Ben Holloway, 23 (he/him)
Youth Forum Introductions: Ben Holloway
Early in his ecology career, Ben noticed a worrying lack of young people involved in conservation across Shropshire. Often the youngest person at events, he saw the need for a platform to connect and empower young people passionate about nature. Through the Shropshire Wildlife Trust Youth Forum, Ben hopes to change that—by creating opportunities for young people to learn, engage, and contribute to local conservation efforts.
Early into my career in ecology I found it quite alarming how few people around my own age were engaging with ecology/conservation activities in Shropshire.
At events or activities I would often find myself the youngest in the room, sometimes by quite a margin! The Youth Forum, in my eyes, should seek to be a platform to educate and engage other young people in the county in the conservation work taking place on their doorstep.
Younger people often feel excluded from activities, a majority of the time not intentionally, but this important conservation work will only be sustainable with a diverse group of younger people engaging with it. The ‘green sector’ is also growing day by day, but discovering opportunities and getting work experience is challenging for those at the beginning of their careers.
Ultimately, I hope that the Youth Forum can engage the young people of Shropshire to support nature recovery; create a community to learn from those valued older members of the conservation world and develop the next generation of nature fiends!
The Youth Forum is open to anyone aged between 16 and 30 and live, work or study in Shropshire or Telford and Wrekin. If you are interested in being involved email youth@shropshirewildlifetrust.org.uk and we will be in touch with more information.