Monthly Archives: June 2013

How best to manage Totternhoe Knolls?

Posted on 30/06/2013 by campaignerkate

Last Thursday I visited Totternhoe Knolls Common in Bedfordshire, at the request of the National Trust countryside manager, Jon Powell.  The common is close to Dunstable Downs which is the highest point in the east of England region (as was). Totternhoe … Continue reading →

Posted in Access, butterflies, Chilterns, common land, common rights, National Trust, Open Spaces Society | Tagged , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Some light in a dark week for the environment

Posted on 28/06/2013 by campaignerkate

The one bit of cheering news this week, when Defra suffered a gratuitous 9.6 per cent cut in its budget for 2015-6, was the announcement that the Environment Agency (EA) and Natural England (NE) will not be merged.  They have … Continue reading →

Posted in Access, Coastal access, Defra, Natural England | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Turbulent seas

Posted on 25/06/2013 by campaignerkate

The sea is calm tonight. The tide is full, the moon lies fair Upon the straits; on the French coast, the light Gleams, and is gone; the cliffs of England stand, Glimmering and vast, out in the tranquil bay. If … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | 3 Comments

What’s your wish for our national parks?

Posted on 23/06/2013 by campaignerkate

The Campaign for National Parks (CNP) wants to hear from all of us about what it should be calling for at the next Westminster election in 2015.  What should CNP include in its manifesto for national parks?  Here are some … Continue reading →

Posted in Access, National parks | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Kikigaki: making history now

Posted on 22/06/2013 by campaignerkate

Kikigaki is Japanese for ‘listening and writing’.  At the conference of the International Association for the Study of the Commons at Kitafuji there was a display of posters with stories of people who lived and worked locally on the slopes … Continue reading →

Posted in common land, Japan, Woods and forests | Tagged | 6 Comments

Random reflections on life in Japan

Posted on 19/06/2013 by campaignerkate

Japan is a friendly, polite country; it feels safe.  In Fujiyoshida few people spoke English, but they made a great effort to understand and be understood. The menus, which would otherwise have been unintelligible, were much helped by illustrations.  Outside some … Continue reading →

Posted in Japan | 2 Comments

An access pioneer

Posted on 17/06/2013 by campaignerkate

John Bunting, 9 March 1918—13 June 2013 John Bunting from Sheffield, who has died aged 95, was a vice-president of the Ramblers.  A former steelworker he was an active campaigner for access, attending many rallies from the 1930s.  On the … Continue reading →

Posted in Access, Obituary, Ramblers, walking | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

The boundary between heaven and earth

Posted on 14/06/2013 by campaignerkate

The fifth station on Mount Fuji (Tenchinosakai) is said to be ‘the boundary between heaven and earth’.  It’s a shame that it has been so abused.  This is where the vehicular road ends, and the site is dominated by a … Continue reading →

Posted in Access, common land, Japan, walking | Tagged | 1 Comment

Lin’s legacy

Posted on 07/06/2013 by campaignerkate

On 5 June, on behalf of the Open Spaces Society I received the international Elinor Ostrom Award for the society’s work on commons.  This was at the 14th global conference of the International Association for the Study of the Commons … Continue reading →

Posted in common land, Elinor Ostrom, Foundation for Common land, International Association for the Study of the Commons, Japan, Open Spaces Society | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Bringing academia and collective action together on commons

Posted on 05/06/2013 by campaignerkate

I am in Japan for the 14th global conference of the International Association for the Study of the Commons.  It is being held at Kitafuji, the northern slopes of Mount Fuji, which includes extensive commons and has recently been designated … Continue reading →

Posted in common land, Elinor Ostrom, green spaces, International Association for the Study of the Commons, Japan, open spaces, Open Spaces Society | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments