4 ms·

> Hannah Bourne-Taylor, who has campaigned for swift bricks nationally for four years. The article apparently undersells her role. Clicking through to her site

by js2 5mo ago

> Hannah Bourne-Taylor, who has campaigned for swift bricks nationally for four years. The article apparently undersells her role. Clicking through to her site, she seems to have been almost singularly responsible for making this happen: > For my campaign – for swifts – I have walked through London naked, twice. First to launch the petition (how else would a nobody reach the almost impossible target?) and secondly to the meeting at the Home Office, with Zac Goldsmith by my side in an unprecedented show of alliance, to remind the government that swifts’ existence is at stake. https://hannahbournetaylor.com/the-feather-speech-campaign-for-swifts/ https://hannahbournetaylor.com/the-feather-speech-campaign-f... (Probably NSFW photo on that page.)

rich_sasha 5mo ago
Someone called Taylor campaigning for Swifts. Pretty cool coincidence.
pavel_lishin 5mo ago
Her photo on the linked article definitely makes her seem quite determined to get this done. "Your house is getting a swift brick, your choice is whether you install it during construction, or I install it through your window."
- js2 5mo ago
  No kidding. From an earlier article: > During her campaign, she’s been trolled by everyone from ministers to abusive internet trolls. “The worst ones are not the horrible violent ones, it’s the relentless, patronising criticism from nature lovers – ‘This is just one species, this is not going to solve the nature crisis.’ Firstly, [the brick] is not just for one species. And secondly, you’d like little old me to stop pesticide use? Let me just get on that right now. We shouldn’t just get Chris Packham to do everything. The nature crisis is on us.” > In private, says Bourne-Taylor, politicians “always say things like: ‘Oh, legislation is very hard.’ That’s your job. Do your job. A senior Labour minister told me that [housing minister] Matthew Pennycook was getting irritated by the mention of swift bricks, implying that I should pipe down. How about you just do it and then I’ll go away?” https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/may/05/the-hypocrisy-is-staggering-will-swift-bricks-fall-prey-to-government-fears-of-reform https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/may/05/the-hypo...
- Leonard_of_Q 5mo ago
  > "Your house is getting a swift brick, your choice is whether you install it during construction, or I install it through your window." While I'm fine with adding nesting opportunities for birds to newly built houses I'm quite done with the die Partei hat immer recht attitude of these do-gooders. The attitude of 'I know better and anyone who refuses my wisdom is a cave troll who can expect a brick chucked through the window' is not an example of 'girl power' or 'righteous anger' but one of an individual not used to having to explain her position based on facts and figures. The aggressive pose in that photo only underlines this. A fine photo, sure, but combined with the above message it is not so fine.
  - pavel_lishin 5mo ago
    It sounds like she has: https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/may/05/the-hypocrisy-is-staggering-will-swift-bricks-fall-prey-to-government-fears-of-reform https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/may/05/the-hypo... I think you're probably paying too much attention to my characterization, and not to the actual facts of the matter.
pdpi 5mo ago
The photo is somewhat NSFW (lots of exposed skin, no “naughty bits”), but it’s well worth looking at in some detail. It’s an amazing photo!
- Leonard_of_Q 5mo ago
  There's nothing NSFW about that photo, she's wearing some shirt-thing which happens to be light-coloured.
  - js2 5mo ago
    She's definitely not wearing a shirt (the birds appear to be glued on felt patches) and she described it as walking naked: https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/870fe1a74661591c34ea4a6f61ce1ec96819cc54/0_0_3000_2002/master/3000.jpg?width=1900&dpr=2&s=none&crop=none https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/870fe1a74661591c34ea4a6f61ce1... from https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/may/05/the-hypocrisy-is-staggering-will-swift-bricks-fall-prey-to-government-fears-of-reform https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/may/05/the-hypo... Some people would find it NSFW. I erred on the side of caution.

by js2 5mo ago

rich_sasha 5mo ago

Someone called Taylor campaigning for Swifts. Pretty cool coincidence.

pavel_lishin 5mo ago

Her photo on the linked article definitely makes her seem quite determined to get this done. "Your house is getting a swift brick, your choice is whether you install it during construction, or I install it through your window."

js2 5mo ago
No kidding. From an earlier article: > During her campaign, she’s been trolled by everyone from ministers to abusive internet trolls. “The worst ones are not the horrible violent ones, it’s the relentless, patronising criticism from nature lovers – ‘This is just one species, this is not going to solve the nature crisis.’ Firstly, [the brick] is not just for one species. And secondly, you’d like little old me to stop pesticide use? Let me just get on that right now. We shouldn’t just get Chris Packham to do everything. The nature crisis is on us.” > In private, says Bourne-Taylor, politicians “always say things like: ‘Oh, legislation is very hard.’ That’s your job. Do your job. A senior Labour minister told me that [housing minister] Matthew Pennycook was getting irritated by the mention of swift bricks, implying that I should pipe down. How about you just do it and then I’ll go away?” https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/may/05/the-hypocrisy-is-staggering-will-swift-bricks-fall-prey-to-government-fears-of-reform https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/may/05/the-hypo...
Leonard_of_Q 5mo ago
> "Your house is getting a swift brick, your choice is whether you install it during construction, or I install it through your window." While I'm fine with adding nesting opportunities for birds to newly built houses I'm quite done with the die Partei hat immer recht attitude of these do-gooders. The attitude of 'I know better and anyone who refuses my wisdom is a cave troll who can expect a brick chucked through the window' is not an example of 'girl power' or 'righteous anger' but one of an individual not used to having to explain her position based on facts and figures. The aggressive pose in that photo only underlines this. A fine photo, sure, but combined with the above message it is not so fine.
- pavel_lishin 5mo ago
  It sounds like she has: https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/may/05/the-hypocrisy-is-staggering-will-swift-bricks-fall-prey-to-government-fears-of-reform https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/may/05/the-hypo... I think you're probably paying too much attention to my characterization, and not to the actual facts of the matter.

pdpi 5mo ago

The photo is somewhat NSFW (lots of exposed skin, no “naughty bits”), but it’s well worth looking at in some detail. It’s an amazing photo!

Leonard_of_Q 5mo ago
There's nothing NSFW about that photo, she's wearing some shirt-thing which happens to be light-coloured.
- js2 5mo ago
  She's definitely not wearing a shirt (the birds appear to be glued on felt patches) and she described it as walking naked: https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/870fe1a74661591c34ea4a6f61ce1ec96819cc54/0_0_3000_2002/master/3000.jpg?width=1900&dpr=2&s=none&crop=none https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/870fe1a74661591c34ea4a6f61ce1... from https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/may/05/the-hypocrisy-is-staggering-will-swift-bricks-fall-prey-to-government-fears-of-reform https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/may/05/the-hypo... Some people would find it NSFW. I erred on the side of caution.