Nature’s capacity to recover – Delyth Higgins

Gaia in Swansea

Nature’s capacity to recover

The headlines on the state of nature make grim reading, but the Living Planet Report also points to hope, and to what our families, communities and churches can do.

by Delyth Higgins, Eco Church officer for Wales

This is the latest in a series of features by Delyth reflecting on the Gaia installation at Swansea Minster.

As a Christian charity, A Rocha UK’s strapline is ‘Caring for the earth and demonstrating the Christian hope for God’s world’. Our mission is to ‘equip Christians and churches to protect and restore the natural environment – for God, nature and all people.’

Nature is really groaning and species are suffering right across the planet. Nature is managed and harvested to keep up with global demand for things like food and water, fuel, fibre and timber. Policies often do not regard the benefits of nature (such as regulating the climate, providing water and healthy soils, not to mention the physical and mental well-being aspects) alongside these more powerful economic growth indicators.

The recently published WWF Living Planet Report 2026 gives statistics about the shocking decline in nature around the globe, with scientific monitoring data from 35,803 populations and 5,790 species of amphibians, birds, fish, mammals, and reptiles. Wildlife is still being lost at an alarming rate, with the overarching conclusion that monitored wildlife populations have declined by an average of 73% over just 50 years.

Contemplating the state of nature can once again leave us feeling anxious or upset, and it is inextricably linked to the climate crisis. ‘Climate’ or ‘Eco’ anxiety is real and can be a result of being exposed firsthand to trauma like flooding or wildfires, or more indirectly through feelings of powerlessness around food issues or housing issues, or just how to be able to react to such significant challenges. Interestingly, ‘The Science of Hope’ is the subheading to the Living Planet Report, and it clearly states that while the headlines make grim reading, not all species are declining. In fact, around half the populations studied are stable or even increasing. So ‘Halting and reversing the loss of nature is possible.’

Through A Rocha UK’s ‘Partners in Action’ project, the area of land collectively being managed sustainably by Christians is now over 20,000 acres, and during 2025, our partners planted more than 120,000 native trees. So this is great news!

As Christians, we surely have hope, and we can take action ourselves!

There are thousands of great community projects helping to protect and restore nature going on all across Wales, although maybe we don’t hear enough about them. Why not research the local groups that are actively working in woodlands, rivers, or parks or protecting birds, hedgehogs, or other wildlife, and see if you can get involved?

As an individual or family, you can be more intentional about noticing elements of nature when you’re out and about. From the colours of flowers and trees during different seasons, listening to bird song (download an app which helps you identify bird sounds), to seeing what insects you can spot and what you can smell - use all your senses and notice differences.

Your church can play its part by engaging more fully with its land. Whilst you may think you cannot do much if you only have concrete around your church or a car park or a narrow strip of grass somewhere, that is not the case. Obviously, the more land you have, the more impact you can have; leaving (some) areas of grass unmown, creating a small pond, planting or creating raised beds are all easier if you have a large plot of land. However, in a small and less ‘green’ space you can erect a bird feeder and bird boxes, create a bug hotel, use pots to grow small fruit bushes or bee-loving plants and shrubs, and decide not to use pesticides, for example. A whole category of the Eco Church survey is dedicated to land and nature for this very reason - so that churches realise the impact they can have on this very practical and necessary aspect of caring for creation. Our recently published impact report on 10 years of the Eco Church programme shares how over 3,000 churches (88%) manage their land to encourage native wildlife.

In the face of accelerating climate change and species loss, we need more than ever to take action to protect and care for nature today. We all have a part to play in how the land around our churches, in our communities and nationally, can make a difference and help protect and restore nature all around us.

“The Living Planet Report documents a sobering decline. But it also points to a powerful force we can harness to reverse that decline. That force is nature’s capacity to recover when we act with urgency and scale.”

Carter Roberts, President & CEO, WWF-US

God saw all that he had made, and it was very good.

(Genesis 1:31)

This feature is part of our coverage of Gaia at Swansea Minster. Read more about the installation.