Jim Densham, Senior Land Use Policy Officer with RSPB Scotland, tells you about the some of the things we love and want to protect with the FTLO campaign we're a part of.
All you need is love
As the Beatles timeless classic said – all you need is love. Still true? It’s no longer the swinging 60s or the love generation but I think most people would say love makes the world go round (in a strictly metaphorical sense).
A love of peat being pinned to the 'love wall'
It makes us care for people, places and things, and want to protect them. That’s why the ‘For The Love Of...’ campaign (FTLO) asks us to think about what we love and then call for action to stop climate change so that what we love won’t be affected or disappear forever. You can write what you love at www.rspb.org.uk/fortheloveof
At RSPB Scotland we kicked off our FTLO campaigning last month, amongst our own staff when many of us got together at the staff conference. I wanted them to know what the FTLO campaign was all about and get them enthused about it. And what better way than to ask them to write what they love. To do this we erected a ‘Love Wall’ and asked everyone to write on a heart something they love.
For a bunch of RSPB Scotland staff it’s not surprising that nature featured strongly - there was a great ‘bio’-diversity in the love being shown: mountain hares, leatherback turtles, puffins, coral reefs, red-necked phalaropes, peatbogs, Boletus edulis (a fungi), to name but a few. There was some non-nature too, e.g. public transport, cotton vests, future children! And some downright wierd ones; Zumba, potoos (googly-eyed birds from S. America) and even a real banana stuck to the wall.
The 'love wall' at the RSPB Scotland staff conference
One thing I noticed was the number of hearts expressing love for our seas and their wildlife on the Love Wall. Certainly, people are seeing the impact of climate change right now on our seabird populations so perhaps it is in people’s minds. The truth is that with runaway climate change everything could be affected in some way, whether it is a species, habitat, our lifestyles, hobbies or families. That’s why we need action now and especially by world leaders in Paris next year. So go ahead, show your love too and do your bit for the campaign.