Protect grasslands to fight climate change

World leaders for nature will convene at COP15 meetings in Geneva and Kunming to discuss the the critical state of nature on our planet.

Grasslands play a vital role in the fight against climate change, protecting and restoring these environments is crucially important. Grasslands are among the most vital and varied habitats on the planet. Grasslands include the cerrados of South America, the Great Plains and prairies of North America, the savannahs of Africa, the rangelands of Australia, the steppes of Asia, and the fields and meadows of Europe.

Species-rich grasslands offer ways of reducing the effect of greenhouse gases that cause climate change. Healthy soil acts as a carbon sink - grasslands hold around a third of the earth’s carbon.

Yet we are at risk of losing them entirely.

Since the beginning of the 20th century, the UK alone has lost 97% of its meadows. The pollinators such as butterflies and bumblebees that create these biodiverse environments are also at risk. A third of the country’s bumblebee species are listed on conservation priority species lists due to their large-scale declines in distribution. 70% of butterfly species in the UK have experienced population decline since the 1970s.

Grasslands+ is a coalition of three of the UK’s leading conservation charities which have come together to protect and restore the planet’s grasslands, savannahs, plains, heaths, steppes and meadows. The coalition is formed by the Bumblebee Conservation Trust, Butterfly Conservation and Plantlife.

Grasslands+ is campaigning for these habitats to be given international protections to mitigate the effects of climate change, increase biodiversity and ensure that these areas of natural beauty are preserved for future generations to enjoy.

Please donate to support our campaign. Donations will be collected by Plantlife on behalf of the Grasslands+ coalition. Funds raised will be used for the purposes of the campaign and divided equally across the coalition partners to most effectively deliver outreach to our politicians. We aspire to make them see the importance of protecting and enhancing grasslands as part of the fight against climate change. 

Please give what you can and share this page with your friends and family.

Thank you.