The world's first mobile network to use its profits to restore nature!
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Ecotalk. Where nature has a voice.
Chris Packham has joined Ecotalk as the company’s Chief Ecologist, with a mission to push profits into projects that revive Britain's wildlife. Here he explains why.
Chris Packham and Ecotalk
We have now been granted permission to reintroduce beavers.
We will ensure that future generations can enjoy Britain’s wildlife.
It’s never been more important to protect our native woodland.
I am excited to announce my role as Chief Ecologist at Ecotalk, and together I believe that we can make a positive difference for nature. With your support we will use tried and tested conservation skills to transform ordinary countryside into rich reserves, where wildlife can thrive. Birds, bees, butterflies, moths and mammals, plants and insects; everything that creeps, crawls, slithers, slimes and stings … they all need protecting. So we are going to create some fantastic nature reserves and put up the welcome signs. Because if we build it, they will come.
The pressure is on
We all know the pressure is on. We’ve been waging war on Britain’s wildlife for decades. And thanks to destructive practices such as deforestation, industrial farming, water pollution, and overfishing, only the lucky and the toughest have survived. But it doesn’t have to be like this. Together, we can make our nature great again.
Introducing the Three Rs
Ecotalk has a long history of reinvesting its profits into restoring and protecting Britain’s natural resources, and with your help we plan to reintroduce, rewild, and replant across a number of new schemes. We’re calling it the Three Rs. And as the fruits of our labour blossom, we’ll keep you updated at every step of the journey. So let’s get ready to put wildlife back on the map.
Work has already begun
Okay, so when are the Three Rs being introduced? Excitingly, the work on the ground has already begun! And we have two beautiful, inaugural sites. In Sussex, Bowyers Wood combines multi-species woodland and fields, boasting flower-rich meadow potential. And, in Devon, we have a project at Downicary, a river-fringed valley of improved pasture, soon-to-be marshy scrapes, and historic, wet woodland. Impressive stuff. But it's just the beginning.
We have to be brave and bold when it comes to land management.
Assessing suitable homes for our Downicary beavers.
Ecotalk is working with the very best people in conservation.
Tinkering won't fix it
Before we really get cracking we are completing some ‘baseline surveys’ of the major species groups. We need to know what we’ve already got wildlife wise so we can protect that but also what is missing so we can shape our management to encourage many more species to flourish. Some of the management will be major. I’m talking diggers, tree felling, turf stripping, tree and wildflower planting on a large scale. We have to be brave and bold, whilst some have tinkered, we are committed to getting the jobs done to optimise a nature recovery as rapidly as possible. With your support we are going to make a real difference.
Help make nature great again with Ecotalk
Species 1
Eurasian Beaver
Castor.fiber
Beavers are back in Britain! After 400 years of absence these large, bark-munching lovelies are back where they belong; and they’re building better places for loads of other creatures, too. That’s because beavers are ‘ecosystem engineers’, positively reshaping the environment around them to benefit people and wildlife. And finally, after years of dilly-dallying, we have permission to legally reintroduce them. Working alongside Derek Gow—the UK’s ‘Beaver Guru’—we will assess, fence, and modify a 27-acre section of Bowyers Wood to support a pioneering reintroduction project. So exciting!
Species 2
Barn Owl
Tyto.alba
The barn owl is one of the most popular birds in Britain. And I'm delighted to say that their numbers are on the increase, thanks to projects like ours. Their heart-shaped faces and silent flight have captivated us for thousands of years. But what comes out of them is equally interesting. Because barn owls tend to eat their prey whole, their pellets can include the intact skulls of creatures they've predated. When I was a kid, we'd go out and collect owl pellets. I'd take them home and my mum would bring in the doughnuts, and we'd break open the pellets to see what was inside. Brilliant!
Species 3
Hedgehog
Erinaceous.europaeus
We love our hedgehogs! They’re one of Britain's most cherished wild mammals, but we're losing them at an alarming rate. Through rewilding projects we plan to encourage significant areas of scrub, which will provide brambly shelter for as many Tiggywinkles as possible, with our meadows and grasslands teeming with all the beetles they need to eat. Our managed woodland will also include log piles, which make perfect hedgehog shelters. And this will benefit lots of other species, too; birds will nest, bees will buzz, reptiles will bask, and slugs will slime. Yes, it takes all sorts!
Ecotalking: Nature recovery
To turn things around, and get Britain's nature and wildlife back on top, we are going to use our mighty Three Rs—reintroduce, rewild, and replant—to make a difference. Each is proven to work. Each packs a punch. And each will benefit many species.
