SEM CEO Maxwell Ayamba BEM, attended the launch of Derbyshire’s Wildlife Trust’s ‘Wilder 20230 Strategy” at Chatsworth House, June 4, 2025. The Trust has been taking part in The RACE Report survey among environmental and conservation organisations and published its annual diversity report. The environment and conservation sectors are amongst the least diverse sectors in the UK. It is against this background that The RACE Report was created as a sector wide initiative to focus on charities and funders working on environmental and conservation issues. The report highlights the need for greater representation, diversity and inclusion in sustainability and climate action, as currently, the sector sits at just 4.5% representation of black and ethnic minorities, compared to 16% for the UK working population, an indication that racial inclusion is a major issue in the sector.

Beatrice Anomah, Project Manager of The RACE Report and of Students Organising for Sustainability UK (SOS-UK) who was invited to speak at the Wilder2030 launch said, ‘It’s really important that we don’t just identify this but also identify what policies, strategies and actions on racial inclusion and equity is being taken within the sector. Spotlight and share where good practice and ensure we can support and take organisations on a collaborative journey to co-create more representative, inclusive and equitable organisations that in turn lead to a more inclusive sector and supports transition to a more just world’.
She was of the view that there is a need for a holistic and intersectional approach to inclusion in the environment and conservation sectors. This is why the race conversation matters so much. ‘We cannot create an inclusive sector if the myriads of experiences of marginalised groups are not represented, understood, or are simply homogenised and not reflected in the key spaces where decisions are made, money is distributed, and policies are written’.

The Project Manager argued that there was a need to look at the policies, systems, language etc that create barriers for people of colour entering and thriving in the sector and catalyse meaningful collective action and commitment from different stakeholders to tackle those barriers and this requires a whole sector effort. She pointed out that individual Wildlife Trusts such as the Derbyshire Wildlife Trust are often bigger environmental charities better known by the general public, so the work they do on inclusion and diversity is super important for role modelling, setting the pace, and having an influence on the general public’s perceptions of the sector.

Diversity is the reality of our world and there’s so much power in ensuring that it is reflected in the sector and inclusion will only make the sector stronger, more dynamic, more resilient and more beautiful and that is because of the following reasons:
· The climate crises is a social justice and racial justice crises
· Climate justice cannot be achieved without racial justice and decolonisation
· An intersectional and holistic approach to creating solutions and changing systems is vital
· Increasing the diversity of the sector requires individual and collective action by all organisations in the environment/conservation sector
· Understanding the different experiences of historically marginalised groups and working directly with these groups is necessary for an equitable and inclusive sectors
· Participation in The RACE Report will help the environment/conservation sector be better represented and include the diverse communities that it serves and achieve equitable environmental outcomes
· Being a diverse and inclusive organisation builds resilience, increases impact, ensures work is fit for purpose for all people and nature.

She concluded that, in The RACE Report’s annual feedback survey, over 82% of respondents now take more action on EDI as a direct result of taking part, with organisations saying: We are able to align ourselves with sector best practices and compare our year-on-year data. We’ve been able to spot gaps in our representation and make data-informed decisions. It has been a key part of the puzzle for us in setting our own representation targets.

SEM’s CEO Maxwell Ayamba BEM noted that environment/conservation organisations stand to benefit from The RACE Report, as biodiversity is also about human-diversity.

SEM’s CEO had the opportunity to be invited to attend the 3rd Future Countryside Conference 2025, hosted by Lord William Burlington, Chair, Devonshire Group and Chatworth House Trust, attended by over 200 delegates from the environment, heritage, farming, business, Defra officials and young people.

In his welcome address, Lord Burlington said, the event sought to celebrate the countryside as a vibrant, inclusive landscape that benefits everyone, with a focus on positive impact and possibilities for rural economies and communities. He explained that, Chatsworth House is a great convener of people and indeed has been fulfilling that role for centuries and it was therefore of a tremendous honour to be hosting the event. Lord Burlington emphasised that Chatsworth Estates has worked hard to preserve and enhance the natural and cultural assets under their care for future generations and at the same time making significant contributions to the economic, environmental and social wellbeing of local communities of interest.

He explained that, there was need for greater understanding of what sustainable, resilient countryside looks like, and how vital it is for the nation’s future and that the Chatworth Estates will work to foster greater support, which in turn will help rural communities, cultures and landscapes across Britain, and beyond, to survive and thrive in the long term. Lord Burlington disclosed how across their commercial and agricultural estate and Chatsworth House Trust charity is spearheading a cultural programme, learning and outreach as they strive to build their outreach; relevance to neighbours, visitors and partners, their resilience in times of climate emergency and global uncertainty and their positive impact within the community and the wider world.

Founders of Future Countryside, Julian Glover and Nick Herbert said the vision is to create ‘A countryside for All’, as the countryside is part of our national heritage and what happens to it should matter to us all. It should be central to a modern vision of healthier, greener and more prosperous country. The countryside should not therefore be marginal to debate but rather build on a broader understanding of its core place in our collective future.

There were provocations on land use and the challenges facing the countryside especially access to the countryside. SEM’s CEO in his contribution said countryside access was not just about benevolence, and organising access for people from Black and ethnic minority communities to visit the countryside, but rather it is more about governance and representation. He explained that the countryside should be about our shared heritage as there has been the Black contribution made to the English countryside in terms of enslaved people, Black soldiers in the World Wars, this history should be told and cherished. Maxwell emphasised that the historical erasure of the Black presence in the English countryside is the reason behind access issues as Black people and other minorities are made to feel unwelcome in that space with rural communities failing to acknowledge the significant and important contributions made by Black and ethnic minorities to the English countryside. He was therefore of the view that so much academic research evidence supports the fact that access to the countryside is not about the absence of logistics and other resources as some speakers here at the conference would want us to believe, but deeper than that, and therefore in order to fashion out a better future of ‘A countryside for All’ would involve moving away from this old narrative.