Part of the Rewilding Britain initiative, the Hampshire and Isle of Wight network will enable landowners managing at least 40 hectares of land to connect with each other and with rewilding specialists to share experiences, ideas, and expertise.

In the bid to give nature – and us – a fighting chance, rewilding aims to restore our ecosystems, saving wildlife, tackling climate breakdown and benefitting communities. It seeks to reinstate natural processes and reintroduce missing species, allowing them to shape the landscape and its habitats.

Rewilding provides essential ecosystem services such as nutrient cycling, carbon capture and pollution removal, complementing existing conservation work and sustainable land uses such as regenerative farming.

Fifty guests attended the launch hosted by the Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust, including Malaysian-born model, actress, entrepreneur and environmentalist Mandy Lieu, who bought the 925-acre Ewhurst Park Estate in Ramsdell, Hampshire, in 2020 to embark upon an ambitious landscape recovery project promoting both biodiversity and sustainable food production

The guests were given a tour of the Wildlife Trust’s two rewilding sites at Wilder Little Duxmore and Wilder Nunwell on the Isle of Wight.

Both former low-grade arable farms, the Trust is rewilding the sites by kick-starting natural processes to help wildlife bounce back and thrive, reducing nutrient pollution and securing the land for wildlife in perpetuity whilst supporting local food production as part of a new partnership with Nunwell Home Farm. 

Working with partner organisations such as Environment Agency, Natural England, National Parks, and the Country Land and Business Association, the HIWWT wants to encourage those owning or managing more than 40 hectares to join the Rewilding Network and find out more about what they can do on their land.

The network aims to:

•  Raise the standard of rewilding in Hampshire and the Isle of Wight through shared learning and promotion of ecological monitoring.
• Contribute to nature recovery goals (e.g. 30% of land and sea managed for wildlife by 2030).
• Engage with local landowners and encourage positive action for wildlife.
• Connect members with rewilding and wildlife experts.
• Share experience through site visits and discussions.

HIWWT Chief Executive Debbie Tann said: “Nature is in crisis with more than half of our species in decline and our rivers and seas in poor health. Traditional conservation has done an amazing job over decades saving our most threatened wildlife but nature reserves alone are not enough to tackle the biodiversity crisis. As well as protecting the fragments of wildlife rich habitat that we have left, it’s vital that we start restoring ecosystems at scale. As part of our vision for a wilder Hampshire and Isle of Wight we want to see rewilding making a meaningful contribution to nature recovery goals, so that at least 5% of our landscapes are rewilded by 2030. The launch of our new Network shows there is huge enthusiasm across our two counties for doing just that – which is fantastic news not just for wildlife, but for people too.”

Mandy Lieu said: ‘I was honoured to attend the launch of the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Rewilding Network last week and am delighted to confirm that Ewhurst Park will be one of the first of its members joining other local landowners committed to taking action for nature at a landscape scale. By working together and supporting one another, we can harness the synergy of our shared ambitions for wildlife restoration and environmental improvements. Our combined commitment to create nature recovery networks has enormous potential and the whole team at Ewhurst Park is thrilled to be joining the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust’s bold and important rewilding network initiative.

’Alastair Driver, Director of Rewilding Britain said: "It was a real privilege to be at the launch of Hants and IoW Rewilding Network. This becomes the 21st county-scale network connected to Rewilding Britain in the 2 years since we set up our national Rewilding Network and it's great to see it being led by a pioneering Wildlife Trust who really understand the vital part that rewilding can play in nature recovery. What made the launch even more poignant is that it was held on two sites acquired by the Trust specifically for rewilding and the many social, economic and environmental benefits it brings"

The free Rewilding Network offers membership to landowners, land managers, marine project managers and local rewilding groups who are either already rewilding an area of land and sea over 40 hectares, or are planning to start.