National parks and young people: Shaping the future

Published: 19 December 2025

At what point do you begin to let go and allow the next generation to properly shape their future? This was the question on my mind after last week’s uplifting Radical Futures event held by Campaign for National Parks. It was led by some of the young people who have come through our New Perspectives project, funded by The Lottery Heritage Fund, which has enabled 30 storytellers and 10 new Ambassadors to share their creative passion, ideas and vision for nature-rich and inclusive National Parks.

(Left to right) Hannah Corran, Minister Mary Creagh MP, Saskia Luqmani and Dr Rose O,Neill

Over the last two years we held three Future Leaders residential courses in National Parks in England and Wales, involving a total of 56 leaders, professionals and campaigners aged 20–30. The energy, ideas and expertise coming through changemakers like these has been palpable; and they are educating us at Campaign for National Parks, as well (or at least old timers like me) with Letitia Cookson and Samaaha Adam already Campaign for National Parks Trustees. But crucially they’re also taking their message out more widely, with some recently joining National Park boards, including Hannah Corran (Peak District) and Robson Peisely (South Downs), while others like Eben Muse, Roshni Parmar-Hill, Prerana Balu and Saskia Luqmani are using their own networks to campaign for what matters to them and shape their National Parks and their future.

Better still, Campaign for National Parks has just been awarded funding by Lottery Heritage Fund to develop a follow-on project called National Parks Reimagined which is based on the principle that landscape recovery at scale needs bold, inclusive and innovative leadership with the voice of young people at its core.

It’s also great to see positive steps across the national park family, including by societies like the Friends of the South Downs, Dartmoor Preservation Association and the ‘Creative Campaigners’ of Friends of the Dales; plus the National Park authorities themselves – from the North York Moors National Park’s Youth Voice to Bannau Brycheiniog’s Youth Wardens. And there are emerging figureheads, too, not least Will Dracup, the impressive young chair of Dartmoor National Park who spoke at least week’s event with eloquence about his farming community background and what he’s doing himself to make the park more inclusive.

Future Leaders Course Dartmoor 2024

We ended last week’s celebratory event by inviting all present, including Defra Minister Mary Creagh, to sign a Declaration underlining our resolve: ‘To enable National Parks to be greener, wilder and more accessible to all, young people must be part of shaping their future. We declare our commitment to ensuring young people from all backgrounds are heard and valued in all key decisions about National Parks to better drive nature recovery, climate resilience, and social justice.’

In 2026, the first four National Parks to be established in Britain – the Peak District, Lake District, Eryri and Dartmoor – will celebrate their 75th anniversary. As we look back at what’s been achieved, so we look forward and imagine what they will be like 75 years from now, and how these iconic landscapes will remain not just relevant but vital for us all. And to do that we need to be guided by the people who will be there to lead them and care for them.