Improving Diversity in the Mendip Hills AONB

Making the Mendip Hills accessible to a wider range of people is the idea at the heart of the Mendip Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) 2022 Annual Forum being held at Yeo Valley HQ, Blagdon, on November 26.  

Hosted by BBC ecologist Mike Dilger and entitled ‘Seeing the Mendip Hills through New Eyes’ the forum is a response to some of the challenges raised in the UK Government’s ‘Landscapes Review’.  To bring these ideas to life speakers and groups representing a diverse range of people will be talking at the event.

Whilst the report is full of admiration for the work done by important national landscapes such as AONBs and National Parks it had this to say about inclusivity:

 “… a lot more must be done to meet the needs of our many fellow citizens who do not know the countryside, or do not always feel welcome in it, but should be able to enjoy it. Our landscapes are open and free to all, but can seem exclusive.”

“This is an honest attempt to help understand how people with different life experiences see or experience the Mendip Hills,” explained Jim Hardcastle, AONB Manager. “We want to better understand and appreciate how landscapes that we think of as open and inclusive certainly aren’t always seen in that way.

“We are hoping that our speakers and guests will challenge our thinking, pose new questions and inspire new ideas about how to make the Mendips Hills better for everyone in the future,” he said.

Coming as it does at the end of a year when the Mendip Hills AONB has been looking back and celebrating 50 years of work by many people conserving and enhancing the area, the forum is a chance to look forward, to see how we can expand our diversity and in so doing strengthen our own environment.

Everyone is welcome at the event although places are limited.  Please reserve your tickets here.