I’ve been in this role for 16 and a half years now. It was originally only supposed to be a temporary 6 month contract, but I enjoyed the cross-over of working both for GiGL and within The Royal Parks, so just stayed. At The Royal Parks, I work within the Ecology/Biodiversity team…
We enable our networks to make data-driven decisions, from shaping policy and planning, to supporting research and conservation efforts, and contributing to London’s Local Nature Recovery Strategy and biodiversity net gain initiatives. Here we explore how GiGL delivers social impact, with recent examples…
Being a social enterprise is at the heart of how we operate and why we do what we do. It shapes our values, our business model, and the impact we have on London’s environment and communities…
From inspiring talks to stimulating discussions, London Day of Nature again left us assured of the knowledge, skill and generosity of the naturalist community in London. While none are in short supply in London, the day showed the need for strategic thinking in the projects we individually and collectively choose to support…
On Saturday 26th October 2024, ecological enthusiasts across London united together once more for a truly wonderful celebration of nature in our capital. Thank you to everyone who came along to London Day of Nature 2024…
I’ve always enjoyed working with environmental data and appreciated its importance in understanding the natural world. I also thought it would be interesting to work in a LERC based in London to learn more about the connection between the urban and natural environment…
The LEU created handbooks which provided a description of the biodiversity evident at that time in most boroughs. Though primarily focused on ecology, they also provide local historical vignettes, which may be a source of pride, or horror, to modern-day readers. Several themes weave through these accounts, providing us with a snapshot of life in bygone eras…
As GiGL’s Nature Recovery Data Officer, I work alongside the Greater London Authority to help deliver London’s Local Nature Recovery Strategy (LNRS). This entails identifying, collating and integrating key spatial datasets to produce a robust evidence base that can help accomplish successful delivery of the LNRS…
In Summer 2021 I approached the London Borough of Newham and Swan Housing Association, who own and manage the estate respectively, about bringing the yard back into use. Together, we applied for and were awarded a GLA grant to create The UP Garden…
I love exploring the world around me and have been lucky to live all over the British Isles. I have been able to learn from those around me involved in the natural world, whether professionally or as part of the fantastic volunteer community…
I am a naturally sociable creature and enjoy opportunities to connect with other environmentally minded people, and to give my networking skills a bit of practice…
Committed to weaving biodiversity into the urban fabric, hand in hand with the community, I currently work as Team Leader at The Conservation Volunteers (TCV). You will often find me tending to the charming nature spaces in Haringey, or studying bryophytes, spiders and other wildlife around London.
Whether using a digital or a phone camera, photography can be fun and engaging, as well as having the added benefit of assisting in species identification, verification, and survey/recorder training…
It might have been the first event under the monicker ‘London Day of Nature’ (LDN), but the ideas discussed at Camley Street Natural Park on Saturday 28th October 2023 were far from rudimentary…
It’s a small thing but I actually really love engaging with new recorders. Providing help, information and encouragement, knowing that an engagement with nature is the first step on a lifelong journey…
Whatever the sector may be, whether it be the environment, healthcare, or something else, data is the evidence-base from which all decisions are made. I, therefore, feel that as a person with such a huge passion for the natural world, reporting what I find is a must.
The variety of articles in the GiGLer’s 33rd Issue reflects our vibrant community and all the amazing work being done to understand and protect nature in our capital…
Lesnes Abbey Woods, Bexley, is a hidden treasure in the heart of suburban London…In this Joy of Recording article we hear from 2 fantastic volunteers, Charles and Andrew, who give up their time every month to walk these transects and then send the resulting records to GiGL…We also hear from Ian Holt, the wood’s Estate Manager, on how he works with GiGL to use those records to help understand and protect the site and educate others.
Since our first AWI volunteers joined the programme we have been able to develop the variety of projects we offer, with our species data entry and data maintenance projects kicking off at the start of 2023…
Though coming from different backgrounds and skillsets, our volunteers have been united by a love of the environment, especially of London’s ancient woodlands, and a desire to conserve it….I hope you enjoy getting to know them as much as I have…
I see LERCs playing a vital role as both stewards and educators. The data and the places we look after are so much more than the sum of their parts. They’re the lifeblood of a greener, healthier, and happier London, and a London that is doing its bit to tackle the twin challenges of climate change and biodiversity loss…
I find nature’s resilience in the face of all we do to it very inspiring. Little things, like a lone ‘weed’ forcing its way up through a crack in a concrete path or a bush that has managed somehow to self-seed in the mortar on a wall I find quite amazing….
We hope all of our readers have had a fantastic, happy and healthy 2022. After a year of highs and lows, and not just in terms of temperature, I hope you can join us in looking forward to 2023 with a hopeful optimism and appreciation of our wild city that has so many people dedicated to its conservation…
…I’ve found a great way to learn about the natural environment, and keep it interesting, is to try to get some good photographs of local nature and wildlife. When you set yourself that goal of trying to get a good snap of something, you can learn a lot about it, for example, its location, the time of day or year it appears as well as what it looks like in detail. All of this can be very useful, not only for your own ecological knowledge but also for recording of species in London…
From migrating eels and faecal shields to ‘full frontal newtity’ and figwort weevils, the London recording community continue to find inspiration and joy in everything natural, weird and wonderful.
Professional species identification skills can take years to learn, but some people don’t realise you don’t have to be an expert to enjoy it, take part, and make a difference.
I grew up with access to nature and open spaces and encouragement from others to engage with the outside world in a positive manner. It’s only since growing up that I’ve realised how lucky I was – and still am – to have this relationship with the natural world …”
One of the best things about GiGL is the exchange of data where both parties gain; I verify records to remove erroneous identifications or confirm rare sightings, and gain new records in return….
