Rachel interviews Alex Dommett, the Community Engagement Officer for My Wild City for Avon Wildlife Trust. They discuss the importance of community involvement in nature conservation and share their mutual passion for the natural world. Alex shares her personal journey into community engagement work and the mission of My Wild City to improve local wildlife sites. The conversation also covers fun bug facts, bug hunting activities for families, and the need for changes in governance and land management to support biodiversity.
Alex Dommett/My Wild City Website: https://www.avonwildlifetrust.org.uk/mywildcity
Curious About Nature is hosted by Rachel Mills, educator and founder of Buttercup Learning.
Website: https://buttercuplearning.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/buttercup_hello/
Email: [email protected]
Curious About Nature is a podcast for families, home educators and teachers who want to help children build a closer relationship with the natural world.
Through conversations with guests working across wildlife, conservation, outdoor learning, creativity and child development, the podcast explores the many ways we connect children, families and communities with nature.
The podcast is currently resting, with the full archive available to explore.
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What we discussed in the episode
The journey into community engagement work (00:01:16) Alex shares their non-traditional route into community engagement work and how they discovered their passion for nature conservation.
Introduction to the My Wild City project (00:02:26) Alex explains the goals and activities of the My Wild City project, which aims to improve local wildlife sites and connect communities to nature in Bristol.
Citizen science and getting involved (00:05:47) Alex discusses citizen science and how families can participate in projects like the Big Garden Birdwatch and the City Nature Challenge to contribute to scientific research and conservation efforts.
Ladybird Hatching (00:11:29) Alex discussed a three-year-old finding a newly hatched ladybird without spots and discovering that ladybirds hatch without spots.
Bug Facts (00:11:46) Alex shares interesting bug facts, such as snails having 14,000 teeth and glow worms turning snails into milkshakes.
Bug Hunting Activities (00:13:08) Alex makes some suggestions for bug hunting activities, including searching for butterflies, looking for bees, and exploring damp places for beetles and woodlice.
