SEM’s CEO, Dr Maxwell Ayamba BEM attended his first Campaign for National Parks (CNP) Council meeting at the University of Westminster in London on Wednesday January 21, 2026. Maxwell said he was delighted to represent SEM on the CNP’s Council and look forward to working with the CNP as part of Defra’s commitment made in 2024 to introduce new legislation to reform the purposes and governance of National Parks. 

The CNP is keen to ensure that this legislation is introduced at the earliest opportunity and is used effectively to ensure that National Parks are delivering their full potential for nature, climate and people. The CNP also wants to see a commitment to similar changes being introduced in Wales where Senedd elections are taking place in May 2026. This Council meeting, therefore, provided a timely opportunity to consider our priorities for reforming National Park purposes and governance. 

The Minister for Nature Mary Creagh CBE MP, DEFRA, who was not able to attend in her written statement said, the Government recognises the critical importance of England’s Protected Landscapes – that they are vital for nature recovery, tackling climate change and improving the health of the nation. They are a cornerstone of our heritage and essential to our future’. 

The recent 75th anniversary of the National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act was a powerful reminder of the vision that created Protected Landscapes. The groundbreaking Act built the foundations for modern nature conservation, paving the way for our iconic network of National Landscapes, Parks and Trails. 

Celebrating this milestone was also a reminder that while Protected Landscapes deliver so much, there are significant barriers to them achieving their full potential. The anniversary presented an opportunity to set ambitious goals for the next 75 years – to make Protected Landscapes wilder, more inclusive and resilient to challenges in the future.  

That is why, just before Christmas, we renewed our commitment to Protected Landscapes. We announced reforms to empower National Parks to deliver bold solutions, now and for the future. Through strengthened purposes and regulation, alongside a wider package of tools and resourcing, we will empower Protected Landscapes to be greener, wilder and more accessible. 

 We are committed to putting nature at the heart of Protected Landscapes purposes and ensuring that this translates to delivery. For example, our new guidance will clarify authorities’ duties to support Protected Landscapes and help them achieve better outcomes for people and nature. 

We also announced we will revamp governance of these special places. Effective governance is the foundation of Protected Landscapes ability to deliver their purposes and respond to future challenges.  

This Government fully recognises the extraordinary work being delivered in Protected Landscapes due to the passion, skills and dedication of those who work within them. Our aim is to ensure that governance creates conditions which help, rather than hinder, this vital activity. By bringing a wider range of voices, skills and perspectives into decision-making, we can ensure that boards reflect the needs of the communities they serve. Building on the Landscapes Review and subsequent engagement with partners, we will codesign a package of measures which is robust enough to reflect the national importance of these places, but flexible enough to account for the unique local circumstances and communities which make them so special. 

This is about renewing the social contract between National Parks and the nation. These landscapes belong to everyone, and their underpinning legislation and governance must reflect that. The challenges facing Protected Landscapes are significant. So are our ambitions. By working together, we can ensure these landscapes thrive – enriching our lives and those of generations to come.

Dr Rose O’Neil CEO CNP (pictured with Maxwel) said the CNP was delighted to welcome SEM onto the Council and look forward to working with SEM especially on delivery of the CNP’s New Perspective project. 

Our Radical Future: A Declaration

SEM’s CEO, Dr Maxwell A. Ayamba joined 200 delegates from National Parks, funders, businesses, environmental organisations and young people at a reception hosted by John Whitby MP at the House of Commons on December 16th, 2025, to launch the Campaign for National Parks (CNP) declaration titled, ‘Our Radical Future: A Declaration’. It is aimed at making National Parks greener, and more accessible to all young people and to have them as part of shaping the future of National Parks. The Declaration is to ensure that young people from all backgrounds are heard and valued in key decisions about National Parks to better drive nature recovery, climate resilience and social justice.

The event was also to celebrate the end of the New Perspectives project which was funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund enabling young people across England and Wales to develop, share and lead on ideas for the future of National Parks. The initiative enabled Future Leaders Courses, 56 leaders, professionals and campaigners aged 20 – 30 years to join the most effective change-makers in the sector, building skills and sharing ideas for intergenerational leadership for the future of National Parks, with the National Parks Futures Network due to be launched in January 2026.

Mary Creagh CBE MP and Minster for Nature in her keynote, applauded the young people for emerging as future leaders and custodians of National Parks. She noted how the youth voice is helping to re-shape the conversations around what National Parks mean to us and how they were already leading the way for the future of these landscapes. The Minister noted how National Parks in England are leading the way among National Parks in the world over especially in these times of climate change and nature crisis.

In her speech, Taryn Nixon, of the National Lottery Heritage Fund announced more funding of £250,000 to develop a new project that would engage a diverse range of young people in a new programme called, ‘National Parks Re-imagined.

Our patron Kate Ashbrook also attended the Campaign for National Parks event. Kate has a blog about her fantastic environmental campaign work, you can check it out here.

SEM’s CEO, Maxwell A. Ayamba BEM said, he was very delighted to join enthusiastic anti-racism campaigners and activists from the Global Majority at the 2025 RACE Summit, Kings College, London on July 3rd 2025. As part of this year’s RACE Summit, there was a career journey exhibition, showcasing career journeys of people such as himself in the environment and conservation sectors.

He said aim of the RACE Summit is to support people from the Global Majority who want to get into the environment/conservation sectors, and for others to see for themselves the journey others have taken, and the challenges they had to overcome to make an impact in the sector. I found the Summit very inspiring to see the passion and drive on the need for diversification of the sectors especially in this time of climate anxiety and nature depletion. The Summit demonstrated how there is an increasing awakening and agency to make the environment/conservation sectors inclusive and diverse for the common good of us all as one human race, because biodiversity is synonymous to human-diversity.

Activists such as Lauren Rosegreen and Beatrice Anomah organisers of the 2025 RACE Summit should be applauded for their tirelessness to advocate for change in a sector that has been historically constructed and historised as a “white space”. Both our human and natural world stand to benefit from a collective vision to make the environmental space an inclusive thriving space for the good of humanity and planet.

The RACE Report, published annually, supports transparency on the racial diversity of environment organisations and funders in the UK. It aims to encourage action in the sector to address barriers and improve diversity, equity and inclusion of the workforce and governing bodies.

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.