Craig Bennett
CEO of The Wildlife Trusts, UK.
Advisory Commissioner, 2030 Clean Power Commission. Senior Associate, CISL. Associate Fellow, Homerton College, Cambridge. Judge, The Wainwright Prize.
Formerly CEO Friends of the Earth
- I'll be reviewing the papers on @skynewsrss.bsky.social at 6.45am. Do join me if you are awake!
- Reposted by Craig BennettDelighted to see that #biobeads have been raised at PMQs. Thank you #HelenaDollimoreMP! @sussexwildlife.bsky.social @sussexornitholo.bsky.social @craigbennett3.bsky.social @markavery.bsky.social @richardbenwell.bsky.social @wclnews.bsky.social @the-wildlifetrusts.bsky.social
- Reposted by Craig BennettThis year's King’s New Year Honours List for 2026 is out. A pop star, a policy mandarin and several green leaders like @craigbennett3.bsky.social all got their 🏅 green gongs. We discuss who's on the list alongside an AI deep-dive on the latest 🎧 ECO Chamber podcast out now. 🎙️ pod.fo/e/373e61
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- BY ME in yesterday's #DailyExpress #KierStarmer is plunging us towards a nightmare before Christmas – one thing will stop it www.express.co.uk/news/politic...
- Reposted by Craig BennettNature-friendly farming support—cut. Biodiversity Net Gain—gutted. Habitat protections—weakened for development. But electoral consequences coming. A third of voters chose candidates based on a party's environmental policies. @craigbennett3.bsky.social
- Labour seem determined to wreck what’s left of our natural world. So many broken promises. www.wildlifetrusts.org/news/nightma....
- I had good fun reviewing the papers with @darrenmacca.bsky.social @skynewsrss.bsky.social on Tuesday morning. If you weren't awake and watching at 6.40am, do check out some of our conversation here...
- BY ME at #HouseMagazine at #PoliticsHome The #PlanningAndInfrastructureBill #PiB is a microcosm of where #Labour is getting it wrong... www.politicshome.com/opinion/arti...
- Reposted by Craig BennettCatch up with last night's Wild Live session on blue carbon and seabeds, featuring @sussexkelp.bsky.social's George Short with @craigbennett3.bsky.social and an expert panel. www.youtube.com/watch?v=2APd... #Nature #Carbon #NetZero
- Make no mistake, this is a centralising Govt taking power&decision making away from people And these shambolic amendments to #PlanningBill, tabled last minute, build on months of lies from #RachelReeves pathetically scapegoating nature for a struggling economy.. www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
- Very well put Tony The #ClimateCrisis is obviously a huge threat to people, our economy, our security, our food production and our water supply... And also one of the greatest threats to #nature Any party that seeks to deny or dismiss climate science, is not fit for Govt
- "We can absolutely win for nature and win for the economy. They are not in competition". Welcome comments from Minister @emmahardymp.bsky.social at #LabourPartyConference We need to hear this narrative more frequently and consistently from across the Government please, not least from No10 & No11!
- Reposted by Craig BennettBanking on Trumpington Meadows. One of the best sites for butterflies in Cambridgeshire, has just got better. @tonyjuniper.bsky.social @brianecambs.bsky.social @craigbennett3.bsky.social
- At long long last... (It really really should not have taken this long) www.theguardian.com/environment/...
- Reposted by Craig BennettDid you see our Chief Executive @craigbennett3.bsky.social on @channel4news.bsky.social speaking about a critical risk facing nature? UK Government promised to protect nature – but new changes to the planning system threaten to do the opposite. More > buff.ly/3jTsoyL
- My review in The Evening Standard of #IsARiverAlive, the latest beautiful book from @robgmacfarlane.bsky.social "Macfarlane has yet again demonstrated his genius as an author in creating a book that is alive, that has personality, that talked to me". www.standard.co.uk/culture/book...
- I'm not religious, but I recognise & respect how important faith is for billions of people With #LaudatoSi, #PopeFrancis offered a powerful analysis of the linkages between social & environmental justice, and a much needed call for action #RIPPopeFrancis www.theguardian.com/world/2025/a...
- Looking forward to hosting this #WildLive tonight with a cracking panel: @debbietann.bsky.social, Jojo Mehta from @stopecocide.bsky.social, Jonathon Porritt, and #Ukrainian MP Yullia Ovchynnykova Register via link below & join me online from 7pm UK! www.wildlifetrusts.org/events/2025-...
- This👇 is how it should be done We need changes to the #PlanningBill to make developments like this the norm rather than the exception www.theguardian.com/environment/...
- Reposted by Craig Bennett🌳 We have to get this right. Nature should never be an after thought. ✅ We agree with @craigbennett3.bsky.social, CEO of @the-wildlifetrusts.bsky.social: ❌ “This is the biggest dismantling of nature protections we’ve seen in decades. We need to take the time to get the Planning Bill right.”
- Reposted by Craig Bennett@theguardian.com is running Invertebrate of the Year , with voting opening soon🦋 But what are the choices of leading nature voices? From grasshoppers to bumblebees, find out what @craigbennett3.bsky.social, @carolinelucas.bsky.social & more have gone for👇 www.theguardian.com/environment/...
