From record-breaking heatwaves to devastating floods, the impacts of climate change are no longer distant threats but everyday realities reshaping our landscapes and our lives.

Across the UK, The Wildlife Trusts are already helping nature adapt. We’re working on a national scale to build resilience, restore habitats and show the huge benefits of putting nature at the heart of climate adaptation, not just for wildlife, but for people too.

Take the Pevensey Levels in Sussex: a vast, low-lying area of grassland that has become increasingly dry due to climate change and water extraction. Sussex Wildlife Trust is revitalising this important wetland to hold more water again, helping to bring back the wading birds and waterfowl that would have once been in abundance.

When the Project Officer, Charlotte Pestell, visited the site in May last year during an exceptionally dry spring she “knew things had gone well when it was still a complete necessity to wear wellies”. She described the “delight to walk onto the reserve, splashing along and marvelling at the big skies reflected in the new pools.”

At The Wildlife Trusts we regularly review progress and consider what we must do differently to prepare for the extreme and unpredictable weather that has become the norm. Our latest progress report, Resilient Nature, celebrates climate adaptation work and collaborations across the UK.

For many years, our work has been guided by the Lawton Principles – creating more, bigger, better and joined up natural habitats. Now, we are building on these principles through more flexibility, more diversity and the ability to bounce back. We’re applying this to a wide range of habitats, helping wildlife and people adapt to the changing climate.