Feral: Rewilding the Land, the Sea, and Human Life

"This is a bold and radical book, which introduced me to several new ideas and changed the way I look at the countryside in quite a challenging way. As you say, it’s different to Jamie in that he’s unafraid of stating his opinions. The book broadly is about this idea of ‘re-wilding,’ which was a new idea to me. A really exciting one, I found it. All the stuff about the return of large predators and the effects that the loss of the top predators has had on the landscape was really eye-opening, and also—particularly as a sheep-farmer’s daughter—it was quite difficult to read some of his opinions. Because he hates sheep. Or rather, he hates the effect that sheep have had on the uplands of this country. Yes! Which is a really radical idea. But I think he might be right. Well, I guess there might be some differences between the Scottish islands and the uplands of Wales, in that they weren’t really wooded places in the first place. But I think I’m open to looking at the way that agriculture is very protected, sometimes, and it’s difficult to criticise. Perhaps we should be looking at new ways of using the land, and diversifying what landowners and farmers do. My dad is an organic farmer, which is slightly less intensive and slightly more varied, and has a lower impact on the land, but after reading Monbiot, I do look out, even in Orkney, and see the ‘green deserts’ he describes, the monocultures of grassland for beef. “After reading Monbiot, I do look out even in Orkney and see the ‘green deserts’ he describes” However, I put Monbiot in a category with two American writers I love, Naomi Klein and Rebecca Solnit, in that he’s an outspoken writer on conservation and the environment, but he does offer some mitigations and some ways forward: in his ideas about re-wilding, and talking about localisation and how landowners can diversify or be more creative about how the land is used and the species that can possibly be introduced. So while it is very challenging and difficult, there are also some exciting ideas and suggested ways forward that could provide some blueprint. I think that’s his style, and I commend it and quite admire it, really. It might not make his ideas palatable to a broader audience, including some farmers who might just dismiss it, but I think there’s absolutely a place for what he’s saying. Some people might think he’s too strong, or he’s not allowing a place for looking at how small farmers, who are small business owners, might just be doing what they need to do to survive, and how it’s been in their families for generations. But no, I don’t think he’s too dramatic, the natural world is in crisis."

"Feral was – is – a landmark book. It attuned to a craving that people were feeling, I think, but hadn’t yet voiced: the idea that we’re missing something – wilder, deeper nature; that our landscapes have become pedestrian and soulless, unfulfilling. The response to George’s book was astonishing and it is still selling strongly four years on. He’s particularly good on ‘shifting baseline syndrome’ – the continuous lowering of standards and acceptance of degraded natural ecosystems from one generation to the next. Our great-grandparents, even our grandparents, would be astonished and saddened at what we now consider normal in terms of countryside and wildlife. But I think he also pushed the boundaries of what rewilding should mean. He opened up the whole debate about the possibility – the desirability – of introducing apex predators like the lynx, bear and wolf back into Britain. Until Feral this subject was taboo, too much for the British to even consider. The likelihood of wolves freely roaming the Scottish Highlands any time soon is, I think, remote – but who is to say that our grandchildren or great-grandchildren, having restored and expanded our wild places, might not be in a position to make that decision? What Feral has done, though, by pushing the envelope – apart from get people talking heatedly about apex predators – is to make other introductions more possible. Next to a wolf, a beaver looks perfectly doable. In fact, the beaver is probably now here to stay. And there’s a real possibility for wild cat and lynx reintroductions over the next few decades. Who would have thought that, even 20 years ago! So, Feral has, I think, done something really important towards reversing the direction of shifting baseline syndrome."