Rewilding

The term rewilding was coined by members of the grassroots network Earth First!, first appearing in print in 1990. It was refined and grounded in a scientific context in a paper published in 1998 by conservation biologists Michael Soulé and Reed Noss. '3Cs' rewilding therefore relied on protecting 'core' areas of wild land, linked together by 'corridors' allowing passage for 'carnivores' to move around the landscape and perform their functional role. Inside these cores, human development, especially the building of roads, is strictly limited. National parks and wilderness reserves are the most common types of 'core' areas. Soulé and fellow biologist John Terbough expanded on the concept of corridors in their book Continental Conservation. They determined that one size does not fit all: narrow, linear corridors might work for some smaller species, but if conservationists wanted to encourage the movement of large carnivores, they needed to make corridors wide enough to allow for daily and seasonal movement of both herds of prey and packs of their predators. and Earth First co-founder, Dave Foreman, subsequently wrote a full-length book on rewilding as a conservation strategy. ==History==

Rewilding was developed as a method to preserve functional ecosystems and reduce biodiversity loss, incorporating research in island biogeography and the ecological role of large carnivores. Nonetheless, a 2021 report for the launch of the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, the United Nations listed rewilding as one of several restoration methods which they state should be used for ecosystem restoration of over 1 billion hectares. ==Guiding principles ==

Since its origin, the term rewilding has been used as a signifier of particular forms of ecological restoration projects that have ranged widely in scope and geographic application. In 2021 the journal Conservation Biology published a paper == Rewilding and climate change ==

Rewilding can respond to both the causes and effects of climate change and has been posited as a 'natural climate solution'. Rewilding's creation of new ecosystems and restoration of existing ones can contribute to climate change mitigation and adaptation through, inter alia, carbon capture and storage, altering the Earth's albedo, natural flood management, reduction of wildfire risk, new habitat creation, and enabling or facilitating the movement of species to new, climate safe habitats, thus protecting biodiversity and maintaining functioning, climate resilient ecosystems. The functional roles animals perform in ecosystems, such as grazing, nutrient cycling and seed distribution, can influence the amount of carbon that soils and (marine and terrestrial) plants capture. The carbon cycle is altered through herbivores consuming vegetation, assimilating carbon within their own biomass, and releasing carbon by respiration and defecation after digestion. The most beneficial effects on biogeochemical cycling and ecosystem structure are reported through rewilding large herbivore species. A separate study suggested that the loss of megafauna that eat fruits may be responsible for an up to 10% reduction in carbon storage in tropical forests. Rewilding's effect on albedo is not only through potential reduction of smoke from wildfires but also through the effects of grazing itself. By reducing woody cover through browsing and trampling, large herbivores expose more ground surface and thus increase the albedo effect, reducing local surface temperatures and creating a net surface cooling effect during spring and autumn. Other forms of ecological restoration as part of rewilding can also assist with mitigating climate change. For example, reforestation, afforestation and peat re-wetting can all contribute to carbon sequestration. While carbon sequestration could allow carbon offsetting and carbon trading as a way to monetize rewilding there has been concern that the highly speculative nature of carbon markets encourages 'land grabbing' (i.e., buying large areas of land) and 'greenwashing' from natural capital investors and multi-national companies. == Types of rewilding ==

