Digital talks Wild LIVE

A redwing sitting on the branch of a tree covered in red berries

Redwing by Jon Hawkins - Surrey Hills Photography

Digital talks

Catch up with our free online talks with special guest speakers

We've taken our events online!

Each month we're joined by a different host to discuss all things wild - from local wildlife wonders to wider environmental issues - and we'd love for you to join us. Catch up on our past talks, below, or find our next live event.

Don't want to miss another talk? Sign up to receive our enewsletter to hear about upcoming digital events and other wildlife news.

Turn your inbox WILD!

Recording urban wildlife in Liverpool City Centre (Urban GreenUP)

Discover how to get involved in recording Liverpool's urban wildlife as part of the Urban GreenUP project. Learn more about the green interventions taking place in the Baltic Triangle, how to use iNaturalist to make observations and why recording wildlife is so important. With speakers from Lancashire Wildlife Trust, Mersey Forest, Liverpool City Council and Merseyside Biobank Local Environmental Records Centre.

Brockholes wildlife: A look over 10 wonderful years

Brockholes is a wetland wildlife haven on the site of a former quarry, but it's taken a lot of work to get it to where it is today. 10 years, in fact! In this Zoom talk, Brockholes Reserve Manager, Lorna Bennett, helps you discover the wonderful wildlife that calls Brockholes home and discusses the dedicated conservation work that continues to nurture the species found there.

Get ready for City Nature Challenge 2021

Ellie and Hilary from the My Wild City Team join iNaturalist Project Officer, Caroline, and keen naturalist, Charlotte, to talk all things City Nature Challenge! Find out how you can get involved and what wild creatures you could spot as you record wildlife between 30 April - 3 May 2021.

Gardening for Wildlife | My Wild Garden Week

Ellie and Hilary from the My Wild City team join keen wildlife gardener and entomologist, Steve Garland, and peat free campaigner, Jenny Bennion to talk all about the benefits of gardens for wildlife.

Play Wild | My Wild Garden Week

Environmental educator and artist, Lesley Martin, shows us some fun games and activities to help bring nature nature closer to you on a walk around your local park or even in your garden. Perfect for families with primary school age children.

Mesolithic life at Lunt Meadows with the University of Chester and Museum of Liverpool

Step back in time and learn all about Mesolithic life at Lunt 9000 years ago. Listen to Middle stone age archaeologists from National Museums Liverpool and the University of Chester talking about life and rituals in the Mesolithic, as well as what the archaeological dig at Lunt Meadows revealed about the people and landscape of the area thousands of years ago.

Lunt Meadows: A natural solution to climate change

Lunt Meadows isn't just a haven for wildlife - it also doubles as a flood storage reservoir and sustainable urban drainage scheme, protecting nearby homes and businesses from the threats of a changing climate, and cleaning water in the process.

The Environment Agency's Engineer Rob Ide and Flood Risk Manager Andy Brown talk about how Lunt Meadows was transformed from farmland into the amazing site it is today and the importance of nature-based solutions in flood management.

Wildflowers, weeds and VIPs with Manchester Museum

In this talk we are joined by Manchester Museums Curator of Botany, Rachel Webster to learn about some VIPs - Very Important Plants!

Spring in your step

Join Ellie and Hilary from the My Wild City team and Rhiane from Black Girls Hike as they discuss what wildlife to look out for in spring.

Play Wild

Environmental educator and artist, Lesley Martin, shows us some fun games and activities to help bring nature nature closer to you on a walk around your local park or even in your garden. Perfect for families with primary school age children.

Wild improvements at Lunt Meadows

Catch up with the launch of our new five-year National Heritage Lottery Fund project at Lunt Meadows Nature Reserve: 'Presenting Mesolithic and Modern Life'. The project is a partnership between Lancashire Wildlife Trust, the History and Archaeology Department at the University of Chester, the Museum of Liverpool, International Soroptimists Crosby and the Environment Agency.

Wildlife quiz with Discover the Wild

No pub quiz? No problem! Join us for a fun-packed Zoom quiz with Dave Winnard from Discover the Wild. There are eight rounds to test your knowledge, so grab a pen, a drink and settle in with your household, bubble or virtual quiz team.

Wildlife wonders: Frogs and ponds

In this online event we were joined by our resident wildlife expert, Dr Mark Champion, to explore the secret life of frogs and what we can all do to give them a helping hand.

Exploring wildlife: A beginners guide to adventure with Rhiane Fatinikun

An inspiring discussion with Rhiane Fatinikun, Founder and Chair of Black Girls Hike UK, about inclusion and diversity in the outdoors, the joys of getting out into nature and some top tips for embarking on your first adventure.

Bog-tastic: Why (peat) bogs are brilliant and what we can do to protect them

We're joined by our very own Lancashire Peatlands Initiative team to discuss why our peatlands are so precious and what we can all do to protect them.

Winter wildlife: What to look out for?

