Global Gathering & Collective Awards 2024

27.05.24

It was a real pleasure to join the other Conservation Collective (CC) foundations in May for the annual Global Gathering. This year, Devon Environment Foundation (DEF) kindly hosted everyone & created an inspiring programme of workshops, field trips, knowledge exchange & fun.

Once a year, CC members from around the world meet together in person at the Global Gathering. This year, we all met in Devon at the amazing Sharpham House, for a 3 day retreat before travelling to London for the annual Collectives Awards at Wild by Tart.

Each day saw us combining workshops to share experience & learning with site visits to some of DEF’s inspiring grantees & some quality time together too.

Sunday 19th May

We were truly spoilt by the weather which enabled us to see Devon in all it’s full glory. After meeting up at Paddington Station to travel together to Totnes, we were collected from there & taken to Sharpham House, our base for the next few days.

After some time settling in & introducing ourselves to colleagues old & new, we took advantage of the weather to hold the first workshops outside before an early tea. After tea, we headed to the nearby Blackpool Sands beach to enjoy the glorious evening sunshine combined with sea dips (for the brave) with toasted S’mores round the fire pit (thank you Devon Concierge Club) & a beer (thanks Salcombe Brewery).

Making the most of a glorious summer evening at the beach

Monday 20^th May

The day started early with a morning yoga class led by Sekoah (whose day job is as the Development Officer for the core Conservation Collective team) before breakfast then some ‘spotlight’ sessions where we learnt more about each other’s inspiring grantees. This was followed by an excellent workshop, focusing on the future we want to work towards for our individual foundations & local environments as well as the Conservation Collective overall, led by Holly Tuppen.

After lunch it was all aboard the coach & off to Brixham to meet Gary Joliffe, who runs one of DEF’s longest-standing projects – Till the Coast is Clear – where we learnt about his work & split into groups to help with a beach clean & to sort plastic waste for recycling. In a couple of hours we had collected over 40kg of plastic from the harbour sea wall & neighbouring beach – satisfying to remove so much from the environment but also demoralising that there was so much there in the first place.

Following this, we joined some other DEF grantees, along with the DEF Advisory Board, Steering Committee & friends for a magical wildlife boat cruise with Funfish Trips. The weather was again very kind & we were treated to sightings of various local wildlife, including a playful pod of dolphins who swam alongside the boat for a very special 15 minute show!

The day drew to a close with a delicious dinner at Rockfish in Brixham, hosted by DEF’s co-founders Mitch Tonks & Simon Nicholls, where Sophie Pavelle read an excerpt from her book, Forget Me Not.

Clearing plastic from the harbour sea wall

Tuesday 21^st May

We started the day with more spotlight interviews, then it was straight to the Apricot Centre to meet DEF grantee, Rachel Phillips, for a walking tour of the farm and to learn more about the impact of the Regenerative Agriculture training programme DEF funded. Everyone left immensely inspired by the Apricot Centre’s journey and impact. From there we walked to the Glade in Dartington for lunch and more collective talks and spotlight interviews in the woods, before enjoying a group kayak, paddle board and canoe session on the beautiful Dart!

Relaxing & enjoying the beautiful River Dart

Wednesday 22^nd May

The time had flown by & already it was our last morning in Devon! After breakfast spotlight interviews, we caught the train to London and settled into our hotel in Victoria before the Collectives Awards ceremony at Wild by Tart an inspirational evening with ample opportunities to network whilst celebrating each others’ achievements. HIEF was very proud to win the 2024 Award for Protecting native species for our support for SeaWilding & their restoring native oysters projects. What a fitting end to a wonderful week!