Passive rewilding Passive rewilding (also referred to as ecological rewilding) aims to restore natural ecosystem processes via minimal or the total withdrawal of direct human management of the landscape. An abandoned area later reclaimed by nature is an example where direct human management is completely absent. In such cases, wildlife will rebound and recolonize when given the chance. Active rewilding nature reserve, a rewilding site in the Netherlands Active rewilding is an umbrella term used to describe a range of rewilding approaches all of which involve human intervention. These might include species reintroductions or translocations and/or habitat engineering and the removal of man-made structures and Introduced species that cause trouble. Pleistocene rewilding Pleistocene rewilding is the (re)introduction of extant Pleistocene megafauna, or the close ecological equivalents of extinct megafauna, to restore ecosystem function. Advocates of the approach maintain that ecosystems where species evolved in response to Pleistocene megafauna now lack large mammals, and they may be in danger of collapse. Meanwhile critics argue that it is unrealistic to assume that ecological communities today are functionally similar to their state 10,000 years ago. Trophic rewilding Trophic rewilding is an ecological restoration strategy focused on restoring trophic interactions and complexity (specifically top-down and associated trophic cascades where a top consumer/predator controls the primary consumer population) through species (re)introductions, in order to promote self-regulating, biodiverse ecosystems. Urban rewilding Urban rewilding is a type of rewilding focused on the integration of nature into urban settings. ==Elements==

Ecosystem engineers Ecosystem engineers are 'organisms that demonstrably modify the structure of their habitats'. Examples of ecosystem engineers in rewilding include beaver, elephants, bison, elk, cattle (as analogues for the extinct aurochs) and pigs (as analogues for wild boar). Keystone species A keystone species is a species that has a disproportionately large effect on its environment relative to its abundance. Predators Apex predators may be required in rewilding projects to ensure that browsing and grazing animals are kept from over-breeding/over-feeding thereby destroying vegetation complexity While predators play an important role in ecosystems, however, there is debate regarding the extent to which the control of prey populations is due to direct predation or a more indirect influence of predators (see Ecology of fear). For example, it is thought that wildebeest populations in the Serengeti are primarily controlled by food constraints despite the presence of many predators such as Lions, cheetahs, and hyenas. == Criticism ==

Compatibility with economic activity Some national governments and officials within multilateral agencies such as the United Nations, express the view that 'excessive' rewilding, such as large rigorously enforced protected areas where no extraction activities are allowed, can be too restrictive on people's ability to earn sustainable livelihoods. Conflicts with animal rights and welfare Rewilding has been criticized by animal rights scholars, such as Dale Jamieson, who argues that 'most cases of rewilding or reintroducing are likely to involve conflicts between the satisfaction of human preferences and the welfare of nonhuman animals'. Erica von Essen and Michael Allen, using Donaldson and Kymlicka's political animal categories framework, assert that wildness standards imposed on animals are arbitrary and inconsistent with the premise that wild animals should be granted sovereignty over the territories that they inhabit and the right to make decisions about their own lives. To resolve this, von Essen and Allen contend that rewilding needs to shift towards full alignment with mainstream conservation and welcome full sovereignty, or instead take full responsibility for the care of animals who have been reintroduced. Ole Martin Moen argues that rewilding projects should be brought to an end because they unnecessarily increase wild animal suffering and are expensive, and the funds could be better spent elsewhere. Erasure of environmental history The environmental historian Dolly Jørgensen argues that rewilding, as it currently exists, 'seeks to erase human history and involvement with the land and flora and fauna. Such an attempted split between nature and culture may prove unproductive and even harmful.' She calls for rewilding to be more inclusive to combat this. Jonathan Prior and Kim J. Ward challenge Jørgensen's criticism and provide examples of rewilding programs which 'have been developed and governed within the understanding that human and non-human world are inextricably entangled'. Farming Some farmers have been critical of rewilding for 'abandoning productive farmland when the world's population is growing'. Farmers have also attacked plans to reintroduce the lynx in the United Kingdom because of fears that reintroduction will lead to an increase in sheep predation. Harm to conservation Some conservationists have expressed concern that rewilding 'could replace the traditional protection of rare species on small nature reserves', which could potentially lead to an increase in habitat fragmentation and species loss. Many large conservation groups have built fundraising campaigns around the idea that once wildlife is gone, it's gone for good; rewilding experts saying otherwise may confuse donors and lead to less money being funneled into conservation