Last week, we noted that BBC presenter and self-styled “conservationist” Chris Packham was promoting holidays for 110 guests to South Georgia; emitting 115 tonnes of CO2 on their way.
We asked whether Chris might be making a nice little profit from these holidays, and this week The Times confirmed that the company hosting the trip, Exodus Travel, provide income to the developing world, to fund projects including two new schools in India’s Bandhavgarh National Park.
This is of course admirable. But we can’t help but think that perhaps Packham should be looking closer to home. We all know that he is actively calling for a ban on driven grouse shooting, which would destroy the livelihoods of so many members of the Moorland Communities.
Perhaps he would think about donating some of his own income to help fund rural schools, such as Bleasdale Primary School in the Forest of Bowland, which has had to close due to a shortage of pupils. Stories such as these are direct proof of the human impact that Packham’s allegations are having on Moorland Communities, and something that we don’t think he can be allowed to ignore.