About
the Group
How many adventurers are aware of the delicate ecological balance and
beauty of the environment through which they journey? Does the climber
know or care about the mountain plants clinging to the steep rock faces?
Do canoeists relate to the world of water birds and otters as they travel
down rivers? Do the field study groups sampling vegetation and measuring
their river channels develop any feelings for the natural world? How
many of us accept responsibility for the environment and are prepared
to take steps towards its conservation?
The Adventure
and Environmental Awareness Group was established in 1984 following
a landmark conference at Brockhole, the Lake District National Park
Centre. It is made up of a wide range of outdoor enthusiasts and representatives
of national and regional environmental and recreation interests. The
Group's aim is: “ to encourage awareness, understanding and concern
for the natural environment amongst those involved with adventure, education
and recreation."
The Group
believes that direct experience in the outdoors encourages an interest
in conservation and at the same time greater awareness of the richness
and interrelatedness of the environment enhances the outdoor experience.
It tries to achieve these aims through workshops, talks, publicity and
conferences and by forging links between outdoor enthusiasts and environmentalists.
Early
workshops
Early workshops were aimed at communicating the need for a more sensitive
approach to the environment to those leading groups in the outdoors.
It is clear that an awareness of the impact of one's own activities
often leads to greater care and respect. During the 1980’s there
were a series of workshops for outdoor centre staff to consider group
use of a range of environments- rivers, crags, woodlands and mountains.
These were practical sessions and resulted in one group repairing a
broken stone culvert and another constructing a hard standing for canoeists
to gain access to a popular river without damaging the banks. In a primary
teachers’ workshop, participants were introduced to activities
designed to raise a level of awareness and understanding of the environment.
One group considered how practical conservation tasks could help develop
a sense of feeling and responsibility for the environment. Later two
one-day workshops on the theme of “Journeys into the Environment”
were held at Low Bank Ground in Coniston. These attracted a mixture
of youth leaders, teachers, centre staff and countryside rangers. The
journeys combined elements of adventure, problem-solving, field study,
drama and practical conservation. On one of the journeys the group entered
an old mine and came across a miner, in period costume, chipping away
at the rock whilst another group on a mountain journey were confronted
by an irate farmer (played by a National Park ranger) and asked to leave
his land. These role- plays were used to trigger discussions on history,
sense of place, access and conservation.
These
early workshops were not designed to offer “packages” of
activities or prescribe methods of teaching but to entice leaders to
broaden their approach to the environment. They tried to get away from
the narrow outdoor pursuits or fieldwork approaches which do not lead
to much feeling or personal connection with the natural world. Leaders
were encouraged to re-assess their methods and adopt more sensitive
and imaginative approaches to the environment. This message was reinforced
by a second large conference at Brockhole in 1988 on “Approaches
to the Environment- Towards a Common Understanding”. It involved
a range of presentations and workshops on the arts, development training,
practical conservation, community action, spiritual awareness and environmental
understanding and a substantial report was produced.
Widening
the audience
During the late 1980’s the AEA Group started to communicate to
a wider audience. It acted as a catalyst in bringing diverse interests
together to raise awareness and encourage more sustainable use of the
outdoors. A series of conferences were organised to consider the impact
of particular user groups, such as climbers, canoeists and mountain
bikers on the environment. These have led to guidelines and codes of
good practice.
In 1987
a workshop on “Managing Nursery Crags” was held at Outward
Bound, Ullswater and brought together climbers with landowners and a
range of conservation groups. Part of the workshop involved drawing
up a management plan for a local crag which was under increasing pressure
from groups. Later the same year a weekend climbing seminar at Charlotte
Mason College in Ambleside attracted over 80 participants and led to
practical recommendations for the use of environmentally sensitive climbing
areas.
The Group’s
"Mountain Biking and the Environment" conference in 1992 was
the first of its kind in Britain and was influential in raising awareness.
In the report there is a clear statement of the issues from the viewpoints
of practitioners and conservationists and it gives recommendations for
improved route networks in less sensitive environments. This report
stimulated a national debate on this issue and led to the setting up
of a Mountain Biking Liaison Group in the Lake District National Park.
A joint
conference with the Friends of the Lake District on "Large Scale
Events in the Lake District" in 1995 succeeded in drawing attention
to the growing number of large orienteering, fell-running, mountain
biking and multi-activity events which can have considerable impact
in quiet areas of the countryside.
The aim
of these conferences was not to hammer the user groups with a catalogue
of complaints but to encourage an awareness of the balance of nature
and the benefits of adopting more sensitive and sustainable approaches.
