I started volunteering in June 2021 after I attended a talk given by the Trust’s previous CEO, Roger Mortlock. He spoke about the shocking species decline in the UK, and urging that conservation is not just something to do with the Amazon; it needs to happen right here in Gloucestershire. So I bought into that and decided to help with nature recovery here in the county.
I only properly became interested in wildlife when I stopped work in 2019. I started with wildflowers, expanded onto trees and now I have a particular interest in river wildlife. I mainly volunteer for the GWT project team supporting the Cotswold Canals Connected project at Whitminster, though I do attend other opportunities occasionally. Through my time with the Trust I have been surprised at the breadth of work undertaken by the charity. I've really only focused on one project and the variety has been huge.