Let’s start at the beginning, our story has shaped where we are now.
Before Tir Canol, and before the co-design phase, was the initial ‘original’ Summit to Sea project. From 2017 to October 2019, Summit to Sea was managed by Rewilding Britain. This period of the project had a significant impact on the development, particularly on stakeholder trust in the project.
The Summit to Sea project began in 2017, to explore possibilities for a large-scale ecological restoration project in the Pumlumon area. A partnership led by Rewilding Britain applied to the Endangered Landscapes Programme (ELP) for funding to support a dynamic ecosystem from the top of Pumlumon – the highest point in mid-Wales – down and out into Cardigan Bay. The project was funded for a 5 year period, with a budget of £3.4 million. It was launched in October 2018. During late 2018 and 2019 the project faced a high level of criticism from members of the local community, including landowners and key organisations resulting in some partners withdrawing from the Partnership.
In October 2019 Rewilding Britain left the project and remaining partners began to re-establish the project. In late 2019 the Summit to Sea partnership was re-established with different partner and staff arrangements, and a new approach was agreed in 2020, consisting of a two year co-design phase.
In June 2020 the project launched into a two year development period. During this period the project used co-design methods, approaches and mindsets to develop a vision and Blueprint for how we could address saving nature in the area.
This development period was essential in providing a clean slate to start from scratch following the original Summit to Sea project and the numerous challenges this faced.
In May 2022 the original project partnership dissolved and a new partnership was established to deliver and hold the co-design Blueprint into the future. This partnership is made up of a wide range of organisations and individuals who have been involved in the co-design process, or are committed to supporting the delivery of the Blueprint.
Timeline
2018: Original Summit to Sea project launched
2020: Project enters a phase of re-setting following the departure of Rewilding Britain
2021: Face to face workshops were able to be held, following Covid restrictions lifted
2022: Blueprint published and shared, Summit to Sea dissolved and new Tir Canol partnership established
“We’re really proud of what the Blueprint represents, it captures the voices and vision of people in the area and outlines ideas for how to achieve this.”