#Rhondda Cynon Taf | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

invisibleicewands · 5 months ago

Text

‘Theatre changed my life,’ says Michael Sheen. ‘Now my passion is for helping others’

Theatre can change lives. And I should know. It’s changed my life more than I’d ever have imagined. Back in 2011, a play called The Passion took over the streets of my hometown of Port Talbot. And I haven’t been the same since.

Perhaps the perception of actors before a play is that we’ll learn a few lines, try on a few costumes... break a leg. But with The Passion, I went all in like never before.

I also met the people doing vital work in the community I grew up in, helping vulnerable people who need it the most, often at make-or-break moments. Being at this coalface of community opened my eyes.

This patchwork of people holding society together with the thinnest of threads, going over and above each and every day to help people in almost every aspect of their lives.

I saw then – and I continue to see – kind-hearted, warm, tolerant people helping out their fellow humans to bring communities together. These are the people who make our nation what it is.

The good deeds that these people did – from giving young carers a night off to go bowling, to setting up the only grief counselling service in the area – generally worked under fragile funding and often were under-appreciated by the wider community.

I knew then that I had to devote as much time and energy as I could to helping, however I could.

In the decade and a half since The Passion, I’ve started projects around homelessness, high-cost credit, care, and local journalism. And for the past 18 months, these have come under the banner of a movement known as Mab Gwalia.

Mab Gwalia believes that opportunity should not only be available to those who can afford it. The ambition is to build a movement that makes change.

We support people and projects which work in three ways: projects creating opportunity and fighting for fairness; projects rooted in communities, helping people directly; and projects that work in new and ambitious ways to deliver change.

My work on The Passion made me realise there’s so many people out there doing this. And Mab Gwalia has supported as many of them as we can.

This has included: Army veterans in Merthyr Tydfil. Autism support for children in Rhondda Cynon Taf. Food growing in Pembrokeshire. Opportunities for women in Swansea who’ve suffered knock-back after knock-back. Community skills hubs in Rhyl.

Theatre changed my life. Now I want the spark it set off in me to do the same for others.

My ancestor, Nanny Blower, the lion tamer

My great-great grandmother was called Mary Ann-North. Or Nanny Blower, as we know her.

She left Wales for New York in 1896 where she became, wait for it, an elephant and lion tamer for the Bostock and Wombwell Circus. Fast forward to today and young people in the Upper Neath Valleys don’t have to run away to join the circus. Organised Kaos comes to them.

Kaos stands for “keeping adolescents off the streets” and that’s what they do. I first met them on The Passion (riding BMXs through fire – them, not me) and now Mab Gwalia has helped fund their work.

Manics band drum up £15,000 for drama study

“Libraries gave us power” – the opening lyrics to Wales’ second national anthem, A Design For Life.

The Manic Street Preachers wrote a version of the song for The Passion, performing it at The Last Supper in the Seaside Social & Labour Club… before being arrested and hauled off stage for the show’s added drama.

The band is working with Mab Gwalia to fund a drama scholarship, providing financial support to students who need it. Since 2021, 11 students have received up to £15,000 each academic year.

We’ve just committed to another three years. The students tell us it gives them a chance to believe. The arts should be for everyone.

Mothers Matter, like my mum and partner Anna

My mum’s going through a tough time as my dad is living with Alzheimer’s. It’s a lot to take. I’m thankful every day for how my partner Anna is with our daughters.

It’s an understatement, but mothers matter. That’s the name of an organisation Mab Gwalia has supported. Mothers Matter helps mums suffering from loneliness and isolation through support, counselling, wellbeing hubs and workshops. Mothers in South Wales don’t have to do it alone.

We give a voice to working class writers

A summer reading recommendation: Only Here, Only Now by Tom Newlands. It’s Cora’s story – a teenage girl with ADHD finding her way through life in the early 90s in post-industrial Scotland. She’ll change the way you think about neurodivergence. It’s an unforgettable debut novel.

Tom was part of A Writing Chance, a project I developed alongside the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, New Writing North and Northumbria University. The Office for National Statistics says nearly half all authors are from the most privileged backgrounds.

So we’re trying to redress that balance. To turn up voices not always heard. Tom was one of the first group – 11 writers who received bursaries and mentoring with industry leaders including regular writer of this column, Ros Wynne-Jones.

