Land Renewed: Reworking the Countryside

Description

Exploring the challenges of climate change, Brexit and recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, Peter Hetherington argues that we need to re-shape the countryside with an adventurous new agenda for rural life outside the EU. Feeding Britain while preparing for the ravages of climate change are two key issues - yet there's no strategy for managing and enhancing that most precious resource; our land. This book explores how the pressures of leaving the EU, recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic, and addressing global heating, present unparalleled opportunities to re-work the countryside for the benefit of all. Told through personal, inspiring stories of people and places, Peter Hetherington sets out the innovative measures needed for nature's recovery while protecting our most valuable farmland, encouraging local food production and 're-peopling' remote areas. In the first book to tackle these issues holistically, he argues that we need to re-shape the countryside with an adventurous new agenda at the heart of government.

Peter Hetherington is past chair of the Town and Country Planning Association and former regional affairs editor of The Guardian.

"Peter Hetherington offers a rich, compelling and topical analysis of the politics of farming, land ownership, and food production in the UK in the era of climate change and extreme weather." Patrick Butler, social policy editor of The Guardian "Peter Hetherington's book is a delight to read. He explores how restoring nature can lead to better farming practice and food production, address climate change and strengthen the rural economy." Sally Shortall, Newcastle University "At a time when the impact of the UK's departure from the EU presents so much uncertainty for the future of land management and rural areas, Land Renewed makes a compelling case for a new, strategic, more joined up approach to land and the rural economy. It is a must read, not least for government ministers and officials!" Fiona Howie, Town & Country Planning Association "Wide-ranging, stimulating, provocative and at times enraging, the book is packed with practical insights into a big, too often neglected question: how should we use our land?" Shaun Spiers, Green Alliance "Unlike many writers, Peter Hetherington listens and gives voice to both the landless and the landed across Britain. This is a searching, wise, vivid and democratic look at how we could produce more food, restore wildlife and cut carbon by transforming our relationship with the land." Patrick Barkham, author of Wild Child, Islander and The Butterfly Isles@