30 Days Wild – Day 11 to 15 – for diverse communities

This month is 30 Days Wild 2016, an initiative of The Wildlife Trusts who say “This June, can you do something wild each day for a month?”

What they are saying is that nature is everywhere, so by looking for it through your normal day, you should start to notice it and enjoy it more.

They say that they don’t want you to give anything up for June, just give yourself time in the wild with your family, to reconnect with nature. 26,000 people have already signed up, but it would be great if you signed up to taking part at http://bit.ly/1WZnYKW.

So, for my 30 Days Wild, I have decided to connect with nature each day in a different way, that could feel relevant to Black Asian Minority Ethnic (BAME) communities or People of Colour (POC) in the USA and be practical if you live in an inner city area. Things that BAME people can identify with and so might find it easier to try.  Not just young people, but BAME people of all ages.

For day eleven, I watered our garden.  If you don’t have a garden, find out who does have a garden or allotment amongst your friends, family and neighbours in your area then offer to water their patch for them.  It’s best to water plants at the end of the day, so the sun doesn’t just evaporate the water off.

Lots of more elderly Black Asian and Minority Ethnic people grow vegetables and so I am sure they would welcome the help watering.

As you do the watering, really concentrate on what you are doing, looking at the vegetables or flowers that are growing, enjoying their life and how good they are going to taste.

Saffron and Aaliyah watering their Nana’s (grandad’s) garden

Young Birder Birdgirl Mya-Rose Craig

Young Birder Birdgirl Mya-Rose Craig

Young Birder Birdgirl Mya-Rose Craig

Young Birder Birdgirl Mya-Rose Craig

For day twelve, find some kind of container, place it in a green space (like a garden or park) somewhere animals and birds can use it for water.  Refill the container in dry spells over the summer.

Young Birder Birdgirl Mya-Rose Craig

For day thirteen, look up and watch the sun go down.  Go out to your garden or green space or even look out of your window.

Young Birder Birdgirl Mya-Rose Craig

For day fourteen, I did some foraging by collecting nettles to make nettle soup which even I think it delicious.  You can either hold them by their stalks or wear gloves.  This is a really easy BBC recipe http://bit.ly/1YpeoQN.  Or go foraging with an older person, who like my Nanu (gran) will point out lots of things growing in the wild that you can cook in the same way as spinach, for instance making pakoras.

Find out more about foraging from this Muslim Kenyan forager http://www.msitu.co.uk/

Young Birder Birdgirl Mya-Rose Craig foraging for food

For day fifteen, feed the birds and animals.  Cut up an apple or other fruit or take out leftover boiled rice and spread it in your garden or green space.  Don’t put out too much out, as you don’t want the food to go mouldy or attract rodents.

Then if you can, stand back and watch the birds come and feed. The longer you carry on feeding, then the more birds will know about the food and will come to feed.  If you put the food on the ground, then you will get ground feeding birds like Blackbirds, Robins and Dunnock.

You could spike fruit into bushes to attract different birds.

Young Birder Birdgirl Mya-Rose Craig with Arun who has autism