You can hear their stories in the BBC Sounds podcast Margins to Mainstream with Michael Sheen. Now, 16 more writers are on board. Think of the stories to come.

My debut at the ‘brilliant Welsh party’

With origins dating from 1176, the National Eisteddfod is Europe’s largest cultural festival. A celebration of Welsh language culture with performances and competitions in everything from composition to cynghanedd (a type of Welsh poetry). And, last weekend, in Pontypridd, I made my debut on the maes (site or field).

My four-year-old daughter now refers to it as “that brilliant Welsh party” which neatly describes the atmosphere. On stage, the actress Sian Phillips said the sounds of words in Welsh “echoed with the language”.

I felt those echoes all day. Spoken in the park by families. Performed by young actors. Sung with emotion by choirs. It was a beautiful thing.

Homeless World Cup a beautiful game

Next month, the Homeless World Cup takes place in Seoul, South Korea. Bringing the tournament to Cardiff in 2019, seeing 500 players with experience of homelessness represent their nation on the football field, was something I’ll never forget.

If you can’t wait until then, watch The Beautiful Game on Netflix. Keep an eye on Callum Scott Howells, a brilliant young Welsh actor who I directed in BBC drama The Way (available on iPlayer).

Nye NHS vision seen on world stage

I’ve spent much of this year playing the man who had the vision and valour to create the National Health Service. Nye was theatre at its most far-reaching.

There were sold-out runs in the National Theatre in London, the Wales Millennium Centre in Cardiff. And cinema screenings were viewed by people all over the world.

On the night we filmed the NT Live screening, NHS workers from around the country were invited to be in the audience. They knew that at that moment, a global audience was learning about our welfare state and the man who was behind it.

My dad came along one night. He was just a little kid when Bevan’s idea became reality. Soon there’ll be very few left who can remember what life was like before the NHS.

Let’s hope it stays that way. Can the new government come up with a progressive policy that inspires a story which packs them in 75 years on? We can but dream.

#Michael Sheen #Daily Mirror #family #The Passion

29 notes · View notes

gingersnaptaff · 26 days ago

Text

Nest of Deheubarth and Gwenllian ferch Gruffudd ap Cynan

Lemme talk about two fabulous Welsh women who deserve to be yelled about more because they occupy fascinating roles in Welsh history and also they were SISTERS-IN-LAW. If they'd met I do think they would have a very Morgan Le Fay and Guinevere relationship (without the casual murder? Hmm.)

Anyways, Nest of Deheubarth (Also known as Nesta, or Annest, was the 'Helen of Wales,' which, seriously, we gotta stop appellating Helen of Troy to women whose beauty starts wars. It is a handy metric, but, like, neither were THEIR FAULT.) daughter of Rhys ap Tewdwr - yes, as in the Tudors. They have links to them through Rhys' son, Gruffudd - and Gwladys ferch Rhiwallon ap Cynfyn of Powys. (Said it before will say it again intermarriage between Gwynedd, Deheubarth, and Powys is super common.)

(This is Nest with Henry II. Note how they both have crowns on in bed. Like, I know it's to telegraph they're royal but like imagine them kissing. *clang* sorry, my crown keeps slipping off my head *clang* sŵs.)

Anyways, born in about 1085 (give or take) Nest was Princess of Deheubarth. Normally, this would entail being married to another Welsh royal family - and possibly your cousin, yeesh - but, sadly (or happily depending on your view) this was not to be the case for Nest.

Her father, Rhys, was King of Deheubarth until 1093. Deheubarth had largely been left untouched by the Normans thanks to a peacy treaty brokered by Rhys and thr King of England William Rufus but, sadly, Henry I soon put a stop to that after his brother, William Rufus' death. (For those wondering he got shot in an arrow in the New Forest. Some say Henry did it so he could assume the throne)

Rhys perished in battle at Breacon against Bernard de Neufmarche's forces, with him being beheaded at Penrhys in Rhondda Cynon Taf (Penrhys literally means Rhys' head.) Brut Y Tywysogion records: 'Rhys ap Tewdwr, king of Deheubarth, was slain by the Frenchmen who were inhabiting Brycheiniog, and with him fell the kingdom of the Britons' His death allowed the Normans to take Deheubarth unopposed and they wouldn't even begin to break their yoke until Gwenllian.

