Future Rural : Imagining Tomorrow's Countryside

In this new anthology for the Campaign to Protect Rural England leading writers and thinkers on the land, social history and ecology, re-imagine the future of the countryside, searching for a more sustainable and thriving countryside.

What is the future of thecountryside? In a time of rapid environmental, economic, and social change,what does the countryside mean to us, and what could it become? FutureRural gathers together a powerfulchorus of diverse voices-writers, farmers, activists, ecologists, and thinkers- and asks them to interrogate the past and present in order to imagine whatlies ahead for Britain's rural landscapes and communities. From the creativityof the countryside and the impact of Empire on rural England, to the urgentneed for affordable housing, equitable land access and the growing threats ofclimate change and habitat loss, this new collection confronts the complexrealities facing our countryside. But it does so with hope, offering stories ofresilience, regeneration and new ideas for how we live with the land. With essays and poetry fromleading and emerging writers on the land, social history and ecology, FutureRural searches for a fairer, more sustainable and thriving rural England. It is a call to action and a celebration of the centenary of the Campaign to Protect Rural England. With a foreword by Michael Morpurgo and an introduction by Roger Mortlock (CPRE's CEO).