Nextdoor Nature update - February 2023
Nextdoor Nature is a new project in Dover that aims to empower and enable people to take action for nature where they live and work.
Kent Wildlife Trust Community Organisers Jade Williams and Jennifer Luddington have been working on Nextdoor Nature project in Dover now for 6 months. Starting in July 2022 they spent the summer attending community events.
Nextdoor Nature is bringing communities together to help nature flourish where they live and work! Thanks to £5 million funding from The National Lottery Heritage Fund, Nextdoor Nature will provide people with the advice and support they need to help nature on their doorstep and leave a lasting natural legacy to mark The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee.
Jade and Jennifer have settled into post well and are beginning to see green shoots appearing from the seeds that were sown with communities in Dover at the end of 2022. Jade and Jennifer are working with Dover Technical College and Riverside to develop community gardens. These two venues are adjacent to each other so the Community Organisers are hopeful that there will be lots of cross pollination and an opportunity for different communities to come together to share ideas and skills.
Jade and Jennifer have continued to support several community events including Dover Big Local to offer chough related Christmas crafts, Riverside Information Day promoting Wilder Wellbeing, attending HAF (Holiday’s Activities & Food Program) Green Park Holiday Program and delivered crafts and Chough activities including “Birds & Beaks” exploring how bird beaks have evolved and adapted to pick up different food.
One of the highlights of the year was attending the Samphire Christmas party. Samphire runs a community engagement project working with migrant and British communities to improve social cohesion, and better inclusion of migrants into Dover and surrounding areas of Kent.
Jade and Jennifer certainly felt really welcomed and enjoyed making chough Christmas tree decorations with the children and they also got to see Santa. Jennifer explains:
“It was brilliant to be invited to attend Christmas events with Dover Big Local and Samphire. Both of these projects are doing amazing work with local communities, and we have been so warmly welcomed into these organisations. It’s great to see such positive collaborative working. We love sharing nature crafts with the children as we undertake listening activities with the Dover community.”
Currently Jade and Jennifer are working with Dover Castle and a local project Wild With Wheels who provide free, safe and accessible routes for guided, interactive nature walks for people with disabilities and impairments. We hope to be able to facilitate a visit to Dover Castle when the Chough return to Dover Castle in the spring.
If you would like to volunteer for wildlife, but you experience mobility/accessibility issues, we are looking for ‘craftivists’ and people to join us whilst doing our engagement work in Dover. If you would like to be involved, tell us at: Nextdoor Nature | Kent Wildlife Trust