In this online talk, wildlife expert and keen nature photographer Dave Winnard, from Discover the Wild, gives us some tips on what wildlife to keep an eye out for during winter.

Coastal conservation: Sand dune successes

Join Fylde Sand Dunes Project Community Engagement Officer, Jessica Newman, and Andrew Mills, the Fylde Council Sand Dune Ranger as they share the story of saving Fylde's sand dunes.

A peregrine falcon flying over an urban street

Peregrine falcon by Bertie Gregory/2020VISION

Wild LIVE from The Wildlife Trusts

Monthly digital discussions hosted by The Wildlife Trusts' Chief Executive, Craig Bennett

Each month Craig is joined by a panel of special guests to discuss some of the most important issues facing wildlife, the natural world and the environment right now, as well as answer your burning questions.

Missed a previous Wild LIVE discussion? Catch up below!

Wild LIVE: Tackling the twin threats of the nature and climate crisis

This special Wild LIVE saw the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, George Eustice, deliver a major speech from Delamere Forest, setting out how the Government is planning to tackle biodiversity loss and achieve Net Zero by 2050 through measures aimed at increasing England's tree planting rates and peatland restoration. Chaired by Craig Bennett, The Wildlife Trusts' Chief Executive, with post-speech responses from Natural England chair, Tony Juniper and Forestry Commission chair, Sir William Worsley, and a few words from Cheshire Wildlife Trust's Chief Executive, Charlotte Harris.

Wild LIVE: In Conversation with Professor Dasgupta

How can a better understanding of nature help us build resilient economies and achieve sustainable prosperity for all? Join Professor Partha Dasgupta and Craig Bennett for a special episode of Wild LIVE as they discuss the findings of the recently published review on The Economics of Biodiversity.

Wild LIVE: Is education failing our young people and the natural world?

As we live through a climate and nature crisis, we ask whether our education system is equipping future generations with the skills and knowledge they need to tackle these monumental issues. We will consider how providing access to nature is a key part in this – and how a fully inclusive roll-out of outdoor learning could help to build resilience and development in children of all ages, whilst improving health and wellbeing.

Wild LIVE: Peatlands - our superhero habitat

In the UK, peatlands store an amazing 3.2 billion tonnes of carbon. In their healthy state they are also beautiful landscapes, home to rare wildlife, and they help to alleviate flooding by slowing the flow of water. But these dramatic habitats are at risk. 80 per cent of the UK’s peatlands are damaged due to drainage for agriculture and the extraction of peat for horticulture. So what can be done to protect our peatlands? Find out below!

Wild LIVE: The return of bee-killing pesticides?

Following pressure from the sugar industry and National Farmers Union, the Government has agreed to authorise the use of neonicotinoid thiamethoxam for the treatment of sugar beet seed in 2021 – going back on promises not to reverse the ban unless scientific evidence supported it. Yet, the weight of evidence continues to show a significant environmental risk related to the use of neonicotinoids.

With the impact of climate change and extreme weather posing a real threat to farmers and their businesses, we need to find solutions that allow for agriculture that supports healthy wildlife. In this episode of Wild LIVE, Craig and the panel discuss whether we’re witnessing the start of a backwards slide and return to the old ways, rather than looking for new, innovative solutions.

Wild LIVE: So, where next for nature and British farming?

With the Agriculture Act now passed as law, and the UK hurtling towards the end of the Brexit transition period – with or without a trade deal with the EU – we ask where does this leave British farmers, and plans to promote nature-friendly farming post Brexit? Our expert panel delve into the knowns and unknowns, and discuss what’s needed now.

Wild LIVE: Planning to fail?

Panelists Rebecca Taylor, Roger Mortlock, Emma Greenwood, Wayne Hemingway and Simon Gallagher join Craig Bennett to discuss the Government's proposed planning reforms.

Wildlife is declining, and we know the current planning system isn't working, but we believe the proposed reforms will make a bad situation much worse. What can be done?

Wild LIVE: The badger cull

Craig is joined by expert panelists Chris Packham, Rosie Woodroffe, Derbyshire Wildlife Trust CEO Jo Smith, Dominic Dyer and Cheryl Marriott to discuss how the wildlife sector should engage with the bovine TB problem.

Wild LIVE: Taking action for insects

In the third episode of Wild LIVE, join our panel for a discussion on why our insects are so vital, the threats facing them, and the action everyone can take to help populations to recover and thrive.

Wild LIVE: A way back to living seas

Sadly, our seas are under pressure like never before, with decades of overexploitation, pollution and unchecked development causing a loss of wildlife and the destruction of underwater habitats. What’s worse is that we don’t even know what ‘healthy’ looks like!

Join Craig Bennett and a panel including BBC wildlife presenter Lizzie Daly to discuss our marvelous marine world and what needs to be done to save it.

Wild LIVE: A natural health service

Could resetting our relationship with nature help us lead healthier, happier lives? In this very first episode of Wild LIVE, join Craig Bennett and a panel including our Myplace project's Rhoda Wilkinson to discuss the need for a new relationship with nature.