Anyways, Nest, her mother, her half-brothers, and her sisters were captured by the Normans once they'd murdered Rhys and were sent to either prison or the Anglo-Norman court to live as hostages to prevent any further rebellions. Meanwhile, Nest's younger brother, Gruffydd, was spirited away to Ireland (more about him later!).

But even there Nest wouldn't exactly be allowed to fly under the radar. She grew into a beauty - don't all captured foreign historical women, honestly? Like, grim - and caught the eye of Henry I, becoming his mistress, bearing him a son -- also called Henry* as it goes. See, having the same name as your dad is just a Welsh trait, ngl.

Soon after, in around about 1102 but possibly later, and once Henry I had dealt with some rebellions from his subjects (namely Robert de Bellême) he married Nest off to Gerald FitzWalter who was the constable of Pembroke Castle, purely cuz he sided with him. Nest's feelings are not recorded in history, but I'd imagine she was both delighted to be going home to Wales and distraught that she was married to a Norman lord who'd had a hand in subjugating her country.

Either way, with her marriage to Gerald she was both seen as a Norman - as were her sons, collectively known as the Geraldines, famous for subjugating Ireland, and nephew, Gerald of Wales - and as a figurehead for Welsh resistance.

And it's this that gives her the claim for being the Helen of Wales. Now, various reports of how shit went down are given but the facts are thus: in either 1106 or 1109 her cousin, Owain ap Cadwgan, Prince of Powys, kidnapped Nest and her sons. Gerald escaped either by escaping down the latrine (smelly toilet pit) or fighting his way out. Some say this was during an Eisteddfod given by Owain's dad, some say this was at Cilgerran Castle, a Norman castle that Gerald had built. Idk. Either way, she was once again, a hostage. Kari L. Maude says Owain was 'overcome by her [Nest's] charm,' but, equally, he could've been making a point of raiding the castle to spite a Norman and carrying off his cousin to try and force the Welsh to rebel. 'What is clear,' Maund further writes, 'Is that Owain was engaged on a consistent campaign against the Norman colonies in Wales.'

(OR, Nest had engineered the whole affair deliberately cuz she and Owain were lovers. There is talk that Owain was gonna be betrothed to Nest before everything that occurred but that is spurious speculation so idk. Whatever floats your boat, I guess.)

ANYWAYS. The earliest account of this shenaniganery we have is by Caradoc of Llancarfan which relates that: 'At the instigation of the Devil, he [Owain] was moved by passion and love for the woman, and with a small company with him...he made for the castle by night.' Once he'd done this he took Nest and her kids to a hunting lodge by the Eglwyseg Rocks north of Llangollen, presumably to live in what he thought was relative peace.

Hoo boi, he was WRONG. The abduction of Nest, done with her consent or not, aroused the wrath of both the Normans (for obvious reasons those HEIRS ARE NORMAN-BLOODED GIVE THE SONS BACK) and the Welsh (I guess because this was seen as a Welshman abducting a Princess of Deheubarth? Unsure.) Either way, the Normans bribed Owain's Welsh enemies to attack him which they did. (Pls remember that the Powysians hated Deheubarthians and Gwyddelians hated them both ect, etc.)

Owain's dad throughout all of this desperately tried to persuade his son to give Nest back ('Pls, pls, pls, Owain, your himbo arse has gotten us into SO MUCH SHIT!' I can imagine him saying. This does, however, ignore the fact that Cadwgan himself was sanctioning his son's raids.) With Owain just brushing him off. Nest, once again, saves a man's life and entreats Owain: 'If you would have me stay with you and be faithful to you, then send my children home to their father.'

Owain did so, but before long, both he and his dad were then obliged to seek safety in Ireland lest further attacks were made on them. Nest was also returned to her husband. Whether willingly or not idk but yeah.

Now, by this time (1112), her brother Gruffudd had returned from his sojourn in Ireland and was trying to drum up support to get Deheubarth back under his rule, particularly with the aid of the King of Gwynedd, Gruffudd ap Cynan, who would ultimately become Gruffydd's father-in-law when Gruffydd married his daughter, Gwenllian 🥳🥳🥳. It's interesting to imagine that Nest was giving her brother a hand in this but we have no textual support to say so. Tbf, perhaps she did and she was just so good at doing it that it's just remained undetected for hundreds of years. 🤷🏻‍♀️

War broke out between Gruffydd and the Normans. Gruffydd, expecting to have his inheritance given to him and no liking to hear the word 'NO' yelled at him Henry I with a fuckin megaphone, fuckin burned Carmarthen and then destroyed Arberth in 1115, alongside 'members of the younger nobility'. (As he should, in all honesty.)