- Yet again, #DowningSt shows itself to be trapped in a misinformation and disinformation bubble when it comes to nature laws. Meanwhile, the PM seems to have very little to say about housebuilders that are sitting on 100ks of granted planning permissions, but not actually building houses!
- Sir Keir has misrepresented the impact of conservation on housing in Ebbsfleet. The majority of the homes are going ahead. The distinguished jumping spider isn’t even in the development area, but it is a precious habitat. Let's move beyond nature vs. growth - sustainable development benefits us all.
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- Reposted by Craig BennettThanks @bbcradio4.bsky.social Today Programme for inviting me to talk Who Owns the Clyde podcast #RiverRights & our petition to grant River Clyde rights of personood with @craigbennett3.bsky.social we're on at 8.30am www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/...
- I'll be on @bbcradio4.bsky.social #TodayProgramme just after 8.30am this morning to talk about #RightsForRivers ...perhaps mentioning #beavers once or twice too 😉
- Reposted by Craig BennettTee hee this is brilliant. And this week Shropshire WT introduced beavers to Shrewsbury again 💚
- Lovin' the story from #Czechia "The #beavers beat [us] to it, saving us CZK 30 million” “They built the dams without any project documentation and for free." www.thedodo.com/daily-dodo/g...
- Reposted by Craig BennettSTOP Splat the Bat! Here is some (serious) international guidance I helped with, on preventing collisions of bats on roads and railways. Step 1 . Avoid woodlands and other places with loads of bats. 🦇🦤 #HS2 #batshed @craigbennett3.bsky.social www.eurobats.org/sites/defaul...
- Lovin' the story from #Czechia "The #beavers beat [us] to it, saving us CZK 30 million” “They built the dams without any project documentation and for free." www.thedodo.com/daily-dodo/g...
- ICYMI - here's a link to my interview on @bbcradio4.bsky.social #Today this morning about #bats, #newts and #Brexit (At 6.53am, or 53mins 23secs) www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/...
- Quite right. Important thread from @leeinthelakes.bsky.social 👇
- Reposted by Craig BennettA tale of two headlines based on the same press release. The reality, of course, is that the National Trust’s nature restoration efforts will bolster good farming, by “improving the health of enough soil to provide habitat for 1 billion earthworms.”
- Reposted by Craig BennettYes!! Finally some good news 🗞️ on #wildlife thanks to The Wildlife Trusts @craigbennett3.bsky.social
- Great news. Useful link for those wanting to help www.wildlifetrusts.org/appeals/roth...
- I believe that one of the hallmarks of human progress is learning to co-exist with other species that our ancestors once feared And sadly, it often feels like we still live in the Dark Ages... www.theguardian.com/environment/...
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- Reposted by Craig Bennett"The Lie of the Land should be read by anyone with an interest in Britain’s rural environment... powerfully argued & supported by such detailed research" Delighted to get this lovely book review from Prof Christopher Rodgers at Newcastle University: theconversation.com/who-really-c...
- Morning all! Just FYI, I'll be on BBC R4 #Today at 8.10am this morning, to discuss #nature, #planning, #brownbelt, #greybelt, #greenbelt and #wildbelt
- Reposted by Craig BennettIt is great to be back in the European Environment Agency talking about land monitoring. It's such a pity that I'm not able to represent the UK! Time to rejoin the EEA, at least. #BrexitReality @mikegalsworthy.bsky.social @tonyjuniper.bsky.social @craigbennett3.bsky.social @europeanmovement.co.uk
- Reposted by Craig BennettOn Monday next week I'll be doing a 'live in conversation' alongside @craigbennett3.bsky.social to discuss how nature fared at the climate COP #COP29. In the meantime here is my summary of the climate negotiations from last week www.wildlifetrusts.org/blog/kathryn...
- Quite right!
- Reposted by Craig BennettAny new housing should be built fit for the future, and a big part of that is energy efficiency. The Government must ensure all new social homes are built to the highest standards - to keep homes warm, bring down bills, and reduce emissions.
- Reposted by Craig BennettGreat news. Useful link for those wanting to help www.wildlifetrusts.org/appeals/roth...
- Reposted by Craig BennettProtest in Hereford - “Nando’s chicken is killing our rivers” – young campaigners demand Nando’s must take responsibility by demanding cleaner, sustainable practices from its suppliers or ending contracts with those who fail to protect river health. www.herefordtimes.com/news/2476231...
- Reposted by Craig BennettIn case you missed it...
- Beautiful!
- Amazing! Giant bluefin tuna seen chasing mackerel off Devon coast. www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2024/09...
- Reposted by Craig BennettA busy few days: at Kendal Mountain Festival on Friday talking about The Lie of the Land with @leeinthelakes.bsky.social, & a panel event with @righttoroam.bsky.social crew; then yesterday a talk at Cambridge Lit Fest with @craigbennett3.bsky.social Lots of public interest in land & nature!
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Just in case you're wondering how long COP29 might continue to overrun, my colleague Joe has all the data and charts you need...
