“There is a drive to make the world of nature a place for everyone”

The conservation industry is the second-least diverse sector in the UK, but the times are changing...

- DAWOOD QURESHI

It’s been a tough week; yards of university work piling up, financial stress, and personal issues – my mind is scraping to a halt. I need to escape this suffocating bubble. But where to go? The answer presents itself as refreshingly as it has done before. Go to the sea.

The Portsmouth coast is stunning. The salty tang of the ocean air sits deliciously on your tongue, and the crunch of cockles, mussels, and sand beneath your feet is a rhythm to calm the soul. But I’ve not always been this comfortable in nature. There was a time when my heart would beat faster and my instincts would sharpen as I stooped into a bird hide or passed others on a woodland trail. I would never have dreamt of going on these adventures alone so audaciously.

Nature is so often said to have a calming effect, but it is often forgotten that this narrative only exists because those who have narrated it feel this way. The views of the minority that feel uncomfortable in this paradise have generally been ignored.

I speak from experience. I would walk into a reserve and not once see a person that looked as I did. I would wander past couples whose smiles would turn down as they glanced upon my face and noticed the shades apart we were. The feeling of being different crept in every time.

And yet. Things are changing. I find solace far more in nature nowadays, I take pride in my difference and seek strength from the similar souls I have found and the sense that diversity and inclusion are top of the agenda. There is a drive now to make the world of nature a place for everyone, no matter who you are or where you hail from.