Landscape and Nature for All – a National Conference comes to Kent
08/07/2010
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The National Association for Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (NAAONB) is holding its annual conference in Hythe, Kent, next week.
This is a national conference bringing together many UK and international professionals in the field of protected landscapes management. On the Wednesday, speakers will include Richard Benyon, Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Natural Environment and Fisheries at Defra, and working debates will focus on four themes, marine and water, community engagement including education and tourism, climate change and forestry, and biodiversity and the European landscape. These will conclude on the Thursday with speakers including Helen Phillips, Natural England chief executive, and Roger Thomas, chief executive of The Countryside Council for Wales.
Particular highlights will include field trips on Tuesday 13th July to several places within the Kent Downs AONB, to the High Weald AONB, to the Surrey Hills AONB, and to several sites in the Caps et Marais d’Opale Parc Naturel Régional.
The theme of the conference relates to 2010 as the International Year of Biodiversity (IYB). After ten years of concerted effort to halt the loss of biodiversity, it is apparent that traditional approaches to nature conservation are not the only answer. AONBs use an integrated approach to delivery and, by doing so, are a key tool to delivering the next round of biodiversity targets. At a time when a landscape approach is more important than ever, it is crucial that the role of the AONBs and their unique input into this internationally coordinated programme of work is emphasised. Speakers will address these issues.
There are, altogether, nine separate field trips on the Tuesday. One is in the High Weald AONB, focused on the Mayfield area, and one is in the Surrey Hills AONB, based around Reigate Hill and Gatton Park. Four are in the Kent Downs AONB: New products, new landscapes is based round farming locations with visits to Torry Hill Estate near Frinsted and Meopham Valley Vineyard and others, picking up on polytunnels and other issues; The Devil’s Kneading Trough visit will focus on the National Nature Reserves at Wye and some educational work; The Valley of Visions trip is based on the Medway Gap, looking in particular at biodiversity, conservation and access issues; and the fourth trip, the Chalk and Channel Coast field visit, is exploring coastal and marine issues in the Channel/Samphire Hoe area. The remaining three trips are all in the Caps et Marais d’Opale Parc Naturel Régional.For further information about the Kent Downs AONB please visit www.kentdowns.org.uk or contact 01303 815170.
ENDS