Our bison, incredible ecosystem engineers, have earned us the prestigious BIG Biodiversity Challenge Innovation Award. 

Kent Wildlife Trust & Wildwood Trust stood tall amongst an incredible selection of finalists for this year's challenge, with more than 60 entries across 10 awards categories.

The awards ceremony was held at the world famous Kew Royal Botanic Gardens and were thrilled to announce that The Wilder Blean Project emerged victorious as the winner of the Innovation Award.

The judges commended the project by commenting:

“We were impressed by the boldness of the project to enhance existing conifer woodland by using the power of nature and ecosystem engineers, aka European bison, to deliver landscape-scale and long-term enhancement in woodland management. This approach avoids using heavy machinery and thousands of man hours by tapping into a nature-based solution. The judges particularly liked the project's focus on making this method replicable, by identifying ways to simplify the process for future projects.”

Now in its tenth year, the BIG Biodiversity Challenge is the leading industry initiative for raising awareness of and delivering biodiversity within construction and the built environment. We’re delighted to see ecosystem engineers like bison being recognised at the forefront of construction innovation as a pioneering Nature-based Solution to restore woodland ecosystems and boost biodiversity.

We’re over the moon that The Wilder Blean Project continues to gain recognition and that this multi-award winning project can pave the way for future projects and ambitions.

A collective celebration is due for all of the Kent Wildlife Trust & Wildwood Trust teams for another collaborative achievement. Here’s to the bison herd, the wilding innovators and the wild at heart.

Thank you to the joint communities of both charities for your continued support on this wild journey.

Those who wish to help these ecosystem engineers to continue to thrive can become a Bison Benefactor. 

You will help create space – giving bison the chance to move across landscapes, shape the habitat around them, and be able to choose where they forage, ruminate, what they eat, and where they breed.

You will help instruct change – collecting data, monitoring impact, and evidencing our findings are crucial. To do this we need to collect samples of the soil, monitor the variety and density of plants and insects, we need to track the habits of the herd so we can understand their movements, their preferences, and their needs.

You will help influence – we must not keep these findings to ourselves. One of the most important things we can do, but only with your help, is showcase our bison and their impact. We must host change-makers, we must share findings, and we must advocate for a wilder future.

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