Finding nature in the industrial urban landscape

I am starting a new project evaluation with the Newcastle’s Nature Networks project. Today I met with partners from Urban Green Newcastle, The Ouseburn Trust, Ouseburn Farm, Northumbria University and Newcastle City Council to explore a Theory of Change for the project and start mapping outcomes and success indicators. As ever, a really interesting and informative meeting and I took away lots of scribbled notes to help me bring this together for them.

We then enjoyed a lovely lunch at the Ouseburn Farm cafe (and I could write a whole post on the ethos of this place but I will sum it up by saying go and visit – the food was delicious and you will leave feeling like you have supported a fantastic organisation) before heading outdoors to visit some of the sites that will benefit from this project. We didn’t need to wander far to find signs of spring arriving and pockets of wildness amongst Ouseburn’s industrial past. Under the red brick arches you can find ancient woodland, an orchard, a wildlife pond and corners of wildflowers, all supporting pollinators and other wildlife in the city. Here, the Ouseburn Trust and the Ouseburn Farm are restoring nature and bringing pollinators back to the city, breathing life into spaces that have so much potential.

And where else in the middle of the city can you find yourself eyeballing a flock of sheep trotting down the hill towards you? This urban farm is providing space for nature and livestock even in the heart of Newcastle.

I’m looking forward to seeing more of this project and helping the partnership to evaluate the impact that they are having in creating, restoring, enhancing and connecting urban pollinator habitat.