Owain ap Cadwgan who had, by this time, tootled back from Ireland, been PARDONED BY THE KING (Henry I, that is.), and became prince of Powys after his dad was ASSASSINATED (Assassin's Creed: Powys edition when?) Obliged by Henry I to rendezvous with a Norman force to proceed against Gruffydd, Owain found himself meeting up with Nest's husband, Gerald.

( Sjdjxjxjddkxj Could not make that up. Sounds like a Hollyoaks episode.)

Gerald, wanting to fuckin Murk Owain for what he did to his kids and wife, proceeded to Murk Owain. I do honestly feel like Gerald also thought 'If he kills my bro-in-law my wife will fuckin KILL ME.' so I respect this for being In Fear of his wife.

Gerald himself died in 1135, yet Nest delightfully, was still going. She married Robert FitzStephen, having another kid to the five she'd already had with Gerald, including the mother of my arch-nemesis Gerald of Wales, Angharad.

It isn't known when she died but it's estimated that it was about 1135/1136, thus allowing her to see the start of her brother and sister-in-law's rebellion that would eventually put the land that the Normans had so cruelly taken from the back into the hands of their family.

A note:

*Henry would later be killed in Ynys Môn during a battle against Nest's brother-in-law Owain Gwynedd, coincidently led by Owain's son - and my fuckin pookie - Hywel ab Owain Gwynedd. Apparently, again according to the Brut, Henry died 'by a shower of lances.'

Up next: Gwenllian!!!!!!!

Sadly we have no drawings of Gwenllian, but that's okay cuz artists are more than up to the challenge. Also, idk why but the fact that she has red hair is generally accepted even though we don't know how she looked. I guess it's because bravery is telegraphed as red, or at least fieryness which, ngl, she defo was.

Born in about 1097, Gwenllian was the daughter of the King of Gwynedd, Gruffudd ap Cynan, and his wife, Angharad ferch Owain.

Gwynedd, at this time, was perhaps the most stable of the Welsh kingdoms, although Gruffudd ap Cynan HAD had to battle like fuck to free Gwynedd from the Normans before he could even sit on the throne. (He got thrown in Chester for a time and had to be rescued by a very tall man called Cynwrig. Will do a post on him because he's FUN) so rebellion is very much in Gwenllian's blood. We don't know much about her childhood although we can assume it was happy and filled with the various activities of a Welsh Princess.

Still, that would soon shift.

Gwenllian, at around about thirteen /fourteen or so (remember girls became women when they reached 14 under Welsh law), soon became involved with Gruffydd ap Rhys after her father hosted him when Gruffydd was hoping to summon up aid for his Getting Rid of the Normans scheme.

Unfortunately for Gruffydd - who I will now call Griff so as not to confuse with Gruffudd ap Cynan - this place at the Gwyddelian court became tenuous. Gruffudd ap Cynan, unwilling to further inflame tensions with the Normans after he'd just recovered Ynys Môn (Anglesey) from them and now ruled kinda peacefully, elected to hand Griff over to them. Somehow - probably through Gruffudd ap Cynan's nobles - news of this rescued Griff and he once again left for Deheubarth.

Only he wouldn't travel alone.

Gwenllian, unwilling to let the man she loved slip away, eloped with him and became his wife. They soon became 'the Robin Hood's of Wales' as Philip Warner writes and set about killing the Normans. Griff, emboldened by his and his wife's success hastened to meet with his father-in-law, Gruffudd ap Cynan, in an effort to get troops.

So, Gwenllian was left to helm her husband's forces by herself. To be fair to her SHE DID. AND honestly, this is why she's compared to 'Buddug' or Bouddica. Normans led raids a just as she and Griff had done against them- and she was compelled to rise an army for Deheubarth's defense.

The Great Revolt of 1136, as it was known, was to be Gwenllian's last conflict for she and two of her sons, Maredudd and Maelwgyn were beheaded by the Normans after their forces were routed at Cydweli Castle. Yet Gwenllian would not be forgotten. Her youngest son, the Lord Rhys, would become Prince of Deheubarth and recover much of the territory that had once been their family's. And Nest? Well, Griff had sent time in her and Gerald's castles as he went about letting how to get Dejeubarth back. It's tempting to think that she and Gwenllian met.

