Rewilding TCI - Restoring nature one backyard at a time

Returning to wildness, one backyard at a time.

Story & Photos By Kathleen McNary, BSc., ALM, PhD

“It is not the Land that is broken but our relationship to it” ~ Robin Kimmerer, 2013

Habitat and biodiversity losses ravage the planet. In fact, a group of researchers and the Nature Conservancy (Freedman, 2019) now estimate that as much as 95% of Earth’s land area has been impacted by human activities.  For example, the Brazilian rainforest is being lost at rates not seen since the colonial era (Anonymous, 2022), and leading scientists worry that the Amazon rainforest ecosystem may soon collapse (Lovejoy & Nobre, 2018). In recent decades worldwide, 178 million hectares of forest have been cut down, burned, or otherwise compromised to satisfy the needs (and often unnecessary wants) of western human societies (FAO & UNEP, 2020). Fifty percent of the ocean’s fish have been trawled, netted, or otherwise lost from the seas (WWF & ZSL, 2015), and three billion birds have disappeared from North American skies (Rosenberg et al., 2019). Since the year 1500 C.E. (current era), approximately 13% of Earth’s species have disappeared forever into the deep time of extinction (Cowie et al., 2022). Earth’s web of diversity, crafted by divine intelligence over billions of years, now unravels with an extinction rate at least 1,000 times higher than preindustrial human levels (Balasubramanian, 2019).

Recognizing how dire the global environmental crisis is, the United Nations General Assembly declared the decade spanning from 2021-2030 as The Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, seeking “to promote the recovery of degraded, damaged, and destroyed ecosystems and to regain ecological functionality and provide the goods and services that people value” (MARN, 2018).

However, the UN has made numerous environmental declarations, conventions, and international agreements in the past, but each of these efforts eventually fails to achieve their stated goals. Perhaps this is because the ecological conservation and restoration methods the UN espouse employ the same recommendations and methods that have failed in the past. By valuing Earth only as a resource to serve humankind, the UN and other agencies reinforce the underlying attitude that has caused global ecocide in the first place. Namely, failing to recognize the intrinsic values of living beings that have their own right to exist. 

An unnatural history

Clearcutting land destroys all ecological value, is often unnecessary, and can be costly in terms of re-planting.

Those of us who live in the Turks & Caicos Islands (TCI) now recognize that these unfortunate trends no longer just plague the developed western world, and the unspoiled, beautiful-by-nature ecosystems that first attracted visitors to these islands decades ago now succumb to bulldozers, pulverizing TCI’s remaining wild places into smithereens almost every single day. 

When I first moved to TCI 35 years ago, I fell in love with this place. Awestruck by diverse assemblages of ancient hardwoods, dripping with orchids and epiphytes; birds and lizards, many of whom exist nowhere else on Earth; and windswept shorelines disappearing into a horizon devoid of any signs of human impact, I lost and found myself within TCI’s seamlessly crafted ecological magic.

The TCI Government at the time had implemented some of the most progressive environmental legislation in the region, including a vast national parks system (TCIG, 1997) and a physical development plan that proposed improved infrastructure for Providenciales’s settlements, plans for appropriate-scale development within existing subdivisions, and broad protection of undeveloped lands into the foreseeable future (TCIG, 1987). 

However, soon after tourism development interests began flocking to the country, TCI succumbed to the western economic imperative of infinite growth—an impossible eventuality for an island nation where land and resources are precariously finite. For the past 35 years, I have applied my skillset in environmental science in an effort to contribute to the sustainable development of these islands to little avail. The development model forced upon the TCI people and their environment suffers from an imposed colonial heritage, based on the fallacy that flourishing comes from a material wealth that is more important than the ancient breath of the universe that radiates forth in this rare refuge.

Eschewing the master’s tools

Civil rights activist Audre Lorde (2003) famously postulated that the master’s tools can never be used to dismantle the master’s house. The same is true for ecological conservation and restoration. A system of environmental protection, devised by those who would simultaneously exploit the natural world for profit, is doomed to fail. I propose that we need new ways of thinking about restoration science, including fostering a new vision of what restored ecosystems should look like and how we should go about restoring them.  

In sharp contrast to the UN’s declaration that casts the natural world as “goods and services,” the ecological restoration approach known as “rewilding” relies on a belief that the natural environment (which includes humans) is sensate and that almost four billion years of ecological evolutionary intelligence uniquely qualifies the world to self-will toward ecological wellness (Foreman, 2021; Gammon, 2018). By partnering with environmental systems rather than trying to control them, rewilding can serve to heal and resolve many of the ecological challenges of our time.

This photo shows the author’s rewilded driveway—trafficked areas can be kept to a minimum and still provide functionality.

