Anyone who follows me on social media may have noticed the incessant waffling about a new “project” of mine. Well, said project is now coming along nicely and, as such, I thought I would post a quick summary here. Both to drum up support and assess the reaction of the many lovely eco-minded folk I have the pleasure to know online.
Truthfully, I have been toying with the idea of starting an e-magazine for quite some time, but due to other commitments have been unable to progress. Now, however, with the help of a number of fellow A Focus On Nature members, the idea appears to have taken off. And I am pleased to announce that January will, hopefully, see the launch of ‘New Nature’ – a brand new electronic magazine written, produced and edited entirely by young people in the environmental field. Hooray!
The ‘Youth Nature Movement’ really is a thing of beauty and one need only read this recent guest blog by Ben Eagle to see that it is gaining momentum, fast. Groups like AFON and Next Generation Birders have created a vibrant community of young conservationists: offering support, advice and wonderful opportunities for those seeking to forge a career in the field. They have worked wonders for the prospects and even the self-esteem of young people. And, as such, more and more aspiring environmentalists are involving themselves annually. The movement is gaining steam, but, aside from the highly interesting AFON blog – which I really advise you to visit and enjoy – lacks a serious media outlet. This is something that alongside Alex, Laura and Connel, I hope to rectify.
In New Nature, we hope to collate the fabulous work of young people (between the ages of 13 and 30) and broadcast it far and wide on the internet. We hope to create a hub for news and exciting revelations and highlight the passion, dedication and talent of young naturalists in the eyes of potential employers. As well as offering said young people with interesting and, in some cases, useful information themselves. Based on our initial ideas, the e-magazine looks set to contain a huge variety of topics. From conservation news, creative writing, opinion and good news stories from younger writers: to trip-reports, careers advice, interviews, promotions and photography. We hope to highlight the great work of those involved in the YNM: their research, practical conservation work, artwork and much, much more. And while we may have our work cut out for us – creating something of this sort was never going to be easy – the initial tidal wave of submissions and interest has given us hope. It can and will be done.
New Nature will be released online, and made available on our various social media channels (see Twitter and Facebook) – and we hope that it will be shared far and wide on the web. It will, of course, be free and will be easily accessed by anyone with an interest in the work of young people. We sincerely hope that the idea will catch on, and hope that anyone interested would be so kind as to share the magazine -upon its completion – and draw attention, where possible, to our social media accounts. We will also be running a blog to coincide with our release, which should be up and running very soon.
Stay tuned for updates here too, the next few months look set to be jolly exciting…