efforts. Governmental agencies overseeing land use and consumption are often heavily influenced by the interests of loggers, ranchers, and miners, so non-profit organizations are often at the forefront of conservation efforts, and a loss of funding could have major impacts on the protection of wildlife. There is also concern among conservationists that if the idea that wilderness can be restored becomes popular with the public, oil companies, real estate developers, and agribusinesses may be emboldened to step up land consumption, arguing that it can be restored later. Human-wildlife conflict The reintroduction of brown bears to Italy's Trentino province through the EU-funded Life Ursus project has led to growing tensions between humans and wildlife. While initially celebrated as a conservation success, the bear population has expanded to over 100, leading to increased conflicts, including the fatal attack on Andrea Papi in 2023—the first modern death caused by a wild bear in Italy. This incident sparked fear among residents and prompted calls for stricter controls, including culling dangerous bears. Critics argue the conflict stems from poor management, inadequate public education, and a lack of preventive measures like bear-proof bins. Despite efforts to balance human safety and conservation, local communities remain deeply divided, with many pushing for limits on bear numbers and more decisive action against perceived threats. ==Rewilding in different locations==

Both grassroots groups and major international conservation organizations have incorporated rewilding into projects to protect and restore large-scale core wilderness areas, corridors (or connectivity) between them, and apex predators, carnivores, or keystone species. Projects include: the Yellowstone to Yukon Conservation Initiative in North America (also known as Y2Y), the European Green Belt (built along the former Iron Curtain), transboundary projects (including those in southern Africa funded by the Peace Parks Foundation), community-conservation projects (such as the wildlife conservancies of Namibia and Kenya), and projects organized around ecological restoration (including Gondwana Link, regrowing native bush in a hotspot of endemism in southwest Australia, and the Area de Conservacion Guanacaste, restoring dry tropical forest and rainforest in Costa Rica). Dam removal has led to the restoration of many river systems in the Pacific Northwest in an effort to restore salmon populations specifically but with other species in mind. As stated in an article on environmental law: 'These dam removals provide perhaps the best example of large-scale environmental remediation in the twenty-first century. [...] The result has been to put into motion ongoing rehabilitation efforts in four distinct river basins: the Elwha and White Salmon in Washington and the Sandy and Rogue in Oregon'. Brazil The red-rumped agouti, Yellow-footed tortoise, brown howler monkey, and Blue and gold macaw were reintroduced in Tijuca National Park (Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil), between 2010 and 2025 with the goal of restoring seed dispersal. Prior to the reintroductions, the national park did not have large or intermediate -sized seed dispersers, the increased dispersal of tree seeds following the reintroductions therefore had a significant effect on forest regeneration in the park. The Cerrado-Pantanal Ecological Corridors Project was proposed in the 1990s to restore connectivity between two of Brazil's core reserves: Emas National Park and the Pantanal, one of the world's largest wetlands. Gondwana Link, a plan conceived in 2002, was devised to connect two Australian national parks: Stirling Range and Fitzgerald River National Park. Much of this land had been severely degraded by harmful farming practices, and was barren of most plant and animal life. Organizers of the project worked on revegetating the land with native plant species, fifty of which were found nowhere else on Earth, in the hopes that they would attract wildlife back to the area. Other projects around the country include: The project considers reintroductions of species that are still present in Europe such as the Iberian lynx, Eurasian lynx, grey wolf, European jackal, brown bear, chamois, Iberian ibex, European bison, red deer, griffon vulture, cinereous vulture, Egyptian vulture, great white pelican and horned viper, along with primitive domestic horse and cattle breeds as proxies for the extinct tarpan and aurochs (the wild ancestors of domestic cattle) respectively. Since 2012, Rewilding Europe has been heavily involved in the Tauros Programme, which seeks to create a breed of cattle that resembles the aurochs by selectively breeding existing breeds of cattle. European Wildlife, established in 2008, advocates the establishment of a European Centre of Biodiversity