Some told me birdwatching is a ‘white people thing’ – but nature’s for everyone

An environmentalist and diversity campaigner has issued a rallying call for people from all communities to join the debate about the future of animal welfare.

Speaking on a recent RSPCA Animal Futures podcast, Dr Mya-Rose Craig highlighted the importance of making sure every one from all backgrounds are able to access nature and the countryside .

The British-Bangladeshi ornithologist and writer features alongside National Trust Chair René Olivieri in the recent edition of the podcast.

She says she wanted to break down “barriers” which could put people from different ethnic backgrounds from enjoying nature and the great outdoors.

Passion

The founder of Black2Nature, a charity for bringing diversity to all things natural, explained her shock when, as a child, she heard her lifelong passion for birdwatching described as “a white people thing” by the Asian side of her family.

She has since devoted much of her life to campaigning to change these beliefs.

Her call comes as the next stage of the RSPCA’s Big Conversation launches – urging people to have their say on the future of animal welfare.

The Big Conversation asks the public what laws and policies should be put in place to protect animals, what should happen in schools and workplaces; and how can the public be better supported to prioritise animal protection.

But those choosing to engage with the RSPCA’s Animal Futures project have so far been heavily skewed towards particular demographic groups – something Mya-Rose hopes will balance out in the final week of The Big Conversation.

The public has until April 6 to get involved.

Future

Results from the RSPCA’s Animal Kindness Index shows people from all communities care about issues affecting animals – but so far, few people from ethnic minority communities, as well as younger generations, have responded to The Big Conversation.

Now, the charity is hoping people from all backgrounds will heed Mya-Rose’s call and have their say on the future they want to see for animals.

Mya-Rose, who is now 22 but first sprang to prominence aged 11 with her blog Birdgirl, said it was “accepted” years ago that Black and Asian people did not engage with nature.

“I’m half Bangladeshi, my mum’s Bangladeshi, and growing up, I basically never saw anyone that looked like us out in nature, out in the countryside – and that was always kind of the accepted reality.

“You had people in environmental spheres going like, ‘oh, you know, there are just certain types of people that won’t engage with nature.’

“But then, on my Asian side … (of) the family, I also had people going, like, ‘oh, you know, bird watching. That’s a white people thing’.

“I was like ‘I know that can’t be true because I like it’ – but I couldn’t prove them wrong.”

Mya-Rose responded by explaining her enthusiasm for green spaces, birds and wildlife, to children from inner city areas, and organising youth trips into the countryside.

Future

She added: “I went into the city, and I kind of spent time talking to people in the community – Black and Asian communities – explaining why they should be interested.

“And – long story short – I did, and it went really well, and they all kind of came away with some relationship with nature.”

Now – Mya-Rose is urging the public to join the RSPCA’s Big Conversation and explain the future they want to see for animals, and the changes that can be made by governments, society and industry to encourage everyone to enjoy the benefits of wildlife, nature and the great outdoors.

An earlier stage of the Big Conversation ran in January and February, and asked the public to consider how society uses animals; the future role of technology; farmed animals and food systems; and animals in the wild.

However, those choosing to take part in the survey were often from a very similar demographic make-up. Indeed, 57% of participants were aged over 55, more than 80% were women, and more than 97% were white.

Mya-Rose hopes sharing her own experiences about the benefits of nature and wildlife will encourage people from all walks of life to take part in the next phase of the RSPCA’s Big Conversation.

Role

She said: “It’s vital people from all different backgrounds are able to have their say by getting involved. Animals play a really important role in all of our lives; but if large swathes of society choose not to get involved in conversations like this, then I fear there’ll continue to be large parts of our population who potentially feel disconnected from nature and animals.”

Meanwhile, René, former chair of the RSPCA, outlined some of the National Trust’s initiatives to make green spaces more accessible to everyone, everywhere.

The American-born publisher and academic called for more people to “beat the drum” for open spaces, nature and outdoor pursuits.

In the new podcast, he speaks of breaking down barriers “one by one” and outlines the Trust’s new Nature Towns and Cities project, which aims to bring five million people fresh access to nature on their doorstep.

Both speakers describe their vision for accessible nature to journalist and broadcaster Kate Quilton, as she hosts the fourth episode of the RSPCA’s groundbreaking podcast Animal Futures, which went live earlier in March.

Previous episodes have discussed whether robotic pets could ever be a replacement for the real thing or if lab-grown meat could ever replace animals as a food source.

René, who took over at the National Trust in 2022 after chairing the RSPCA for three years, said: “There are lots of reasons why people don’t get out into nature.” These range from the cost of travel to physical disabilities, among many others that Rene discusses in the podcast.

Challenges

He says such challenges “are really, really important and you need to take them in the round and address them. You need to break down those barriers down one by one. We can only do that by working with lots of other people.”

He also stressed that we need more role models like Mya-Rose, to engage people from different age groups, ethnic backgrounds and social groups.

“We need … people who are out there beating the drum – not just old guys like like me in suits – who are saying ‘this is cool, this is fun, it’s easy, you’re going to get a lot out of it, it’s great to be doing it.’”

Other guests in the series have included David Halpern MBE, President Emeritus of the Behavioural Insights Team and Melanie Challenger, bioethicist, and author of ‘How to be Animal’.

The podcast is available on all major platforms – including Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon and YouTube, with audio and video available.