Introduction
If you are not already familiar with me, I’m Rachel, the current placement student at GWCT, taking over from Kaylee Fay, who has now been appointed the new role of Conservation Assistant (find out more about our new positions here). So far, despite having little experience or background in the farming and shooting communities, I have found everyone extremely welcoming, including my team, committee members and wider communities, so I thank all for this.
My first month with GWCT Wales has already provided me with plenty of experiences, so much that it’s time for my first student blog post! These blogs are a great opportunity for me to look back and evaluate my main experiences of the month and hopefully provide insights into what my work involves as a placement student for you reading.
(Rydw i wedi ysgrifennu’r blog yn Gymraeg hefyd.)
Events
Flint and Denbigh Agricultural Show
Although I was not officially employed at this point, I was invited by GWCT Wales to the Flint and Denbigh Agricultural Show. I took this opportunity to meet some of my new colleagues in person and get an idea of some of the work I could get involved with whilst on placement. It was great to see how the team run a successful stall for engaging with a wide diversity of people and how to create interest and awareness of our organisation and cause.
As well as this, I enjoyed the other stalls presented by local businesses and even saw a tractor show!
First day with the Young shots
My first day officially as part of the team was at Gwasaney, spectating my first game shooting experience. Due to my lack of farming or game background, this was my introduction into this world. I was joined by Lee Oliver and Logan Crimp, who assisted my learning on the sport throughout the day. I was welcomed with open arms to this event, and I was glad to see people were just as curious about my involvement as I was with theirs.
Although at first I was sceptical about how I would feel on my first drive, I soon came to terms with the set up as I observed from the back of the field, watching the ‘Young Shots’ fire as large, early season broods flew past. I was also impressed by how many young people were skilled and observant enough to selectively target weak or injured birds.
Throughout the event, I witnessed an assorted arrange of habitat types and management strategies. Although bracken was taking over most grassland fields, I could see how it attempted to be managed through cutting. As well as controlling bracken, I saw evidence of gorse and heather management across more upland sites. Burning was not used this year due to wet ground, however a mosaic of differently aged heather and gorse was created from selective cutting. These management strategies are not only for the benefit of game birds, but also a wider range of biodiversity. Some even reported seeing lapwings on the day, and other waders on other days.
The real successes of the trip were only evident to me whilst being there for this event for myself. Reading about how these game events help people and communities was simply not enough to fully appreciate the positive social impacts. I think it is rare to see young people come together in rural communities today, and that was really special to see this at Gwasaney. Especially when I felt the mutual sense of achievement after a successful harvest. The successes went beyond this, as everyone who supported GWCT that day contributed to funding our wildlife projects, and I was pleased to see how everyone engaged in our magazines and showed enthusiasm for the heath of local habitats.
NFU Cymru Conference
Also in my first week on placement, I attended the NFU Cymru Farming Conference with Sue Evans. Attending this event allowed me to gain a wide range of perspectives from across the Welsh agricultural community. All seminars were insightful and interesting, especially from the farmers panel, as they shared their strategies and challenges on each of their farms. The panel agreed that reducing food milage and improving the efficiency of livestock were key factors to reduce emissions, which seems to be the selling point of Welsh farmed products in today’s market. The key message I took home from this conference was that Welsh farmers should strive to not only sustain their agroecosystems environmentally, but also socially, culturally, economically and politically.
The morning talks were delivered by researchers Prof Iain Donnison, Dr Alastair Leake (from the GWCT’s Allerton project) and Prof Janet Dwyer, who presented how new and innovative ideas can better agricultural systems. One idea that stood out to me was utilising cover crops on farms, such as Red Clover, which can enhance soil nitrogen content. It was also interesting to hear about the Hedgerow Carbon Code and how managing hedgerows effectively can increase their carbon storage capacity.
I managed to see some of these strategies in action, as Ed Swan’s talk and tour around his farm provided a clear insight into the ‘multifunctional countryside’ idea, taking his family farming business further with the addition of a farm shop and engaging with the public more by providing access to many of his fields and creating new selling points, such as pick your own pumpkins and sunflowers. As well as this, Ed finds that his hedgerows and pollinator meadows not only improve local biodiversity on his farm but also help to improve the soil organic matter in his fields. Ed’s approach to sustainable agriculture was really inspirational, and other farmers at the conference seemed to feel that too.
There were networking opportunities in-between activities and seminars which helped to further familiarise myself with more people across the breadth of the industry.
Cefn Tilla
The clay shoots and auction at Cefn Tilla was another chance for me to get involved with the rest of my team, especially since this was the first time I saw the full team together. Both events were successful for raising valuable funds for GWCT Wales. It was also great to meet with more committee members, which I will hopefully be seeing more of when helping to organise future events.
Research
In my first month, I have tried to explore and involve myself in as many GWCT projects as possible. For example, I have further familiarised myself with Curlew Connections by reading scientific articles and analysing Curlew behaviours and calls from camera trap footage. I have also explored Welsh policies surrounding agriculture environment, land management and valuing local knowledge. In the next few months, I hope to visit our research sites and get more hands-on word in the field.
By familiarising myself with current projects, it has allowed me to begin discussions on how to expand them and even begin thinking about new project ideas and finding the relevancy from other GWCT research projects. I hope to continue expanding my ideas and connecting our research to urban agriculture and biodiversity in Wales.
Catching up with other GWCT placement students
I have been keeping in touch with other GWCT placement students across the UK, with some working with owl data in lowland Scotland and others working with soil at Allerton. It is great to see we are all doing something different. I am excited to hear more about their progress throughout the year as much as I am to share my own. Keeping in contact with fellow placement students will also help to further connect knowledge and findings across the trust.