at the German–Austrian–Czech borders, and the Chernobyl exclusion zone in Ukraine. European Green Belt The European Green Belt is a proposed rewilding zone that is envisioned running through over a dozen European countries using land that was historically part of the physical boundaries of the Iron Curtain. When completed, the European Green Belt will stretch over five thousand miles, from the Barents Sea off the northern coast of Norway to the Black Sea in southeast Europe. Britain Rewilding Britain, a charity founded in 2015, aims to promote rewilding in Britain and is a leading advocate of rewilding. Rewilding Britain has laid down 'five principles of rewilding' which it expects to be followed by affiliated rewilding projects. These are to support people and nature together, to 'let nature lead', to create resilient local economies, to 'work at nature's scale', and to secure benefits for the long-term. Celtic Reptile and Amphibian is a limited company established in 2020, with the aim of reintroducing extinct species of reptile and amphibian (such as the European pond turtle, moor frog, agile frog, common tree frog and pool frog) to Britain. Success has already been achieved with the captive breeding of the moor frog. A reintroduction trial of the European pond turtle to its historic, Holocene range in the East Anglian Fens, Brecks and Broads has been initiated, with support from the University of Cambridge. In 2020, nature writer Melissa Harrison reported a significant increase in attitudes supportive of rewilding among the British public, with plans recently approved for the release of European bison, Eurasian elk, and great bustard in England, along with calls to rewild as much as 20% of the land in East Anglia, and even return apex predators such as the Eurasian lynx, brown bear, and grey wolf. Projects may also refer to their activity using terminology other than 'rewilding', possibly for political and diplomatic reasons, taking account of local sentiment or possible opposition. Examples include 'Sanctuary Nature Recovery Programme' (at Broughton) and 'nature restoration project', the preferred term used by the Cambrian Wildwood project, an area aspiring to encompass 7,000 acres in Wales. Notable rewilding sites include: • Knepp Wildland. The 3,500-acre (1,400 hectare) Knepp Castle estate in West Sussex was the first major pioneer of rewilding in England, and started that land-management policy there in 2001 on land formerly used as dairy farmland. In 2019 a pair of white storks built a nest in an oak tree at Knepp. The storks were part of a group imported from Poland as a result of a programme to reintroduce the species to England run by the Roy Dennis Wildlife Foundation which has overseen reintroductions of other bird species to the UK. • Broughton Hall Estate, Yorkshire. In 2021, approximately 1,100 acres (a third of the estate) was devoted to rewilding with advice from Prof. Alastair Driver of Rewilding Britain. • Mapperton Estate, Dorset. In 2021, a 200-acre farm (one of the five farms comprising the estate) began the process of rewilding. • Alladale Wilderness Reserve, Sutherland, Scotland. This 23,000-acre estate hosts many wildlife species and engages in rewilding projects such as peatland and forest restoration, captive breeding of the Scottish wildcat, and reintroduction of the red squirrel. Visitors can engage in outdoor recreation and education programs. The British radio drama series The Archers featured rewilding areas in storylines in 2019 and 2020. In November 2023, Tatler described rewilding as being part of the worldview of the bopea ("bohemian peasant") movement, an elite British socio-cultural group. The Netherlands In the 1980s, analogue species (Konik ponies, Heck cattle and red deer) were introduced to the Oostvaardersplassen nature reserve, an area covering over , in order to (re)create a grassland ecology by keeping the landscape open by naturalistic grazing. Africa In the 1990s and early 2000s, several multi-nation rewilding projects were suggested across Africa. Some notable examples are: • The Tri-National de la Sangha, a plan focused on joining three national parks in Cameroon, the Republic of the Congo, and the Central African Republic. The goal was to restore a large area of rainforest to protect the region's forest elephants, lowland gorillas, and the historical territory of the Ba'Aka pygmy people. • The Great Limpopo Transfrontier Park, proposed to protect elephants by expanding South Africa's largest national park, Kruger, and connecting it to Zimbabwe's Gonarezhou National Park and Mozambique's Coutada 16, a previous hunting concession. • The Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, conceived to join two existing parks in Botswana and South Africa, protecting the wildlife that relied on the region's desert habitat. This park, spanning over 