About walk for wildlife
Walk for Wildlife (W4W) is an initiative by Future For Nature Academy (FFN Academy) aimed at raising awareness among citizens and policymakers about the effects of landscape fragmentation on wild animals.
On the 24th and 25th of August 2019, a group of FFN Academy members will hike from Utrecht to Wageningen (see map for details) to see which obstacles an animal would face traveling this route. They will also see which landscape elements are in place that connect nature, such as nature bridges. The walking team will get first-hand experience regarding the obstacles that migrating animals in the Netherlands face every day. During the walk we will be joined by experts on ecology, landscape planning and wildlife conservation to discuss what has been done already and, more importantly, what should be the next steps to prevent biodiversity collapse.
Walk for Wildlife (W4W) is een initiatief van de Future For Nature Academy (FFN Academy) wat zich richt op het verhogen van bewustzijn bij burgers en beleidsmakers over de effecten van landschaps fragmentatie op wilde dieren.
Op 24 en 25 augustus 2019 gaat een groep FFN Academy-leden een wandeltocht maken van Utrecht naar Wageningen (zie de kaart voor details) om te zien welke obstakels dieren moeten overkomen als ze zich via deze route zouden verplaatsen. We gaan ook kijken naar welke landschapselementen er al zijn om migratie makkelijker te maken, zoals natuurbruggen. Het wandelteam zal zo meer ervaring opdoen over migratie-obstakels voor dieren in Nederland. Tijdens de wandeling wordt het team vergezeld door experts op het gebied van ecologie, ruimtelijke planning en natuurbehoud om te bespreken wat er al gedaan wordt om landschap fragmentatie tegen te gaan, en belangrijker, welke stappen genomen kunnen worden om het instorten van de biodiversiteit tegen te gaan.
“Where there is a will, there is a way for nature”
we want to:
Create awareness
about the opportunities and challenges for wildlife species in the Dutch nature network.
Inspire
policymakers and (young) citizens to consolidate and improve conditions for wildlife in urban and rural areas and around infrastructure.
why do we walk for wildife?
Dutch nature is highly fragmented and strictly regulated. With the additional threat of high human population density and intensive land use, wildlife is often left with small and fragmented habitats that cannot sustain viable populations. For many wild animal species this can make it quite difficult, if not impossible, to move through Dutch nature areas and reserves.
While several restoration measures such as wildlife bridges/corridors help mitigate current issues, the conditions for flora and fauna in the Netherlands can be improved further. Great initiatives already exist to embrace biodiversity in the design and planning of infrastructures, both in urban and rural areas. This does not only benefit wildlife and biodiversity in general, but also creates a safe, healthy, resilient and beautiful landscape for people to live in.
The Walk for Wildlife is meant to shed light on these initiatives and to address the challenges and opportunities for wildlife in The Netherlands. With this Walk we aim to reach a broad public and to inspire both citizens and policymakers to improve conditions for wildlife in The Netherlands. This can be done through restoring, connecting and expanding natural areas, and/or through integrating nature in urban environments. Our initiative embraces the Deltaplan Biodiversity Recovery, which has recently been released, and we see the Walk4Wildlife as a concrete action to support the plan.
the route
Want to find out more about the path we’ll be walking? Check the interactive map below!
Experience the walk for wildlife
During the Walk for Wildlife, the participants made sure that everyone could enjoy the encountered nature and the stories told by the people who joined the walk. With the help of this page, you can experience the walk too! Here, you’ll find (a growing) series of podcast interviews, as well as a vast photo gallery that shows Dutch nature in all its glory.