Volunteer Trustee or Council member of the Friends of the New Forest with ecology or botanical interests

What will you be doing?

Trustees are elected by the membership and share responsibility for running the organisation. With the appointed members of the advisory Council, they create awareness of the organisation’s activities, and seek to educate or involve the public by mobilising their support on a particular issue, or to influence or change public attitudes. Our current vacancy is for someone with experience or qualifications in environmental or habitat studies, ecology or botany. Within the political remit, Council members may be required to influence political decision makers to further or support the organisation’s charitable purposes. The Friends are 'critical friends' of, and seek to influence, the New Forest National Park Authority and Forestry England, as well as local authorities and national government, while working alongside the Verderers of the New Forest, the Wildlife Trust and other pressure groups. Among our current concerns as Friends of the New Forest is unregulated over-use of the Forest for recreational purposes. Trustees and Council members normally meet in alternate months (in Lyndhurst or by Zoom), but are active at other times too. The Council comprises people with relevant knowledge and experience such as conservationists, naturalists, academics, and local community leaders. They will take a lead on issues relevant to their knowledge and serve on or chair appropriate working groups or committees. Trustees and Council members also get involved with monitoring planning applications, preparing submissions to public bodies, engaging in face-to-face campaigning activities such as preparing or manning a stand at the New Forest Show or another local show, or giving presentations about the Friends to community groups. So we need working Trustees and Council members with time to spare on occasions, who care deeply about the New Forest, and therefore they probably need to live in or near the Forest.

What are we looking for?

Some of the key skills and experience we seek lie around conservation, ecology, environmental science, habitat management and the natural world. We are seeking a Trustee or Council member with a strong commitment to the New Forest, who lives in the Forest or nearby, can attend bi-monthly meetings held in Lyndhurst or by Zoom, and additionally give a day or two a month on average. It is essential that they are email users. Our Trustees and Council members need to be willing to campaign to protect the Forest for future generations.

What difference will you make?

The Friends of the New Forest - New Forest Association, the second oldest conservation organisation in the world, was 150 years old in 2017. Its founder members saved the New Forest from being turned over completely to timber production by promoting the New Forest Act of 1877.  It has recently rebranded itself as the Friends of the New Forest to help the public to understand its role. There are always new challenges to the well-being of the Forest, and the Friends as the recognised National Park Society and  'critical friend' of the National Park Authority work closely with other local organisations to monitor these and make a positive contribution to the protection of the long term future of this unique area. In addition as a member of the Council of the Campaign for National Parks, the Friends have access to government at the highest level. New Trustees and Council members will be important in helping to ensure the successful continuation of the work of the Friends to protect the New Forest for future generations.