Also, Dr Andrew Breeze HAS argued that Gwenllian is the author of the Mabinogi because much of the action takes place in Gwynedd and Deheubarth where Gwenllian was based. Might it have been a tract to inspire people to rebellion? Or for women to know their worth? It's tempting but we'll never know. We can only guess. All we can say is 'Dial Achos Gwenllian!'

(That's Revenge for Gwenllian btw. Long may she reign, as it were.)

12 notes · View notes

mezzopieno-news · 7 months ago

Text

LA FARFALLA EUFIDRIA TORNA DOPO ESSERSI QUASI ESTINTA

Grazie ad un progetto dell’Initiative for Nature Conservation Cymru (INCC), sarà adesso possibile osservare in natura, nelle campagne gallesi del Regno Unito, una rara farfalla quasi scomparsa.

Rob Parry fondatore dell’INCC ha portato avanti un progetto, iniziato nel 2020, per evitare la completa estinzione dell’Euphydryas Aurinia, la farfalla dalle inconfondibili ali color crema e arancioni. Una popolazione che può ora essere avvistata nell’area naturale di Llantrisant Common a Rhondda Cynon Taf. Alla fine del 2020, l’INCC ha ricevuto una licenza per raccogliere 80 bruchi in natura per avviare un programma di riproduzione e allevamento in cattività. Parry, insieme al suo team, ha creato nuove colonie di bruchi per rilasciarli nuovamente nella zona una volta trasformatisi in farfalle.

Secondo l’ultimo rapporto di State of the Nature, quasi una specie su cinque in Galles è classificata come a rischio di scomparsa negli anni a venire. L’approccio dell’INCC è quindi quello di intervenire prima che succeda la catastrofe e cioè la completa estinzione di una specie. Dopo la fase del rilascio delle farfalle il gruppo dell’INCC avvierà un periodo di monitoraggio che durerà diversi anni con la speranza che la popolazione di farfalle riesca a prosperare. Le farfalle sono infatti riconosciute come indicatori di biodiversità e quindi fondamentali per la salute dei nostri ecosistemi.

___________________

Fonte: Initiative for Nature Conservation Cymuru; Butterfly Conservation; State of Nature; foto di Pexel

VERIFICATO ALLA FONTE | Guarda il protocollo di Fact checking delle notizie di Mezzopieno

BUONE NOTIZIE CAMBIANO IL MONDO | Firma la petizione per avere più informazione positiva in giornali e telegiornali

Se trovi utile il nostro lavoro e credi nel principio del giornalismo costruttivo non-profit | sostieni Mezzopieno

#mezzopieno #tgbuonenotizie #buonenotizie #buonenotiziedalmondo

8 notes · View notes

princesscatherinemiddleton · 2 years ago

Text

The Princess of Wales’ Stats - First Quarter

In the first three months of 2023, the Princess of Wales completed 35 engagements, averaging around 11.6 engagements a month. Her work rate was fairly steady, completing 12 engagements in both January and February and 11 in March. She also appeared in four released photos, videos, or statements in both January and March, while she did so 7 times in February - many of which were linked to the launch of her Shaping Us campaign. In January, Catherine was spotted four times. As well as this, four unusual photos of Catherine have appeared during this quarter - a photo of the Wales family at Winter Wonderland (taken in December) surfaced on January 1st, while a photo of Catherine from Halloween 2022 was released by an acquaintane a few days later. Similarly, two wedding photographs appeared - one from the wedding of Catherine's step-sister-in-law Laura Lopes and one from her brother James Middleton - both appearing to show Catherine in the background. All three months have been fairly quiet for the Princess of Wales.

Of her 27 patronages, she has visited or completed work for 5, totalling 18 engagements in total. In January, Catherine completed nine engagements on behalf of her patronages. 8 of those were for the Royal Foundation of the Prince and Princess of Wales, while the other was for the Rugby Football League. In February, two of Catherine's six patronage related engagements were for the Royal Foundation, while she also completed one apiece for the Rugby Football Union, The Irish Guards, Polar Preet's Polar Mission, and the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club. In March, four of her engagements were related to the Royal Foundation, while two more were related to The Irish Guards.

