BTO Youth in Nature Summit

Summit Sessions 9am - 5pm

Tim Mackrill

Plenary talk: Tim Mackrill
Osprey Leadership Foundation

Dr Tim Mackrill works on species recovery projects with the Roy Dennis Wildlife Foundation. He is a key member of the team reintroducing White-tailed Eagles to England and the translocation of Ospreys to Poole Harbour in Dorset.

He previously worked at Rutland Water Nature Reserve, where he was responsible for the Rutland Osprey Project as well as several other conservation initiatives including a successful Water Vole reintroduction.

Tim is passionate about inspiring the next generation of conservation leaders and recently founded the Osprey Leadership Foundation, a charity that supports young conservationists in the early stages of their career in both the UK and West Africa.

Tim has a PhD on Osprey migration and is the author of two books.

Plenary talk: Sorrel Lyall
BTO Ripple Project Officer / Engagement Coordinator (Northern Ireland)

Sorrel has recently joined the BTO Northern Ireland team as Project Officer on a pilot community-based nature engagement project called Ripple NI, which aims to inspire new audiences to discover their local wildlife. Before joining BTO, she studied BSc Ecology at the University of Edinburgh, where she co-founded the Edinburgh University Ornithological Society. Sorrel volunteered on BTO’s Youth Advisory Panel in its first year in 2020 and campaigns for increased action on equality, diversity and inclusion in the conservation sector. Sorrel is passionate about including all voices in the conservation movement, including young people and those from minority groups. 

Interactive workshops

Youth networks, partnerships and driving change

This interactive session will focus on how to drive change as a group of young people and build successful partnerships between organisations. Hosted by Emily Fox, Charlie Nwanodi and Bobbi Benjamin-Wand of the London Wildlife Trust:

• Emily Fox is the Youth Programmes Manager at London Wildlife Trust. She has experience delivering a range of environmental,  youth-focussed and community development projects and has a background in Ecology, Evolution and Conservation. 
• Charlie Nwanodi was a trainee on London Wildlife Trust’s Keeping it Wild programme and now works as the Youth Volunteering Coordinator for Nature Nurtures. Charlie is driven to empower young people to build their own personal connections with nature and give back to London’s wildlife through Nature Nurtures.
• Bobbi Benjamin-Wand was a Keeping it Wild trainee and youth board member; after completing her traineeship she held a position as a ranger at Walthamstow Wetlands before returning to the Youth Programmes team as a Youth Delivery Officer. She has a passion for connecting young people from backgrounds typically underrepresented in the sector to wildlife and loves learning about the positive impacts nature can have on young people's mental health and wellbeing.

Inclusivity

This session will focus on appreciating the barriers faced by young people when engaging in nature and the sector-wide challenges in ensuring everyone feels represented in nature: crucial for building a community of young nature-lovers, from whom everyone can benefit. Hosted by:

• Lauren Rudd is a PhD student at the University of Oxford’s Wildlife Conservation Research Unit (WildCRU), who studies the social behaviour and dynamics of lion populations. Her research also looks at the impacts of colonialism on present day conservation models, and the identity biases that exist within the discipline. During her PhD she has held multiple ED&I roles at the university, and co-founded the BIPOC STEM Network.

Leaders' Panel

The leaders’ panel is composed of sector leaders who have seen the impact of youth on organisations and the wider public first-hand and can offer their perspective on how they have worked with young people. As well as hearing from organisations with established youth programmes, there will also be a focus on the future, hearing from organisations that are looking to build up their youth work.

• Juliet Vickery (BTO) is the CEO of the British Trust for Ornithology and an Honorary Professor at the School of Biological Sciences, University of East Anglia. She has a deep passion for birds and the importance of science to help us conserve the natural world. 
• Tony Davis (Butterfly Conservation) is a Senior Ecologist at Butterfly Conservation, working to save Britain's most threatened moths. In his spare time he is a bird ringing trainer and nest recorder and was awarded the BTO's Tucker Medal in 2021.
• Emma Marsh (RSPB) joined RSPB in 2016 as their Regional Director in the Midlands, before moving on in 2019 as their Director for RSPB England and currently as Interim Executive Board member for Digital Technology and Communications. She is responsible for providing the leadership, vision and focus to ensure RSPB makes the biggest possible difference for nature and people across those functions. Emma is a fellow of the RSA and is passionate about delivering transformational change at scale across the world to save nature.
• Jack Abrey BEM (WWF) is the Head of Youth Engagement at WWF-UK, where he is supporting young people to help bring our world back to life, through practical action, using their voice and calling for system wide change. Prior to WWF-UK, Jack worked at The Scouts, helping over 500,000, 4–25-year old’s, to take part in high-quality youth social action for people and planet. In 2021, Jack co-created the international environmental social action campaign #PromiseToThePlanet with young people from over 20 countries. 

Youth Panel

These inspirational young panellists will discuss how they have undergone personal growth during their time volunteering or being part of an organisation, demonstrating the value of youth engagement for young people. They’ll also be sharing their wider experiences, helping to inspire other young people to drive positive change.

• Indy Kiemel Greene is a 17-year-old naturalist from Sherwood Forest in Nottinghamshire. He volunteers with the RSPB in the forest and is a member of their youth council. 
• Mya Bambrick is a 20-year-old naturalist, wildlife photographer, vlogger, and writer currently in her second year of an ecology and wildlife conservation degree. She works with numerous organisations including the BTO to engage young people with wildlife and is passionate about getting those from disadvantaged backgrounds into nature.
• Olivia is an ambassador at Action for Conservation and she especially wants to vocalise black voices in the environment. Through her actions, she wants to make an impact and advocate for people learning to love nature.
• Erinna Miles (Ezz) is a conservationist and aspiring wildlife presenter from Montgomeryshire. She is an enthusiastic science communicator, who strives to bring people and nature together.
• Poppy Rummery grew up surrounded by nature and is at her happiest when outdoors (particularly with her binoculars). Poppy is an English Literature Graduate, part of the Organising Team for UK Youth for Nature and currently works for the RSPB, working to engage people in nature.

Talk: BTO Youth Advisory Panel

Since its inception at the end of 2019, the BTO Youth Advisory Panel (YAP) has worked in a strategic capacity to improve BTO’s offer to young nature-lovers, through schemes, events and representing young voices in decision-making processes. This talk will lay out YAP’s work within BTO, and the impact it has had on youth engagement, inclusivity and accessibility.