London To Become National Park City Thanks To Ealing Man

Daniel Raven-Elison has persuaded majority of council wards to support unique bid

London is soon to become the first National Park City and the man behind the campaign credits Ealing as being his inspiration.

For the last four years National Geographic Explorer, Daniel Raven-Elison from Hanwell, has been raising awareness of the Capital's green spaces, and urban wildlife.

He has walked through all 32 London boroughs and persuaded the majority of the 654 local council wards to get on board - Northfields in Ealing was one of the first to give the plan the thumbs up.

His efforts have finally been rewarded and it's expected the National Park City will be launched next year.

Daniel says: '' There are a number of things that inspired me to think that London could be a National Park City and living in Ealing was one of them. We are so fortunate to have such a wonderful mosaic of beautiful parks, wild nature reserves and feral gardens as well as footpaths, rivers and canals that make up the pedestrian-friendly connective tissue of the city.

'' I hope that Ealingers use the opportunity of London becoming a National Park City to not only celebrate all that has been achieved so far, but to take the leadership - street by street - to make the borough radically more green, healthy and wild.'' 

(map showing the capital’s 3,000 parks plus woodlands, playing fields, nature reserves, city farms, rivers, canals and all the spaces that contribute to London’s parkland)

Inspired by the aims and values of Britain’s national parks, the London National Park City will celebrate the capital’s urban landscape and work with Londoners to make the city greener, healthier and more enjoyable.

The news has been welcomed by many who believe this unique status will help protect the environment as well as provide a boost for future generations.

Sadiq Khan, Mayor of London said:

“It is fantastic news that so many Londoners are getting behind our ambition of making the capital the first National Park City. I’m committed to working to make this a reality and have already ensured I’m protecting and investing in our outstanding green spaces with my draft London Plan and £9m Greener City Fund. I’ll be working closely with the Foundation to help us reach our goal of declaring London a National Park City in 2019.”

David Elliott, Chief Executive of Trees for Cities said:

“The declaration of London as the world’s first National Park City will signify that its ‘green infrastructure’ is as valuable to its citizens as the physical structures around us.  Access to urban nature is one of the most vital components of a liveable city, and as a National Park City we must ensure that future generations have the opportunity to live and thrive around ever-improving green and blue spaces.”

Robert MacFarlane, author of award winning books The Lost Words and Landmarks, exploring words, nature, landscape and the relationship between the two said:

"What a moment for London: a celebration of the wealth of biodiversity and greenness that the city holds, an acknowledgement of how vitally urban lives are bound up with - and enriched by - nature, and a vision for the future of how to deepen and improve our relations with the living world - for what is good for nature is also good for us all."

Read more about the National Park City here

February 23, 2018