Kent’s Durrell Institute of Conservation and Ecology are inviting students, staff and members of the local community to join them for a walking tour of the green spaces on the University’s Canterbury campus.
The ‘wilding walk’ will be led by DICE member and Postdoctoral Research Assistant, Dr Gail Austen, on Thursday 21 November from 1-2:30pm. Starting from the duck pond near Keynes College, the tour will take visitors through the campus’ meadows, ancient woodland and orchards to explore how these spaces are currently being managed and the different approaches that could boost their biodiversity.
The tour is part of a day of events celebrating the launch of the £8.3 million E3 Sharing Space for Nature project, a five-year initiative which will see Kent researchers and students collaborate with Kent Wildlife Trust, Canterbury City Council and the Wilder Blean Initiative to tackle three of the most important issues in conservation science; rewilding, the development of nature recovery networks and the role of community-managed conservation areas in global conservation.
Director of DICE, Professor Bob Smith, will provide audiences with an introduction to the project at a launch event at 5pm the same day. This will be followed by a talk from Director of the UN Environment World Conservation Monitoring Centre and Kent graduate, Neville Ash, as part of DICE’s regular guest lecture series, DICE Talks.
The Wilding Walk will set off from Keynes Duck Pond at 1pm on Thursday 21 November, no booking required. Those wishing to attend the E3 project launch and DICE Talk from 5pm can register their interest here.