Six actions you can take for nature in 2026

As February draws to a close, you may find that new year’s resolutions have been fading with the cold and the long nights. Don’t be disheartened; resolutions can be made every day, so don’t wait till 2027 to start improving both your life and the planets’. To make it easier, we’ve compiled a list of six practices you can start any time that can impact nature!

Shop local, eat organic

Taking part in Veganuary is a great way to lower your meat consumption throughout the first month of the year, but perhaps you’ve decided it’s not for you? That’s completely okay, but instead of throwing the new year’s habit to the wind, why not try simply lowering your meat consumption per week? You could do this by having more plant-based meals or testing out an alternative such as Quorn or tofu. The less meat you eat, the more carbon you’re reducing which is great for the planet! For example, one kilogram of beef emits 60 kilograms of greenhouse gases whereas a kilogram of peas emit just one kilogram.1

Eating organic isn’t just for the benefit of the planet, it’s good for you too! Organic food means fewer pesticides, fewer antibiotics, natural fertilisation and fewer additives2 but it can be more expensive. Buying seasonal produce and shopping locally can facilitate this and planning your meals can also help reduce food waste.

But, with the hulking supermarket shelves and hundreds of options for one item, it can be understandably overwhelming to make a decision that’s good for you and the planet. So what do you do? Personally, I’ve been using an app called Yucka to help make those decisions simpler. Download it onto your smartphone, use your camera to scan the barcodes on each item in the shop, and watch the complexity disappear. It ranks the item on a scale of 0 to 100 on how good it is for you and the ‘positives’ and ‘negatives’ of each item to help guide your decisions. As it flags all the ingredients in each item, you can see items of food that have high-risk additives in and are bad for your health meaning you can choose food that is good for you and the planet!

Be a citizen scientist

If you’re anything like me, the swift arrival of spring means it’s almost time to sit outside every morning to watch the wildlife dart around while enjoying a cup of coffee. This time is great for your mental wellbeing as it regulates your nervous system, and if you find yourself spending more time outside as the daylight hours get longer, why not start logging what you see? Using apps such as iRecord or Bugs Matter (survey season launches in May) are brilliant ways to help us learn more about how wildlife populations are progressing and behaving across Kent and beyond. Input from citizens across the country help us to plan how best to manage our nature reserves for different wildlife species and assist us in tracking which species (both animals and plants) might be in trouble.

If you enjoy these short snippets in nature, why not take part in the Big Butterfly Count? Between Friday 18th July and Sunday 10th August choose a place to spot butterflies and moths and for 15 minutes record which species you see. As butterflies and moths are biodiversity indicators, they react quickly to changes in the environment and their decline can be an early warning of other species' decline.

No-Mow May

Plantlife’s annual campaign urges everyone to pack away the lawnmower and let your garden go wild for the entirety of May. Approximately 97% of flower-rich meadows have been lost since the 1930s3 and with them, vital food and habitat for wildlife has plummeted. Even the smallest of green spaces left to grow wild can provide food for bees, and it might attract more butterflies and moths for your Big Butterfly Count later on in the year.

If you’re thinking about participating and want some more growth over the month, why not share plants, seeds, and cuttings with neighbours? Collaborating with your community can be a great way to increase the diversity of plants in your garden without breaking the bank and also turns people’s curiosity into conversation!

Though, if you do decide to bring the lawnmower back out in June, be sure to search by hand and cut back gradually as hedgehogs can often be found enjoying the wild spaces. If you’d rather leave the wildlife undisturbed, then why not leave a small corner wild as after all, nature isn’t neat.

Commemorate, celebrate, or showcase

Leaving a legacy or sponsoring a plot is a wonderful way to honour a loved one who treasured time in nature. Alternatively, mark a milestone in your life or showcase your love for a particular area in nature. By sponsoring one or more quarter-acre plots on one of our nature reserves today, you can help to secure a brighter future for Kent’s Legacy Landscapes.

Choose from one of three carefully chosen reserves, each picked for their unique habitats and the important role they play in protecting native species and, as each plot is only dedicated once, it’s ensured that your tribute is not only enduring, but unique. If you choose to sponsor Marden Meadows you would help protect rare orchids, butterflies, bees, and birds. Choosing Brenchley Wood would mean your sponsorship would go towards safeguarding rare ancient woodland and heathland. Donations to Lydden Temple Ewell would protect the rare oasis for butterflies.

Hop on the train

If you travel with Southeastern, you may have already seen the optional donation for passengers buying their tickets online. Kent Wildlife Trust has partnered with Southeastern so when you round up the spare change for the price of your ticket, you’re supporting Kent Wildlife Trust’s efforts to protect and enhance biodiversity across the county. This collaboration builds on Southeastern’s ongoing work with KWT in developing biodiversity plans to help ensure its network of over 180 stations and depots is more welcoming to nature.

So far, passengers have helped raise more than £4,500 for the Kent Wildlife Trust! Southeastern’s Sustainability Strategy - of which this collaboration is a part - has seen a 32.8% reduction of emissions 2019 and 2024. They’ve also launched a carbon footprint calculator on the Southeastern website and app, to help passengers become more aware of rail as a sustainable form of transport.

Grow your community

Lastly, and most importantly, it takes a village to make change happen but first of all, you have to be a villager. So why not get involved with your town council and local communities by joining in with litter picks? It’s not just marine life at risk from litter; mammals like hedgehogs and birds frequently suffer from getting caught up in waste, so collect any litter on your local walk or join an organised beach clean.

You could also volunteer with likeminded people at a local nature reserve; you might learn about harmful developments and get involved with campaigns or write to your MP to let them know what the local people care about.

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