The
tension between Adventure and Environment
The Group held a workshop at YMCA Lakeside in 1997 aimed at encouraging
outdoor leaders to place more emphasis on environmental education. There
is sometimes a tension between adventure and environment. Adventure
is about uncertainty and challenge. The environment, in the form of
wind, waves, white-water, crag, fell or forest may provide the challenge.
Groups pit themselves against these natural elements, there is the excitement
of real or perceived risk, they overcome the challenge and they enjoy
the 'buzz' of success. At worst they are in competition with the environment,
at best it provides simply the backcloth for their activities. How can
the outdoor leader turn the self-centred 'buzz' into a more outgoing
awareness of and interest in the environment? How can organisations
get away from the one or two token environmental sessions thrown into
an outdoor programme to add a little variety, meet some curriculum needs
or help with staffing problems?
These
were the questions addressed by the workshop. The day didn't produce
all of the answers but the workshop did suggest how leaders can encourage
environmental awareness and how our programmes can be improved. Here
are some guidelines:
1
Recognise
the link between personal, social and environmental education. If
there is low self-esteem and little respect for others, there is
unlikely to be much chance of developing environmental awareness
and respect. The work of outdoor leaders in personal and social
development is fundamental to environmental education which is concerned
with changing attitudes and encouraging individual responsibility.
Outdoor leaders can play a key role in this process.
2
Introduce
good environmental practice into the whole organisation and its
programmes rather than through isolated activities. The outdoor
leader is a powerful role model. Show enthusiasm for the environment
and demonstrate through your own interest and practice.
3
Help
the group to appreciate the special qualities of each environment,
encourage a 'sense of place' through an understanding of geology,
ecology and history. Interpret the landscape but don't lecture.
Focus on the detail of the environment- a lichen, a rock, an eddy,
a web, a leaf. Use different senses to explore the environment.
Encourage a personal response through art, poetry, discussion or
drama. In other words, help people to connect with place.
4
Outdoor
experiences through climbing, caving, canoeing or sailing bring
young people in close contact with the weather and the natural environment
and help them develop a sense of awe and wonder. Such feelings can
motivate and make young people more receptive to environmental education.
5
Raise
issues such as access, land use and conservation and consider the
groups' impact on the environment but don't concentrate unduly on
problems. Be positive, remember this particular group hasn't caused
all the problems. The aim is enjoyment, awareness and understanding.
6
Adopt
a more sensitive approach to activities. Promote the concept of
journey and exploration rather than a gung-ho approach. Thrills
may have their place, but avoid a programme based on a series of
quick fixes.
7
Reflection
and reviewing can help young people put their experiences into the
wider context of other people and the world around us. Choose the
time and place carefully, a quiet time for reflection and discussion
after an active, exciting session can challenge attitudes and actions
towards the environment.
Lobbying
and codes of good practice
Since 1999 the AEA Group has taken a stand on a series of environmental
issues and produced its own statements, press releases and comments
in newspapers and on local radio. It has lobbied against the intrusion
of 4 wheel drive vehicles on upland tracks, the spread of telephone
masts and the overuse of mobile phones in wild areas of the National
Park. The Group believes there are undue pressures to urbanise the countryside
in the form of large signs, hard surfaces and other inappropriate developments
and it continues to address these issues.
The Group
has taken a more proactive role on the issue of Wild Camping. Its members
believe in the sense of freedom and adventure offered by camping in
wild areas but appreciate that there have been problems with litter,
sanitation and illegal camping in parts of the Lake District. In 2000
a day workshop was held to discuss these issues and propose a code of
conduct for Wild Camping. The report of the workshop is available.
The Group
has produced an "Environmental Charter for Outdoor Users in the
Lake District", which has been endorsed by the Lake District National
Park Authority, the National Trust and Field Studies Council. This is
distributed to all group leaders who make contact through Brockhole,
the Lake District National Park Centre. The revised version of the Charter
is shown on the website and free printed copies of the leaflet will
be available in 2005.
Review
of the Group’s role
In 2004 the Group had a major review of its work and decided to concentrate
on an educational role in promoting environmental awareness rather than
lobbying on environmental issues. Three issues have been identified
for the next few years:
These
early workshops were not designed to offer “packages” of
activities or prescribe methods of teaching but to entice leaders to
broaden their approach to the environment. They tried to get away from
the narrow outdoor pursuits or fieldwork approaches which do not lead
to much feeling or personal connection with the natural world. Leaders
were encouraged to re-assess their methods and adopt more sensitive
and imaginative approaches to the environment. This message was reinforced
by a second large conference at Brockhole in 1988 on “Approaches
to the Environment- Towards a Common Understanding”. It involved
a range of presentations and workshops on the arts, development training,
practical conservation, community action, spiritual awareness and environmental
understanding and a substantial report was produced.
Lobbying
and codes of good practice
