# Ep. 045: Community Land Stewardship with Chris Blake

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/wilder-podcast-6446398/ep-045-community-land-stewardship-with-chris-blake
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/wilder-podcast-6446398/ep-045-community-land-stewardship-with-chris-blake.md
Podcast: [Wilder Podcast](https://stenobird.com/podcast/wilder-podcast-6446398)
Published: 2025-10-08T12:00:00+00:00
Episode link: https://www.grangeproject.co.uk/wilder-podcast
Audio file: https://episodes.captivate.fm/episode/64f5f537-6bdd-4e90-aaac-724dc18cc401.mp3
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JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/wilder-podcast-6446398/episodes/ep-045-community-land-stewardship-with-chris-blake
Duration seconds: 3455

## Resource

This week on the Wilder Podcast , we sit down with Chris Blake to explore how communities can steward land through collaboration, long-term vision and trust between local people and public bodies. We also share Grange Project updates (bumper apple harvest, the market garden & "cathedral-scale" polytunnel!), two recent courses, and announce Wilder Away Days - our nature-based corporate retreats. Key takeaways: Community land stewardship ≠ one model. Freehold, long leasehold, management agreements and co-production each offer different ways for local values to shape land. Co-production works when power is shared. Start with a blank page, bring evidence-givers (forestry, ecology, education), and let a mixed panel turn evidence into values & principles - not expert-written plans. Continuous Cover Forestry (CCF) can beat clear-fell on 100-year horizons: better soils, flood risk, vistas - and local, steady jobs from ongoing thinning rather than boom-and-bust harvesting. Public bodies win too. Communities unlock grants, volunteers and entrepreneurial energy that agencies often lack - delivering outcomes already in policy (biodiversity, access, carbon). Trust is the glue. A year-long, facilitated process built mutual respect between Natural Resources Wales managers and residents; FSC certification also helps keep plans on track. Practical first steps. If transfer isn’t feasible, explore long leases or co-produced forest/resource plans; talk to national support orgs early (see "Resources"). Timestamps: 00:06 — Welcome & what’s ahead 00:30 — Grange Project update: community day, record apple harvest & juice pressing 06:50 — Announcement: Wilder Away Days (purposeful team retreats in wild nature) 10:15 — Guest intro: Chris Blake & the journey to community stew…

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## Transcript

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