01Reintroduce
Reintroductions are very popular. And when they are feasible they can be truly impressive. Red kites, sea eagles, ospreys—amazing projects, which have transformed our skies. But it’s not just birds. Hazel dormice, pine martens, and water voles have all been successfully reintroduced, with spectacular results. And let’s not forget the little things. Field and wart-biter crickets, ladybird spiders, and now even New Forest cicadas are being carefully reintroduced to their former haunts. But reintroductions are often the cherry, and you need to bake the cake first, rebuilding and restoring the habitat from the ground up. Which brings us to …
02Rewild
Rewilding has become a successful conservation tool in the last 30 years, with projects like Knepp and Cairngorms Connect significantly transforming the landscape, leading to long-term species recovery. But it’s not just about throwing a fence around some land and letting it do its own thing. Through considered and measured management, habitat restoration can be accelerated. This often means getting stuck in with some heavy lifting; removing invasive species; creating glades in overgrown woodland; or replanting grasslands with wildflowers. These techniques have been tried and tested. And we will be rolling them out as rapidly as we can.
03Replant
The UK has the lowest amount of forest cover anywhere in Western Europe, at just 13%. And so replanting native trees is a very real necessity, which pays dividends in many ways. Obviously, it’s better for wildlife, providing food and shelter for thousands of species. But it is also a surefire way to lock up carbon, making it an asset which addresses climate breakdown. Planting trees can also add important resilience to the landscape, particularly by reducing flooding. However, replanting native forest is a long-term commitment. Each tree needs to be put in the right place, and to be lovingly nurtured through drought and downpour.
The first book I ever read was Ring of Bright Water. And it's amazing to see otters thriving.
Don't mow! Let it grow! We need to support Britain's pollinators by supporting wildflowers.
We can do it. We can restore our species and habitat. It's not a lost cause.
Ecotalk on the ground
01Downicary
This beautiful set of formerly-grazed fields has enormous potential to become wet meadows, teeming with ponds, bogs, and marshes. But there's a lot of work to do beforehand. Whilst the weather’s been dry, diggers have been hard at work making scrapes, building dykes, and blocking the old drains. The winter will see some hedgerow planting and gentle management of the wet woodland, which is already a fantastic habitat. Elsewhere, the site has a beautiful, clear stream running down one side… which already has beavers! Amazing! I’m pretty certain we will have otters, too. Only time and our trap cameras will tell!
This nearly 250 acre wood is in Sussex and has a mix of species, Oak, Beech, Hazel, Sweet Chestnut and Ash. It looks lovely but hasn’t been managed for a long time so it needs thinning and parts need clearing. There are also overgrown ponds which need some love and a set of fields which have real potential as wildflower meadows. A stream runs through it and its here we plan to erect an enclosure to house our beaver pair. Stage one is finding out what already lives there and getting some nest boxes up. It’s a very exciting part of the project and we can't wait to get started this winter.
Ecotalk. Nature action. Check-in regularly with our NatureCams to see the difference our Ecotalk customers are making…
July updateEcotalk trap cameras update
Ecotalk EcoCams
As we develop the Three Rs project we will be constantly monitoring the sites, using a variety of different nature cameras, and you can rest assured that we will update you with whatever we find. We want you to be part of this journey!
July updateBadger cam 1
Location: Bowyers Wood, Sussex
The badgers have been in and out of their set
July updateRiver cameras
Location: Downicary, Devon
Woodpeckers, goslings and more in the latest updates
Wildlife are our shareholders. We're giving Britain's native species a voice on our board. The work we're doing across our sites is all designed to increase biodiversity and support our board members to live happily in a more natural environment.
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David Allen
Brilliant customer service
Brilliant customer service from Shannon, I had a issue with my old number being brought over which she helped with in the most polite and professional manner - which you rarely get these days! This gives me total confidence with Ecotalk's customer service team going forward.
Date of experience: 1 July 2025
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Jonathan Lincoln
Super friendly and helpful 😁
The person I spoke to was super friendly, helpful and professional. The call was answered straight away too. Would highly recommend. Thank you Eco talk and Ecotricity for all that you do for the environment 😁😁😁
Date of experience: 6 July 2025
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Terri Clibery
Extremely helpful
I phoned for advice and spoke to an advisor immediately! Shannon was very helpful and answered my questions and explained everything I needed to know clearly. Thank you.
Date of experience: 2 July 2025
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Artemis
Great service and great signal!
So happy I made the switch to Ecotalk - amazing company and ethos. They are always so responsive and helpful on the phone, I can't recommend them enough! Great service and great signal!
Date of experience: 22 July 2025
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