An Urgent Global Rewilding Imperative Isn't 'Crying Wolf'

Rewilding is a "hot topic." In 2022, rewilding went mainstream and around 200 countries agreed to stop the loss of global biodiversity.¹ Hardly a day goes by when I don't receive something about different projects that are devoted to doing all we can to stop profound and growing losses of biodiversity. For example, as I was writing the introduction for this interview, I received a new issue of The Ecological Citizen, much of which is devoted to different rewilding initiatives and why there is an urgent need to put these into practice.² Rewilding helps humans and nonhumans and decenters anthropocentrism; it's not all about us.

Recently, I wrote a post called "Rewilding 2023 Demands Expanding Our Self-Centered Mindsets," and a few months ago I posted an interview with Dr. Millie Kerr about her book Wilder: How Rewilding Is Transforming Conservation and Changing the World. Now, I'm thrilled that Sally Hawkins, co-editor of the Routledge Handbook of Rewilding, a comprehensive, cross-disciplinary, and transformational encyclopedia of rewilding, could answer a few questions about this landmark and remarkably timely book.

Marc Bekoff: Why did you and your colleagues edit The Routledge Handbook of Rewilding?

Sally Hawkins: We wanted to establish a global definition and guiding principles for rewilding. The results were published in Guiding principles for rewilding. While we saw this publication as a major step towards unifying global rewilding, there remain many debates, conflicts, and complexities related to the concept of rewilding. Our aim was to highlight and address these and to provide a focal point from which to progress rewilding research and practice. Our team reflects the diversity of interests and disciplines inherent in rewilding.

MB: Who is your intended audience?

SH: Rewilding is of interest to a very wide range of people—academics, land managers, practitioners, policymakers, even the general public and across a variety of disciplines. The chapters provide something for everyone. We were especially interested in incorporating the practical realities of rewilding through the numerous case studies and in highlighting connections to other fields, with chapters addressing connections between rewilding and ecological restoration, health, agriculture, adventure travel, education, and wildlife trade, among others.

MB: What are some of the topics woven into your book and what are some of the major messages?

SH: Considering the breadth of the book, there are many! But I will answer with two that are close to my heart. First and foremost is that rewilding is not just an ecological exercise. What has led to the need for rewilding is a vicious cycle of ecological degradation and human-nature detachment; rewilding essentially looks to reverse this by shifting to a virtuous cycle of ecological restoration and human-nature connection. Many of the definitions of rewilding focus on the ecological aims of rewilding, but this detracts from the socio-cultural challenges. We know that in reality, in order to overcome many of the barriers to rewilding, we need major changes to predominant economic and land systems, requiring in turn major changes to how humans relate to and coexist with nature.

In this sense, rewilding is far more than reintroducing missing species, planting trees, or reducing grazing (some of the most common interventions used in rewilding projects). It has transformative potential on many levels. Rewilding is less about the interventions used and more about the vision for the future, and this leads me to the second message I wish to highlight, the interventions that are most effective in promoting rewilding will really depend on the context in which rewilding is being carried out. In other words, to rewild effectively, those who are driving rewilding must choose interventions which suit the social and ecological conditions of their focal areas.

Focusing on the future vision of wild, resilient landscapes that balance the needs of life across the whole system, rather than approaching rewilding with pre-conceived interventions, means that you can adapt plans to suit the social and ecological conditions of a given focal area (conditions which change as rewilding progresses). In this way, rewilding becomes an adaptable process which seeks to continually increase the potential to achieve those long-term goals by taking advantage of opportunities and addressing barriers, rather than simply a species reintroduction project (for example). I address this in my chapter on the social-ecological aims of rewilding in the book.

MB: What psychological mindset is needed so that people change their ways so that all different sorts of rewilding are possible, from the individual level to community concerns?

SH: One of the key characteristics of rewilding is that it has grown in reaction against predominant ego, or anthropocentric human values, which place the self or humans above all others. Instead, rewilding promotes ecocentrism. "Ecocentrism" essentially acknowledges, like biocentrism, other species' intrinsic value but critically adds an appreciation for holism and interconnectivities within a system. This encourages systemic, holistic thinking to better understand how our actions affect the resilience and sustainability of the landscapes and resources we use. Integrating complex systems thinking into policy is one of our most difficult and pressing challenges. Systems thinking will provide a framework to map systems to better understand their limits, view connections, and identify and address problems as they arise. If we continue to do this, we will naturally become better at valuing natural processes, sharing our landscapes with other species and understanding our role in maintaining sustainable and resilient systems.

MB: Are you hopeful that as people learn more about the scope of rewilding and that just about anyone can do it, they will change their ways?

SH: Absolutely. We really wanted to highlight the breadth of rewilding and to highlight the extent of what is required to achieve the kind of transformation that is needed. This requires everyone to consider the impacts of their choices and actions on the landscape and on others (including non-human others). We have given talks to the general public and are very often asked for practical advice about how to rewild. I think people assume we will say "don't mow your lawn" or "plant some trees." But everyone has different skills and influence, so it really depends whether you own 100 acres of land or live in an apartment; whether you're a teacher, a lawyer, a farmer, a politician, or someone who runs a local gardening or book club. Think about how you can use that influence to promote rewilding by raising awareness, restoring natural processes, getting people connected to nature, changing policy, or curbing your own footprint. Do what makes sense to your unique situation. Don't wait for permission, just do it. If you have a passion for rewilding then we need you.