Happy New Year to all our friends, supporters, and the wider Ambios network. A big thank you for your continued support throughout 2022.
Ambios has had an amazingly busy year of projects and progression.
We are proud to have built a brand-new sustainable communal living space for our residential trainees, and 2x new workshops providing much needed training space for us and for the people our partners, United Response support at the farm. We have launched a fresh website, took UoExeter students to Europe and hosted our first-ever rewilding literary festival!
We have had plenty of wildlife successes throughout the year including sightings of a white-tailed eagle, a short-eared owl, and four barn owls at once over the rewilding site!
Herons are now regularly hunting voles in the fields, and we continue to see many positive impacts on biodiversity as the rewilding progresses.
Back in June, a massive 401 species were recorded at the annual Sharpham Bioblitz across a 24-hour period by members of the public, trainees, volunteers, and staff – this number is up 140 on last year!
Over the year, a total of 25 incredible trainees from all walks of life have joined us on their 12-week nature conservation traineeships and have left a fantastic legacy of information gathering and ideas for the future. Some have gone on to secure roles with Wildlife Trusts, ecological consultancies and the Royal Parks in London as well as other environmental organisations.
We bid a fond farewell to much-loved 9-month trainees Rob and Hester and welcomed the brilliant Mael and Leo to fill their shoes. Rob has moved on to work in decarbonisation projects and Hester is with Devon Wildlife Trust adding to her practical skills.
We took 2 groups of students on separate field trips to Hungary and Italy, travelling overland by train to reduce our carbon footprint. The visits to our European partners were part of our WildSkills EU Erasmus+ project which has also developed 6 courses to support skills learning for working in the nature conservation sector. Watch for updates in 2023!
14 European volunteers from France joined us at Lower Sharpham this summer, getting stuck into farm life helping to grow vegetables, take care of livestock, and work alongside United Response, to support adults with learning differences.
They also engaged with nature conservation and rewilding activities by joining parts of the residential traineeship and working with Conservation Ranger Phil and his Sharpham volunteer groups as part of our national lottery heritage fund project Sharpham Wild for People.
Cumulatively 60 people across two volunteer groups, have spent well over 1000 hours working immensely hard throughout the year building tree guards, planting trees, repairing gates or fences, collecting seeds, and undertaking vital wildlife monitoring and survey work.
Each trainee and volunteer that has joined us in 2022 has brought positivity, creativity, and action and has massively contributed to the farm and Ambios as a whole. The Ambios team wishes them all the best for the year ahead and their exciting futures!
We would not be where we are today without the help and support of so many people that believe in the work we do to mentor and inspire the next generation of nature conservation professionals while creating more space for nature at Sharpham. Thank you all.
Please keep in touch by signing up (on our refreshed website) for our new e-newsletter launching in the new year. See you in 2023! It’s going to be awesome!
Gallery:
New communal Dayroom living space ????
First Rewilding Literary Festival ????
BioBlitz 2022 species board ????
2022 Spring trainees graduation ????
2022 Summer trainees graduation ????
2022 Autumn trainees graduation ????
EU Wildskills trip to Padova, Italy ????????
Conservation volunteers – Sharpham Wild For People ????