A Dip a Day for Walking With

These last couple of days the sea has been too rough for us to get in fully. So we’ve dipped our legs and hands and splashed about safely, (mostly) avoiding the breakers. We’re keeping a close eye on the coming storm this weekend and urge all sea swimmers to stay safe! We trust our generous donors will understand it’s safety first!

For this update we’ve been looking up the history of migration to the UK, to try and take a longer view on current issues. It’s a slightly longer update than usual, but we hope you’ll find it interesting.

The UK signed the UN Convention on Refugees in 1951, which means it has been legally bound to welcome asylum seekers fleeing persecution in their home country for over 70 years.
Historically, the UK has been shaped by immigrants – whether they came by force, or by invitation. Looking for the ‘original’ peoples of the UK, we read about the Celtic Britons, whose descendants now live in Wales and Cornwall, as well as the ancient peoples of Scotland like the Caledones. In these North Eastern parts, the Votadini and the Brigantes once ruled the land, that is, until the Romans came. In the ‘by force’ category we therefore find the Romans, followed by the Anglo-Saxons who invaded the island in successive waves in the 5th century following the Romans' departure. The Vikings and Danes raided and some settled, locally leaving names like the dales, fells and High and Low Force. We then have the Normans led by William the Conqueror, the last ones to successfully invade Britain in 1066 (including it seems an ancestor of Justine’s – apologies!). ‘By invitation’, we found people coming to seek refuge from persecution, like the protestant Huguenots fleeing France in the 1500s and the many Jewish people fleeing Nazi Germany in the 1930s and 1940s. We also find those who were directly asked to come, like the Windrush Generation from the Caribbean, who answered the government’s call to come and help rebuild a country devastated by war.
Today the UK very much needs immigrants to thrive. Birth rates are plummeting, and there are a lot of staff shortages notably 150,000 in the NHS (source: England.nhs.uk). This means that for pension schemes to be paid and an ageing population to be looked after in the future, we need more people coming here to work.

As humans we have been migrating ever since we were able to walk on two legs, and probably before. The first humans settled in the UK 25,000 years ago. They settled in the North East at the end of the last Ice Age over 9,000 years ago, following herds of wild animals. This is what we do: we follow opportunity, we seek safety, comfort and community. And once we find it, we thrive. That’s what we’ve always done and will always do. The more peacefully and thoughtfully it can happen, the better chances of everyone thriving.

Phwoar, we’re getting to that stage where the temperatures drop and getting in the sea (momentarily) feels warmer than just standing on the beach. This morning, a flock of what we’ll daringly say were sanderlings (or dunlins? Birders please help!) flew through us as we were doing a few strokes across the curling waves.
As we entered the water our hearts were turned to the sea itself, and the life beneath the waves. Devastating news as come out this week that one of the Earth’s tipping point has been reached meaning that coral reefs are now facing widespread dieback. We knew they were in trouble, but the news none the less hits us hard. This is due to increase temperatures caused by greenhouse gases released by unsustainable human activities. 
What does this have to do with human migration some may ask? Well in reality, it’s all connected. We are all connected. The beauty of life on Earth is that it is a self nurturing web of life, where every part belongs and contributes to the health of the whole. Humans included. When we upset the carefully crafted balance, all are impacted: plants, soil, sea creatures and land animals too, humans included. As regions of the world becomes increasingly difficult to inhabit, people will move - of course they will. Wouldn’t we? So let’s be prepared to welcome them.
Standing up for people, is standing up for Nature. And standing up for Nature, is standing up for people too. Because we belong. So as the world is changing, let us try to be the best possible humans we can be. Because god knows we can be truly great when try - and that’s worth celebrating! Looking forward to seeing many of you on King Edward’s Bay on Halloween, midday.

A thousand thank yous for a thousand pounds!! You are all amazing and knowing the beautiful response this fundraiser is getting keeps us going as the weather gets colder. 
After a false start (someone’s alarm didn’t go off we won’t say whose), we had an after school drop off dip on the beach today, and were so busy taking it all in we forgot to take a pic. So here’s one from a few days ago! Today a beautiful shag (or cormoran, hard to tell the difference when they’re wet) was diving right next to us, enjoying a tasty breakfast.

We are officially halfway through! Mark your calendars! Our last dip will be on Friday 31st October on King Edward’s Bay, and we would love our supporters to join us! We’ll gather around midday, details to follow soon!

A few people have recommended listening to this BBC Sounds podcast where journalist Gaia Vince makes the positive case for immigration, knowing that the climate crisis is set to displace billons of people by 2050. We’ll be giving it a listen this week!  bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m002kgsq