Of her 35 engagements, 16 have been solo while another 16 were when she was accompanied by her husband, the Prince of Wales. Two engagements took place with the Crown Prince and Princess of Norway, while Catherine also undertook one engagement with the wider British Royal Family - Commonwealth Observation Day.

All of her engagements have taken place in the UK, in England (31) and Wales (4). More specifically, 15* of her engagements took place in Windsor, the first time her most common UK-based engagement site has not been London. She also halso undertaken 5 engagements in London, 2 in Leeds and 2 in Cornwall. She also undertook engagements in Liverpool, Birkenhead, Luton, Surrey, Derby, Slough, Cardiff, Salisbury, Llanelli, Port Talbot, and Rhondda Cynon Taf. NOTE: A number of her engagements were meetings and could have taken place in either London or Windsor. A number of the Princess of Wales’ meetings were confirmed to take place in Windsor Castle, I will be counting these as taking place there until informed otherwise.

With the launch of the next phase of her Early Years Campaign - the Shaping Us campaign - many of her engagements have linked to the Early Years, with fourteen engagements falling in that area specifically, with another one engagement linked to mental health and one further related to children and young people. 4 of her engagements have linked to both the military and sport, while 3 engagements have been focused on diplomatic natures. Two engagements were on the theme of culture. She also undertook one engagement specifically linked to the outdoors, as well as one linked to the Commonwealth. Four of her engagements did not fit into the theme headings I have created.

Clotheswise, her most worn identified designer has once again been Alexander McQueen, followed by Burberry, LK Bennett and Roland Mouret, although she has worn sixunidentifed looks. Her most carried bag designer was Mulberry, followed by Emmy London. Her most-worn shoe designer is, again, Gianvito Rossi, althought she has worn her Blundstone shoes four times. In terms of jewellery, she has predominantly worn Shyla London pieces, although 8 of her accessories have been unidentified. or pieces inherited from the late Princess of Wales (with 5 wears each), She has also worn items from Daniella Draper and Spells of Love with 3 wears each. When it comes to hats, Catherine was seen in five hats, each made by a different milliner/brand - Inverni, Juliette Botterill, N Peal, Sean Barratt, and Jane Taylor.

#mine #kate #statistics #docquarter

29 notes · View notes

warningsine · 7 months ago

Text

A rare butterfly is being reintroduced into the Welsh countryside decades after it disappeared, thanks to a team of conservationists.

Hundreds of marsh fritillary butterflies, with their unmistakeable cream and orange wings, can now be spotted on Llantrisant Common in Rhondda Cynon Taf.

The man behind this resurgence is Rob Parry, the founder of Initiative for Nature Conservation Cymru.

His team took caterpillars from the wild, reared them and released them back into the area - a controversial approach but one he feels is increasingly necessary.

"Many of our species are on the brink, right on the edge, and we can't afford to monitor them disappearing," he told BBC Wales Live.

"Once we do that - getting them back is so much harder. That's why these projects - where we are intervening before they become extinct - is really important."

According to the latest State of Nature Report almost one in five species in Wales were classed as being at risk of vanishing in years to come.

But why butterflies and why this particular one?

According to Butterfly Conservation UK, butterflies are recognised as indicators of biodiversity and their survival can provide a serious warning about our environment.

"Marsh fritillaries are incredibly rare and we are losing populations in Wales as well as throughout the UK and Europe," Rob said.

"Wales is still a bit of a stronghold for the butterfly, so it felt right. The marsh fritillary is a bit of an icon here."

The project has seen butterflies mating and laying eggs on the common.

Vaughn Matthews, who has helped rear and release caterpillars, said it was "an incredible experience" after "20-odd years of there being no marsh fritillaries on there".

But reintroduction is not without its critics.

Last year, the UK government’s Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said this was not a priority and it aimed to reach biodiversity targets through methods such as habitat restoration.

Natural Resources Wales rejected Rob's original project proposal in 2016, which he felt was "a sign of where nature conservation is or was at".

"A lot of it has been protecting what we’ve already got, monitoring and doing science, research and so on," he added.

This changed when he resubmitted plans in 2019.

Liz Halliwell from NRW said she understood the role reintroduction could play, but it had to be considered against other options.

"This is one tool in a toolbox of things that we need for species recovery," she said.

"We need to look first at the causes of the things that have made that species decline or go extinct.

