The John Muir Award is inspiring action for nature

EIGHT MONTHS on from its re-launch, we are starting to see the impact of the updated John Muir Award on wild places and people.

In that time, 2,200 individuals have achieved their Award, taking action for wild places across Scotland, England, Northern Ireland and Wales. Over 25,000 hours have already been spent actively protecting wild places, including planting trees and wildflowers and advocating for nature with MPs.

The original intention of the Award has remained, which is to encourage people of all backgrounds to care for and protect wild places while fostering a sustainable and long-lasting connection with nature. Participants discover, explore, conserve and share the wild place they’ve chosen, growing their awareness of the importance of wild places and leading to meaningful action.

DISCOVER

The Discover Challenge is about participants being immersed in wild places and experiencing them through their senses. People are encouraged to take time to notice their wild place with a sense of wonder and looking at it in a new light, developing an understanding of what makes wild places feel special.

For a group from a school in Glasgow, their visits to a country park had a clear and positive impact on their physical and mental wellbeing. Both teachers and students reported feeling calmer, happier and more focused after spending time outdoors.

One pupil shared: “I didn’t realise how much I liked being outside until we started this. It makes me feel less stressed.”

Another commented: “It’s the one time I don’t feel like I have to get everything right... I can just enjoy it!”

I’m a nature nerd and I don’t care, thank you for teaching me. It’s not hard to help the environment and all the wildlife. Just wee things make a difference.

EXPLORE

Since March, a total of 116 groups and individuals have explored a variety of wild places across the UK as part of their Award. Woodland was the most popular habitat, with 44 groups exploring wooded areas, followed by grasslands. The remaining wild places included coastal habitats, gardens, allotments and farmland.

Through the Explore element of the Award, participants are encouraged to deepen their connection to their wild place and consider what might threaten it.

The most popular Explore Challenge activity to date has been species identification, highlighting a strong interest in learning about the plants and animals that live in wild places and why it’s so important that they are protected.

“I actually know some trees and plants and things, like it’s mad to think I know these things now,” commented one participant. “I’m a nature nerd and I don’t care, thank you for teaching me. It’s not hard to help the environment and all the wildlife. Just wee things make a difference.”

The Trust’s Alison Austin (left) and Steph McKenna (right) award University of Highlands and Islands students with their certificates after completing the relaunched Award pilot.

I didn’t realise how much I liked being outside until we started this. It makes me feel less stressed.

CONSERVE

By taking action to conserve their chosen wild place, Award participants put what they have learned into action. Achieving the Conserve Challenge requires undertaking practical conservation activities that will protect and restore a wild place.

Litter picking currently tops the list as the most popular activity, with 25 groups to date dedicating time to cleaning up a total of 1,057 bags of litter from their local wild places. Other conservation activities resulted in the removal of 10,112 invasive species, the maintenance of 5,221 metres of footpath, planting more than 1,132 native plants and the creation of hundreds of homes and feeders for wildlife. Seven groups created ponds, picking up skills on how to maintain an outdoor environment while recognising the importance of creating homes for wildlife.

SHARE

Sharing the Award is the final challenge, where participants are invited to tell others about their experiences in their wild place and why they are important. As part of the new Award criteria, we’ve also asked participants to choose a person to cite as their inspiration.

One individual chose John Muir as their inspirational person, sharing their Award findings with an audience of 30 parents and carers, siblings, fellow participants and volunteers along with information on who John Muir was. One participant from a university in Lochaber created a wild places themed podcast, while others made scrapbooks and art.

Elsewhere, a school in Wales has decided to create a documentary on its Award experience and the wild place conserved, which will be presented to all students at the school. As participants deepen their connection with nature and develop a sense of responsibility for the environment, they often inspire those around them to do the same, creating a ripple that reaches friends, families and others. This widening circle of influence helps foster a culture of care and stewardship for wild places.

“Participants developed first-person awareness and experience of a leading light in the local regenerative farming movement in Dartmoor – understanding the processes they have gone through to re-structure their farm and inspire other local farmers to join them on the journey,” noted one Award Leader in the south of England.

“Participants also gained first-person awareness and experience of National Park Rangers and their work to conserve this remarkable environment. Students shared their wonder at what they learned from these two individuals.”

LOOKING FORWARD

The Trust plans to build on the momentum of the redesigned John Muir Award and extend its reach to even more people across the UK. Together with Award participants, leaders and supporters, we can ensure that the Award continues to inspire meaningful connections with nature, helping tackle the climate crisis while fostering wellbeing and a sense of belonging. Now more than ever, wild places need people – and people need wild places.

• This article first appeared in the Autumn/Winter 2025 edition of the John Muir Trust Members' Journal. If you would like to receive our Journal twice a year please consider joining the Trust as a Member.