The Bristol Declaration

For organisations, institutions, and communities on the UK Insect Declines Crisis

11 September 2025

We, the undersigned, representing organisations, institutions, and communities committed to the protection of biodiversity and the health of ecosystems, raise an urgent call to action in response to the alarming and ongoing decline of the United Kingdom’s insect populations.

Insects underpin the ecological foundations of life, they pollinate wildflowers and crops, recycle nutrients, support soil health, naturally control pests, and provide food for birds, bats, fish, and other wildlife. They bring sound and colour to summer days, inspire art and music, and connect us to the natural world while significantly contributing to the economy. Yet, mounting evidence, gathered through decades of monitoring, reveals dramatic declines in abundance, diversity, and distribution of many species across multiple insect groups in the UK. From beetles and bumblebees to butterflies and freshwater insects, the warning signs are clear.

The causes are well-evidenced: habitat loss and fragmentation, pesticide and chemical use, intensive agriculture, climate change, pollution, and the spread of invasive non-native species. These pressures, acting cumulatively, have pushed many insect species toward extinction thresholds and threaten the resilience of the healthy ecosystems we depend upon for clean water, fertile soil, and food security.

We affirm that reversing insect decline is essential, not optional, for halting nature loss and achieving the UK’s climate and biodiversity goals. We urge governments, businesses, land managers, and society to act on the evidence and commit to restore insect-friendly habitats at scale and reduce activities that harm insects – through conservation programmes, sustainable practices and policy change.

The UK must become a world leader in insect recovery. We call for a national, cross-sector response equal to the scale of the crisis, grounded in scientific evidence and public accountability. We invite organisations across the UK and beyond to endorse this declaration and help forge a future where insects thrive.