"It's that balancing act of saying 'it’s important, let's do it properly'."

She also points to some of the risks of reintroduction, saying "it is not enough to just get some animals and chuck them out" as there could be risks to native wildlife through competition and disease.

"Habitat restoration would be needed in advance to make sure you're not releasing animals that are then lost as well," she added.

The Initiative for Nature Conservation Cymru always intended that the caterpillars' environment would be at the heart of their plans.

"Although the focus is the butterfly, fundamentally, it’s about getting more habitat in the landscape," said Rob.

The butterflies thrive on Rhôs Pasture, a distinctive marshy grassland, that is home to a number of different wetland species.

Food production and a movement from cattle grazing to sheep in Wales has led to a lot of this land being drained.

Rob and his team have been working with landowners and communities to help bring the landscape back to life and give their butterflies the best chance of survival.

In response to wider reservations around reintroduction, he said: I would love to see a Wales where we didn't have to intervene, but that ship sailed decades ago."

A period of monitoring is the next phase for the project and a team will monitor them over several years with the hope they are able to build the population and thrive.

They then look at other species that might need a helping hand.

#biodiversity #butterflies #wales #environment #conservation #news tag

2 notes · View notes

bladevvise · 7 months ago

Text

the rainbow that appears when it rains under a sunny sky / the sound of humming underneath your breath / the warmth of a hug from someone who loves you / a splash of whiskey in your coffee after a long day / sliding on a soft sweater knitted with love / the calm in the center of the storm / tending to a bursting greenhouse / a briefcase full to burst / a tiredness that evaporates when you return home / keeping your wits about you / obligation driving every movement / a crackle of lightning / hiding the monstrous beneath softness.

basic information

name: edward tejas michael tonks. nickname. ted, teddy, tej. age / date of birth. 28 / september 5th (7:07pm). place of birth. aberdare, rhondda cynon taf, wales. blood status. muggleborn. affiliation. the tonks family the order of the phoenix. gender / pronouns. cis male / he/him. sexuality. heterosexual. relationship status. happily married. occupation. law wizard, dmle prosecution offices.

physical information

face claim. dev patel. height. 6′ 1½″ / 187 cm. weight. 68kg / 10st 9lb. build. ectomorph / tall and thin, narrow torsos, long limbs, small amounts of body fat, trouble building muscle mass, narrow hips and clavicles, small joints (wrists/ankles), stringy muscle bellies. dominant hand. left, but is ambidextrous. eye color. brown. hair color / texture. black / naturally thick, tends towards curly/wavy. scent. cedarwood, lemon, clary sage, bergamot, mint. recognizable features / scars. warm brown eyes. laughter lines around eyes and mouth. scar on his right knee from falling off his bike into the neighbors rose bush. white scars peppering left calf and left forearm from potions accident in third year. birthmark in shape of perfect circle above his heart. speech patterns / accent. ted grew up in a multigenerational household - welsh, the tongue of his mother, and gujarati, the tongue of his father. english rounded out the languages as his base, and though his accent tends towards received pronunciation these days - if only for ease of understanding - anger or other strong emotions bring out his colorful accent. he rarely raises his voice, his words are crisp and near always carefully chosen. voice claim. ioan gruffudd. languages spoken. english, welsh, gujarati.

magical information

wand. laurel wood (it is said that a laurel wand will never perform a dishonourable act, although in a quest, i have known laurel wands to perform powerful and sometimes lethal magic. laurel wands are commonly found among those who are cunning, intellectual, and noble at heart. it is a tricky wood to control, and laurel wands are sometimes called fickle because of it, but this is unfair. the laurel wand seems unable to tolerate laziness in a possessor, and it is in such conditions that it is most easily and willingly won away. otherwise, it will cleave happily to its first match forever, and indeed has the unusual and engaging attribute of issuing a spontaneous lightning strike if another witch or wizard attempts to steal it.) / dragon heartstring core (ukrainian ironbelly - the ironbelly is a species of dragon native to ukraine and it's surrounding countries. a bipedal breed, it is metallic grey in colour, with an immense wingspan, long talons and rough scales said to be as hard as steel. this is the largest extant breed of dragon in the world, reaching up to six tonnes in weight with deep red eyes. thus they are the second most common dragon heartstring core, due to the size of the dragons and their hearts comparatively. they are often found in survivors wands, and produce more than as much stubbornness in owners as you might expect. these wands tend to be quite temperamental. owners of these wands are often known for being used to having temperamental things under their charge.) / solid rigidity (a wand of this flexibility will be extremely loyal to one owner and one owner only, usually a person of great moral integrity. owners of 'solid' wands are generally known for their reliability. as such, these wands are always buried with their owner - it is rare to pass down a wand of this rigidity, even to family members.) / 13 ¾’’ length (longer wands may suit taller wizards, but they also tend to be drawn to bigger personalities, and those of a more spacious and dramatic style of magic.neater wands favour more elegant and refined spell-casting.) patronus. friesian stallion (19h / 1.93m). boggart. his wife and daughter being tortured. amortentia. andromeda. school. hogwarts school of witchcraft and wizardry. house. hufflepuff (class of 1969). clubs / extracurriculars. prefect, wizards chess club (champion '66 - '69), member of the sphinx and dragon club, founding member of the occamy debating team (1965).

