23 January 2026
Become a Wilder Community Campaigner
By Ella Garrud, Sussex Wildlife Trust
Sussex Wildlife Trust is part of a network of 46 individual Wildlife Trusts around the UK. Founded in 1961, our work covers East and West Sussex where we manage over 30 nature reserves, act to protect wildlife and the natural environment across Sussex, and inspire people to take action for nature.
However, our work isn’t just focused on the terrestrial environment, we also work in the coastal and marine environment. We have a fantastic marine team, made up of passionate and knowledgeable people working hard to protect and advocate for the marine and coastal environment, while connecting people with their local stretch of coast.
Our marine work spans from conservation policy and evidence, to advocacy, training and upskilling people to protect the marine environment. The Conservation team recently successfully quashed the Marine Management Organisation’s (MMO) decision to renew a dredging disposal licence. This has stopped over 100,000 tonnes of dredged sediment from being dumped annually on the Beachy Head West Marine Conservation Zone (MCZ), a nationally important site, home to a sensitive intertidal chalk reef. Read more about this win for conservation here.
A newly developed scheme to train up local people to become Wilder Community Champions is underway. We have a number of voluntary roles, including Wilder Community Campaigner, where we provide free training and workshops to empower people to start their own campaigns about marine and terrestrial conservation issues they are passionate about. Read more about Wilder Community Campaigners and how to get involved here. We are in the process of training up Wilder Champion Beach Clean Leaders, enabling volunteers to safely run their own beach cleans in their local areas, protecting our coastal environment from the damages of marine litter, and collecting valuable data to inform national policy decisions.
We run a number of citizen science programmes – Shoresearch, Seasearch and the Sussex Kelp Recording Scheme. These programmes are all supported by our fantastic marine and coastal volunteers of which we have over 100! We would not be able to do what we do without them – thank you!
Sussex Wildlife Trust are a partner on the UK's largest marine rewilding project, Sussex Kelp Recovery Project (SKRP). SKRP works to protect and recover essential fish habitats, like the lost kelp beds of Sussex, in a partnership with conservationists, scientists, government bodies, fishers and local communities. Read more about their work here.
Our Wilder Learning team runs a five-day Level 3 accredited course to train teachers and education practitioners to become Wild Beach Leaders. The course empowers Leaders to use a child-centred, immersive approach to ocean connection and ocean literacy with groups at their local beach. Find out more here
Sussex Wildlife Trust is working to educate and engage people, and to protect and recover Sussex marine life for the benefit of the planet and society, for more information about this work and how to get involved please contact livingseas@sussexwt.org.uk
Photography credits, and with kind thanks:
Page Header: (c) Anni Townend.
Page Centre, left to right: (c) Julia Hoare. (c) Sarah Ward. (c) Miles Davies.
Thank you Ella for everything you and the teams are doing for nature and people.
