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Wakefield Museums and Castles
Do A World of Good: Our manifesto
"To put it simply, the state of the planet is broken. Dear friends, Humanity is waging war on nature." - Antonio Guterres, Secretary General of the United Nations.
Our planet is in pain. Plastic clogs our seas and litters our countryside. Pollution chokes our skies and fills our rivers. Homes are flooded and fires burn our land.
We are all responsible for the welfare of our planet, our home. The need to take action is urgent.
We are not just doing this for the planet. We are also doing it for ourselves. We know that a connection with the natural world is essential for our wellbeing.
Wakefield Council has declared a climate emergency and committed to becoming a carbon neutral organisation by 2030.
Wakefield Museums and Castles are committed to helping and to supporting our visitors to take action too.
We have looked to our district to find inspirational pioneers, campaigners, innovators and agitators, both past and present.
Our key inspiration is the environmental work of Charles Waterton of Walton Hall.
In the 1800s he campaigned to protect the natural world and created a haven for wildlife at his home.
Through his campaigning, he hoped he was doing “a world of good”.
Charles Waterton by Charles Willson Peale, 1824. © National Portrait Gallery, London.
We will work with experts to identify ways in which we can all do “a world of good” too. We will spread the word so that you can take positive action for our planet.
Together, we can all do A World of Good for our planet. After all, from small acorns grow mighty oak trees.
Wakefield Museums and Castles will:
Promote green and environmental sustainability messages in our exhibitions, learning, and engagement programming.
Practise what we preach. Find sustainable materials to deliver our programmes. Invest in low energy equipment. Recycle what we use.
Spread the word and encourage our visitors to take action. Celebrate and collect environmental achievements and success stories from across the district.