psychological information

temperament. phlegmatic. positive. approachable, diligent, magnanimous. negative. self-critical, stubborn, clumsy. mbti. infj. moral alignment. neutral good. element. earth. primary vice. wrath / lust. primary virtue. diligence / justice. zodiac. virgo sun, scorpio moon, aquarius rising. quote. "and yet i swear i love this earth that scars and scalds, that burns my feet. and even hell is holy." - gregory orr, from "tin cup," in the caged owl: new and selected poems. character parallels. bonnie bennett (the vampire diaries), aragorn elessar (lord of the rings), sam winchester (supernatural), obi-wan kenobi (star wars), daenerys targaryen (game of thrones).

familial information.

father. dilip philip laghari tonks (squib, alive) - dilip was the last surviving member of the magical laghari family. before he moved to the united kingdom and took the name philip tonks in homage to the man who saved his life by taking him in as a foster child at the age of six, sgt. mjr john p. tonkins, he had been cast out for his lack of magical ability. he made no mention of this lack when he met his future wife at university, considering it unlikely at best that magic would be brought forth again in such a short timeframe. the birth of his eldest son who was firmly magical was certainly a surprise, as was the subsequent birth of three more magical children. only his wife knows of the truth of his parentage. mother. rachana "rach" tejal lohat-tonks (muggle, alive) - rachana's family emigrated from kenya to wales in the 1800s following a business opportunity for her great grandfather. she grew up with her parents, grandparents, her aunts, uncles, cousins and siblings - she was never lonely, even when she first met her future husband, she was surrounded by family. her family, by contrast, had never heard of magic - it was quite a shock when ted started levitating dishes to the sink when he didn't want to get up to put them there by hand. nonetheless, she is a loving and supportive mother, even now. number of siblings / placement. three / eldest. siblings. nikhil "nick" tonks (wizard, alive) / sonal "sunny" tonks (witch, alive) / adi tonks (witch, alive) - all three of ted's younger siblings are magical, though to varying degrees of embracing it. he is an almost stereotypical older brother in many ways - protective, warm, a shoulder to cry on, the standard to which they have been told to strive for all their lives (though he abhors this, always ready to tell his siblings they should do what they wish to do, be who they wish to be instead of striving to follow in his footsteps). spouse. andromeda tonks (28) - the love of his life. he set his heart upon andromeda black the moment he met her - and never let it be said that he is easily dissuaded from anything, because the intervening years between then and now were fraught with danger. he proposed to her a mere year after their graduation - and this was the breaking point, the moment when all the secrets would come to light. he has never felt such relief in his life as he did the day she came back to him - chose him - over her family. they married that same year, in a small ceremony - as small as it could be, with his family present - and they brought nymphadora into their family three years later, and the rest, as they say, is history. children. nymphadora tonks (6) - the light of his life, to be certain, and the reason he has allowed himself to be dragged to the outskirts of the order of the phoenix. ted is a loving, dedicated father to his little girl - whom he suspects will be their only child despite the prodding from his mother to give her more grandchildren to spoil - and is often seen leaving work early to spend time with her. ted considers himself a peaceful man, but he knows he would commit atrocities if anything ever happened to his and dromeda's dora. pets. great horned owl named holmes. a three quarter kneazle - cat companion for dora named jinx.

#ted: intro;#lumostask #ted: task;

2 notes · View notes