it means to be a wild animal is constantly kind of like, eroding…we aren’t generally doing it with any concern for their welfare.” [46:50–47:07]

Audience Q&A Highlights

What Can We Do to Help?

• Go Vegan:

  “Drastically reduce the amount of animal products you consume…free up so much land that could be rewilded.” (Iris, 58:26)

• Make Gardens and Local Spaces Wildlife-Friendly:

  “There’s always opportunities to learn how to make whatever land you have some influence over be better habitat for wild animals.” (Karen, 59:37)

• Inspire Others:

  “If you love nature… give that passion to someone else… double the impact.” (Matt, 60:15)

Policy and Development Threats

• On Housing Threats to Wildlife Corridors:

  “We’re trying to say we need to keep those corridors open for wildlife to be able to move through the landscape.” (Matt, 66:44) “To just mock the seriousness of protecting snails as if it was a kind of joke issue, that’s exasperating.” (Jonathan, 68:11)

The Ethics of Culling and Trophy Hunting

• On Culling at NEP vs. African Contexts:

  "Deer belong in the landscape, they deserve to be there. It’s…just about controlling the numbers in terms of what is healthy for the population." (Matt, 81:03) "We do need to give the local communities… the decision making to them. If this is like the only way for them to generate income…" (Iris, 82:24)

On De-extinction

• Are Mammoth Projects Noble or Vanity?

  "The mammoth de-extinction [is] a publicity stunt…so far from being for it being the kind of thing it's supposed to be." (Karen, 77:40)

On Urban Wildlife

• Valuing Urban Conservation:

  “I definitely think there’s a big role for thinking about urban planning there, especially for smaller animals…how they cross roads, rodents, even snails crossing paths.” (Luke, 85:24)

Conclusion

The panel highlighted both the vast challenges and diverse possibilities in saving Britain's wildlife, emphasizing:

• The irreplaceable role of hands-on intervention and adaptive, context-sensitive management.
• Integrating economic, ethical, and cultural dimensions into conservation.
• The necessity of large-scale collaboration, connectivity, and shifts in both land use and attitudes—from individual gardens to national policy.
• The urgent ethical imperative to center animal welfare and community engagement in future conservation.

Further Listening and Resources

• Rewilding Britain: rewildingbritain.org.uk
• Wild Animal Initiative: wildanimalinitiative.org
• Zero Budget Natural Farming: APZBNF

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