14,000 square miles, was officially established in 2000. • The Lubombo Transfrontier Conservation Area, designed to create a corridor for elephants through Mozambique, Eswatini, and South Africa. The reserve was formally established in 2000, and has been widely recognized for working with local communities and creating jobs in conservation. • The Kavango-Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area (KAZA), the largest proposed wilderness reserve in the world, covering nearly 116,000 square miles. The project would connect thirty-six protected areas across five countries: Angola, Botswana, Namibia, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. KAZA was conceived with two main goals in mind: protecting the largest population of elephants in the world, and conserving scarce water resources by sustainably managing the region's wetlands. Namibia In 1996, Namibia passed the Nature Conservation Act, a law that allowed communities of civilians to create their own protected wildlife conservancies to develop the country's ecotourism sector. Conservancy creation was voluntary, but proved to be popular: by 2008, fifty-two conservancies were registered with the government, and fifteen more were seeking approval. By this time, one in four rural Namibians were involved in conservation, and around fifteen percent of the country's land was protected. Conservancy committees were tasked with hiring park guards and rangers to crack down on illegal hunting, in exchange for limited hunting rights for conservancy members. The Namibian government relocated locally extirpated species to these newly protected areas, and community members monitored their flourishing population sizes. One notable success of the Nature Conservation Act is Salambala, a conservancy established in 1998. The region, only 359 square miles large, went from having virtually no large game to boasting a population of elephants six hundred strong, a herd of fifteen hundred zebra, and three lion prides after twenty years. Surveys conducted in the conservancy showed a 47 percent increase in wildlife sightings, just between 2004 and 2007. The local community was able to capitalize on the environmental success: by 2006, the community was earning thirty-seven times more revenue from tourism than they had been in 1998. Asia Nepal King Mahendra was crowned king of Nepal in 1955. An avid hunter, King Mahendra and his son instituted Nepal's first Western-style national park, the Royal Chitwan National Park, in 1973. Establishment of the park led to an increase in research being done on Nepal's wildlife, including the Nepal Tiger Ecology Project, an eighteen-year-long field study conducted in Chitwan. Findings from this study convinced the Nepalese government to eventually enlarge the boundaries of Chitwan and join it with its neighboring Parsa and Valmiki wildlife reserves. In 1995, Nepal's Parliament ratified bylaws that required 50 percent of the revenue from park entrance fees to go towards programs that would benefit local people, providing funding to build better schools and clinics and bolstering public support for parks. In 1993, Terai Arc Landscape Program (TAL) was started to restore forested corridors between Chitwan, other Nepalese parks like Bardia National Park and Parsa Wildlife Reserve, and Indian reserves along the countries' shared border. TAL's goal was to add "buffer zones" around the established parks and create pathways between them to facilitate the movement of large species like elephants, tigers, and rhino. The project was initially successful, supporting over 600 endangered rhinos and attracting tens of thousands of tourists every year, but the success was disrupted by the Nepalese Civil War, which took place from 1996 to 2006. Hundreds of rhinos and tigers were killed during the war as a result of fewer park guards and governmental conservation groups growing disorganized by the war. By 2008, wildlife populations in the reserve began to grow again, but the war caused hundreds of thousands of dollars of damage to the project. Indonesia In 2001, conservationist Willie Smits began buying land from a former palm oil plantation that has been ecologically destroyed by logging. He, along with a group of Dayak villagers in Indonesia's East Kalimantan province, replanted over twelve hundred species of trees on the land, which Smits renamed Samboja Lestari or "Everlasting Forest." The project's hopes of returning the land to a tropical rainforest seems to be working: by 2009, temperature within the regrown forest had dropped by three to five degrees Celsius, humidity has risen by 10 percent, and rainfall had increased by 25 percent. 137 species of birds now reside on the land, up from only five species that had lived in the logged area. The replanted forest is also home to nine species of primates, as of 2009. == See also ==