After a busy start to the New Year, GiGL have been forging ahead with our work as London’s Environmental Record Centre. If you’ve been keeping up with our monthly articles you’ll already know we’ve been working away at a huge range of topics in 2022…
Butterfly records are made by a large community of Londoners, often volunteering their time. And to all of you, thank you…As a verifier I have a small role in checking the data inputs to help ensure the quality of the data and of the outputs…Most people probably do not set out to become ‘verifiers’, but the role can evolve from experience…
The greatest benefit of working with GiGL is that we have up to date, verified records that can be shared. This is important both to monitor trends in the population but also to ensure they are represented in planning developments…
I might like playing with numbers and dataset type thingies, yet despite my best efforts to digitalise and enumerate it`s nature`s unpredictability which is the real draw …
With the ever-greater changes in our natural world, leading to increasing threats to biodiversity and habitat loss, we feel that there is no better time to show people the wonders that exist in their own inner-city spaces and how they can feel empowered to make a positive difference “one balcony at a time” …
In June 2021, GiGL’s Database Officer Amy introduced you to the updates we’ve been making to our Areas of Deficiency (AoD) models, starting with Areas of Deficiency in Access to Nature (SINCAoD). Now it is the turn of GiGL’s Areas of Deficiency in Access to Public Open Space (POSAoD) maps, which will be released to our SLA partners in April as part of GiGL’s Data Exchange.
Patterns and trends can only be drawn out by having access to well-maintained and curated data, an important service LERCs provide around the country. I’m proud to act as a custodian of some of this data on behalf of GiGL and everyone that we work with …
Environmental data is the foundation of making good decisions about how we use our spaces, especially in a city like London, so it’s vital that this data is high-quality and reliably-sourced. It feels good to know that I’m contributing to this process while also learning more about the different habitats and spaces in London as I go …
It might be an understatement to say that it has been a busy year for us, which you can probably tell if you’ve been keeping up with our monthly GiGLer articles. We’ve had to say some sad farewells but have also welcomed many new GiGLers, with no less than six new arrivals! In this winter edition of the GiGLer editorial I am delighted to introduce all of our amazing new team members, and I’ve also got some fantastic GiGL achievements to share …
Though it has been a long time since we last met, the atmosphere at London Recorders Day (LRD) 2021 was that of a reunion of old friends, united by a shared passion for recording, studying and protecting the wondrous nature of Greater London …
I joined GiGL in September as an Ancient Woodland Inventory Officer and am tasked with ensuring that we have a robust and accurate record of all ancient woodlands in the capital. This means that no matter their size, these valuable and irreplaceable habitats will receive the protection they deserve. It will be exciting to see how the AWI Update project develops over the upcoming year and my role with it ….
With the populations of cities growing all the time and the world facing unprecedented climate and biodiversity crises, urban nature has a critical role to play in supporting a sustainable planet. Nature-based solutions offer a tool for addressing the multiple environmental, social and economic challenges faced by cities that can also contribute to mitigating the environmental crises more widely …
The biggest opportunity is that organisations are looking to become more environmentally sustainable. GiGL fit in brilliantly to share data on this. The challenge will be how GiGL can reach and communicate with these organisations to find out what data would be useful for supporting them …
Part of our commitment as a community interest company (CIC) is to submit our annual accounts and a completed CIC34 form, to Companies House. The form includes sections to demonstrate how our activities have benefited the community we were set up to serve, and whether we have consulted our stakeholders and acted on their feedback. We have a series of standard metrics to illustrate these points drawn from our social media accounts, internal monitoring spreadsheets and various other stats-rich resources. What the mandatory reporting doesn’t do is show GiGL in full colour…
Like most organisations, we often find we have a list of things we’d like to do on a ‘rainy day’. But sometimes that rainy day never comes. A solution we’ve found helpful at GiGL is to have a dedicated “Closed Week” every six months…
People who aren’t afraid to be themselves and challenge prejudice are inspiring. I currently work mainly in diversity and inclusion and get to meet and work with truly inspiring people who are doing just that. From championing transgender rights, to challenging our gender binary world, to better understanding living with disabilities or mental health conditions, to challenging racism or gender bias. They genuinely inspire me…
Seeing the Bosco Verticale in Milan really inspired me to start thinking about the imaginative ways that green can be added to urban environments. The experience encouraged me to take on an MSc in Environment and Sustainability, where I focussed on the value and potential of London’s small green spaces (particularly the patches of grass around buildings). I learnt a lot about the many environmental, social, medical and economic benefits of urban greenspace…
Amy is one of GiGL’s Database Officers. She delivers work to review, manage and develop GiGL’s SINCs and habitat databases. This includes collating data in partnership with local authorities and land managers, and coordinating steering from stakeholders. She also maintains information and models predicted changes relating to areas of deficiency in access to nature…
The last few months have been anything but usual. Whilst COVID-19 has brought about previously unforeseen changes to our daily-lives, GiGL is proud that we’ve been able to maintain as much of a standard service to our stakeholders as possible…
Bedfont Lakes is a 72.5 hectare country park on the edge of Greater London, and one of the best birdwatching sites in the southwest of the capital. Its size rivals that of Greenwich Park and Wandsworth Common. Yet, when I mention it among Londoner friends and colleagues, no one’s ever heard of it…
Julie is one of GiGL’s Partnership Officers. She delivers work for existing GiGL partners with Service Level Agreements. She is Commissioning Editor of the GiGLer newsletter and co-ordinates our SLA Spotlight bulletin for existing and potential SLA partners…
Anyone familiar with our strategic plan knows that our vision is that ‘London’s natural environment is appreciated, understood, considered and improved’, but how do we monitor and evaluate our services and identify the outcomes and impact of our work? Can we demonstrate that London’s human inhabitants are benefiting from our work too?..