Join Rob Smith as he walks around Scotney Castle and Gardens learning about how the team here are managing the land for nature whilst welcoming 180,000 visitors a year. Rob meets Rebecca Rees, General Manager, Senior Gardener, Andrea Bennet and Richard Newman, Head Ranger to focus on different areas of the estate and learn how they're managed with nature in mind. Scotney manages 788 acres of land with 30 acres just dedicated to formal gardens and 300 acres designated as a SSSI! Well worth a...

The Government has made legally-binding commitments to end nature declines and they've mandated local councils to propose actions and priorities for their areas through a Local Nature Recovery Strategy. Rob Smith speaks to Liz Milne who is developing the LNRS in Kent (called 'Making Space for Nature') and Emma Loder-Symonds of Nonnington Farms who is already Making Space for Nature on her 3000 acre farm. Rob also escapes Kent to travel to Rothamsted Research in Hertfordshire and speak to...

In this episode of Talk on the Wild Side, we explore the wetlands. First, we visit Elmley Nature Reserve, a private estate owned and managed by Gareth Fulton and his family. The reserve has been managed for nature since the 80's and is now an eco-tourism spot with luxurious private accommodation that brings people close to nature that wouldn't ordinarily visit. Rob also speaks to a volunteer about the reserve's owl population. In his second interview, Rob talks to Kent Wildlife Trust's first...

🦭The 7th episode of Talk on the Wild Side touches on a very important topic. The Sea Link cable National Grid are proposing will run through Sandwich and Pegwell Bay with a converter set to take up 13ha of Minster Marshes. Rob talks to the Kent Wildlife Trust team about what the risks are and what we can do about it. 🏘️Also in this episode, Rob talks to Sustainability Director of Thakeham Group about sustainable development. Is it all it's cracked up to be? You can really hear the passion in...

We're choughed to bring you our 6th episode of Talk on the Wild Side, featuring the reintroduction of the red-billed chough to the Kent countryside thanks to a partnership with Kent Wildlife Trust, Wildwood Trust and English Heritage. We speak to Liz Corry, Chough Release Supervisor at Wildwood Trust who knows the first chough to be reintroduced very well and treats Rob to the spectacle of watching them fly over Dover castle. Rob also joins James Smith from Loddington Farms in Kent. This 5th...

Rob Smith heads to Brightlingsea Marina in Essex to talk oysters with Matt Uttley, Restoration Project Manager at Blue Marine Foundation. He discovers the difference between our native oyster and the Pacific oyster and why Matt is on a mission to boost the population numbers of our native oyster, the European flat oyster (Ostrea edulis) with a number of partners forming a group known as ENORI. He also visits the Wilder Blean project in Canterbury for another safari, this tracking Exmoor pony...

As the Autumnal months set in, we return for the 4th instalment of Kent Wildlife Trust's podcast; Talk on the Wild Side. In this episode, we head to RSPB Northward Hill Nature Reserve on the Hoo Peninsula to hear from Area Manager Alan Johnson about the site's incredible journey of transformation and its value for wading birds such as lapwings and redshanks. Rob talks to Paul Hadaway, Director of Conservation at Kent Wildlife Trust about river pollution and the State of Nature Report. And...

Join us as we head deep into the Natural History Museum to private access areas where scientists are lurking. We meet Piotr Cuber, Senior Molecular Microbiologist at the Natural Museum to discuss soil science, in particular at West Blean and Thornden Woods, where Piotr and his team are looking to find out how the soil there will change as a result of the bison presence. In this episode, we also speak to Ellen Wilson, Farmer Cluster Officer at Kent Wildlife Trust about how she works with...

As part of our second installment of Talk on the Wild Side, Rob visits GrowUp Farms in Sandwich; an unassuming building where the future of farming is being successfully implemented. Rob will be talking with GrowUp's impact director, Gillon Dobie, discussing this cutting edge of agriculture. Nearer the start of the programme, Rob visits our private Ham Fen reserve to learn about its beaver population, their reintroduction and give us all an update on how the project is progressing. And,...

In the first ever episode of Talk on the Wild Side, hosted by Rob Smith, you'll hear from Kent Wildlife Trust CEO, Evan Bowen-Jones, you'll join Rob on safari as he takes a tour of Oare Marshes with Area Warden Nadia Ward and you'll hear from Martin Richmond-Coggan of Green Farm. A regenerative farmer who teaches us about the value of mob grazing. Links: Evan Bowen-Jones LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/evan-bowen-jones-72377677/ Evan Bowen-Jones on Twitter:...

Kent Wildlife Trust have teamed up with Rob Smith, previously co-anchor on the BBC South East Today news programme, to bring you an audio feast. This brand-new podcast will lift you out of your eco-anxiety and give you a tour of the heroes and heroines bringing nature back from the brink. Rob will visit farms, nature reserves, councils, labs, gardens, schools and businesses who are making a difference in their communities. Join us today, to take a Talk on the Wild Side. Hosted on Acast. See...