Signatories

Craig Macadam, Co-Leader & Conservation Director, On behalf of Buglife

Julie Williams, Chief Executive, On behalf of Butterfly Conservation

Gill Perkins,Chief Executive Officer, On behalf of Bumblebee Conservation Trust

Andy Lester, Head of Conservation, On behalf of A Rocha
Colin Hart, President, On behalf of the Amateur Entomologists’ Society
Jim Foster, Conservation Director, On behalf of Amphibian and Reptile Conservation Trust
Dr Emily Smith, Head of Environment, On behalf of Angling Trust
Gwen Richards, Programmes Secretary, On behalf of Assynt Field Club
Steve Backshall, Naturalist, broadcaster, author, and Buglife Ambassador
Nigel Palmer, Chief Executive, On behalf of Badger Trust
Kit Stoner, Chief Executive, On behalf of Bat Conservation Trust
Alice Davidson, Deputy Centre Manager, On behalf of, The Bird of Prey Project
Keiron Brown, Senior Naturalist, the Biological Recording Company
Bill Parker, President, On behalf of the British Arachnological Society
Diane Drinkwater, Chair, On behalf of British Beekeepers Association
Dr. Sally Luker, Managing Director, On behalf of Budding Nature
Nicholas Wadham, Managing Director, On behalf of Bugfest Ltd
Gillian Burke, Natural history broadcaster and Buglife Ambassador
Freddie Ingleby, Managing Director, On behalf of Caledonian Climate
Dr Rose O’Neill, Chief Executive Officer, Campaign for National Parks
Dr Kirsten Pullen, Chief Conservation Officer, On behalf of Chester Zoo
Jason Reeves, Head of Policy, On behalf of CIEEM
Liam Olds, Founder, On behalf of Colliery Spoil Biodiversity Initiative
Dr Beulah Garner, Chairperson, On behalf of the Coleopterist Society of Britain and Ireland
Dr Mya-Rose Craig, Environmental activist, and author, Founder and President Black2Nature
Richie Miller, Director, On behalf of The Deveron, Bogie & Isla Rivers Charitable Trust & River Deveron District Salmon Fishery Board
Lorna Lyle, Founder and Educational Consultant, On behalf of Earth Energy Education
Emma Montlake, Joint Executive Director, On behalf of the Environmental Law Foundation
Simon Taylor, President, On behalf of Essex Field Club
Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall, Chef, writer, broadcaster and environmental campaigner
Dr Alan Wells, Chief Executive Officer, On behalf of Fisheries Management Scotland
Olivia Nelson, Manager, Partnerships and Advocacy, On behalf of the Floodplain Meadows Partnership
Simon Johnson, Executive Director, On behalf of the Freshwater Biological Association
Jeremy Biggs, Chief Executive Officer, On behalf of Freshwater Habitats Trust
Paul de Zylva, Senior Analyst, On behalf of Friends of the Earth
Maya Gabrielle Leonard, Author and Buglife Ambassador
Fiona Taylor, Chief Executive Officer, On behalf of Garden Organic
Professor Dave Goulson, Professor of Biology, author, and Founder of The Bumblebee Conservation Trust
Dr Douglas Parr, Chief Scientist and Policy Director, On behalf of Greenpeace UK
Philip Reynolds, Coordinator, On behalf of Keep Our Rural Spaces
Dr George McGavin, Entomologist and author
Ruth Larbey, Head of Policy and Advocacy, On behalf of National Landscapes Association
Phil Long, Chief Executive, On behalf of National Trust for Scotland
Martin Lines, Chief Executive Officer, On behalf of the Nature Friendly Farming Network
Alan Drever, Chair, On behalf of Nature Foundation
Brian Shaw, Director, On behalf of Ness District Salmon Fishery Board
Max Bryant, Chief Executive Officer, On behalf of Northern Ireland Environment Link
Chris Packham, Broadcaster and environmental campaigner
Josie Cohen, Interim Director, On behalf of PAN UK
Nida Al-Fulaij, Chief Executive Officer, On behalf of Peoples Trust for Endangered Species
Paul Miskin, Founder and Director, On behalf of Planet Action Street Arts
Nicola Hutchinson, Director of Conservation/Deputy Chief Executive, On behalf of Plantlife
Louise Lavictoire, Co-chair, On behalf of the Riverfly Partnership
Martin Janes, Managing Director, On behalf of the River Restoration Centre
Beccy Speight, Chief Executive Officer, On behalf of the RSPB
Rachel Locke, Group Coordinator, On behalf of Save Newcastle Wildlife
Dan Yates, Director of Policy and Public Affairs, On behalf of Save Our Rivers
Brendan Costelloe, Policy and Strategy Director, On behalf of Soil Association
Dominic Price, Director, On behalf of Species Recovery Trust
Justin Anderson, Founder, On behalf of South Bristol Swifts
Cohn O’Dea, Chairman, On behalf of the Tay Catchment Salmon Alliance
Ajay Tegala, Conservationist, broadcaster, author
Zoë Simmons, President, On behalf of The British Entomological and Natural History Society
Kathy Wormald, Chief Executive Officer, On behalf of The Froglife Trust
Alan Carter, Chief Executive, On behalf of The Land Trust
Matt Larsen-Daw, Chief Executive Officer, On behalf of The Mammal Society
Atticus Albright, Head Biologist, On behalf of The Spey Fishery Board
Gary Hedges, Tanyptera Regional Entomologist, On behalf of The Tanypetra Project
Dr Steve Head, Founder and Patron, On behalf of The Wildlife Gardening Forum
Joan Edwards OBE, Director of Policy and Public Affairs, On behalf of The Wildlife Trusts
Alison Hewitt, Chair, On behalf of The Yateley Society
Dom Ferris, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, On behalf of Trash Free Trails
Adrian Spalding, Chairman, On behalf of Trelusback Foundation for Wildlife Conservation
Philip Reynolds, Chairman, On behalf of Upper Dearne Valley Environmental Trust
Richard Benwell, Chief Executive Officer, On behalf of Wildlife and Countryside Link
Steven Lewis-Neill, Owner, On behalf of, Wildworkshops
Janina Gray, Deputy Chief Executive Officer, On behalf of WildFish
Shaun Leonard, Director, On behalf of the Wild Trout Trust
Tom Fewins, Head of Policy and Advocacy, On behalf of Wildfowl and Wetland Trust
Iolo Williams, Naturalist, television presenter, conservationist and author
Julian Barlow, Chair, On behalf of Wiltshire Wildlife Community Energy
Dr Andy Millard, Executive Committee Chairman, On behalf of Yorkshire Naturalists’ Union