Actors and actions in the discourse, policy and practice of English rewilding

Abstract

This paper introduces four key groups of actors (armchair rewilders, pioneer farmers, policy entrepreneurs and guerrilla rewilders) whose actions are driving rewilding discourse, practice and policy in England. These groups were identified during a comparative case study of two English rewilding sites (the Avalon Marshes in Somerset and Wild Ennerdale in Cumbria). Research involved 49 interviews: twelve expert interviews, followed by stakeholder and practitioner interviews in the Avalon Marshes (n = eighteen) and Wild Ennerdale (n = nineteen). Armchair rewilders and pioneer farmers shape discourse by advocating for rewilding from idealistic (armchair rewilders) or practical (pioneer farmers) standpoints. Pioneer rewilders and guerrilla rewilders shape practice by conducting rewilding by licit (pioneer farmers) or illicit (guerrilla rewilders) means. Policy entrepreneurs and guerrilla rewilders shape rewilding policy through lobbying (policy entrepreneurs) or direct action (guerrilla rewilders). The ability of these groups to shape rewilding in England relates both to the way that rewilding in still evolving in England, having travelled to the UK from the USA via Europe, and to the opportunity presented by the ‘policy window’ created as a result of Brexit and the UK’s withdrawal from the Common Agricultural Policy. The resulting policy moment offers a chance to shape British agricultural and environmental policy in a way that will have significant implications for rewilding’s future in England and the UK.