Rewilding was first conceived in the United States in the 1990s (Soulé & Noss, 1998) and originally referred to returning apex predators into degraded landscapes, such as the reintroduction of wolves into Yellowstone National Park (Monbiot, 2017). Such rewilding strategies work in large-scale wilderness areas; however, in places such as TCI, habitat and biodiversity losses do not occur on large levels and instead arise from piecemeal land clearance resulting from inadequate planning, illegal land use, and sprawl. Furthermore, the realities of the need for economic development, a burgeoning global population of more than eight billion humans, and global climate change trouble ambitions to create ecological utopias. Such realities can be overwhelming, and as private citizens there is little that can be done to resolve them. However, backyard rewilding empowers us as individuals to help heal the Earth by restoring land one small patch at a time.

New tools and individual action

Native and near-endemic Mimosa bahamensis is both beautiful and functional. As a nitrogen-fixing species, Mimosa enriches soil, and its practically impenetrable thorny branches can be incorporated along boundaries as an added security measure.

Ecology is the study of relationships, yet conventional scientific practices demand that researchers remain detached and objective. I believe this rupture between humans and their environment is at the heart of many of Earth’s ecological woes. As Robin Kimmerer says, it is our relationship with the environment that requires healing, and only then will the world be able to heal. 

The first step to healing our relationship with the world is to embrace the idea that humans are not exceptional and that the land where we live is also home to myriad other beings who also have a right to exist. By adopting this humble attitude and inviting all land’s residents to participate in the rewilding process, we create the relationships that are needed for cooperative stewardship.

Rewilding differs from traditional restoration methods because it allows land to actively participate in its own recovery. Seeds will sprout and plants will grow in places ideally suited for their own flourishing, thereby reducing the need for extensive maintenance and care over the long-term. With rewilding, the most important thing humans can do in helping their land to heal is to be patient, watch, do nothing, and allow the land to direct the process. This approach challenges all modern approaches to landscaping design and development in general, which is exactly the point. 

Simple steps to rewilding

The beauty of rewilding one’s backyard is that anyone can do it. No expertise or scientific knowledge is necessary, just a willingness to be humble, watch, and learn. Here are some basic simple steps to get the process going:

1.  Avoid destroying what already exists.

Limit land clearance to the minimum necessary. By leaving as much land as possible intact, the rewilding process can begin with resident plant and animal partners who will speed up and facilitate the process.

 2.  Encourage wildlife, especially birds.

If land has already been clear-cut, begin to reintroduce some structural plant species to kickstart the process. Birds are important seed carriers, so create a welcoming environment for them by providing fresh water and planting their favorite native food trees and shrubs, such as Gumbo Limbo (Bursera simaruba), Sea Grape (Coccoloba uvivera), Bahama Strong Back (Bourreria succulenta), and many others. The non-profit organization Birds Caribbean (www.birdscaribbean.org) provides planting recommendations and other ways to attract and protect birds in our region. One study found that birds and bats were responsible for 94% of the floral species introduced to a land area formerly grazed by cattle (de la Peña-Domene et al., 2014).

3.  To begin with, don’t do anything.

Rewilding begins with allowing the land to direct the process, so the most critical part of the process—and perhaps the most difficult—is to do nothing. The land knows how to restore itself, and we must learn how to understand its teachings. What kinds of plants are growing? Where are they growing? The clues land provides should inform later decisions and actions. If necessary, plants can be removed from trafficked areas, such as driveways and footpaths, and these plants can be potted for later re-use as cost-free landscaping.   

4.  Resist the temptation to kill anything.

Rewilding challenges comfort zones, and getting used to sharing space with wasps, “weeds,” lizards, snakes, and other creatures that are often considered “vermin” (by some domesticated humans) takes time and a change of mindset. Ultimately, a backyard ecosystem requires all these participants, so leave them alone and learn from them. 

5.  What about non-native species?

Non-native species are not all bad but must be watched to ensure they do not become invasive. The Yellow Elder Tecoma stans can provide beauty to a landscape and nectar for Hummingbirds and other pollinators but tends to overgrow in some areas.

Non-native species are now part of TCI’s natural history, and they are here to stay. It’s important to understand that not all non-native species are bad. Some provide important habitat for birds and pollinators, while others can serve to provide food for humans and other beings. 

As with all aspects of rewilding, if you discover non-native species growing, watch and wait to see how they behave. If land has been entirely clear-cut, non-native species might be the only plants to grow in the beginning, but these can still be a beneficial part of the process. For example, when I first started rewilding, the land I was working with was dominated by more than 50% non-native species. By resisting that urge to kill those plants, I noticed that birds depended on the fruit provided by some of them and that others were serving as nitrogen-fixers, improving the soil conditions for other plants to move in. By removing these plants, I would have reduced the land’s capacity to rewild. Furthermore, clearing non-native species may be futile because it creates precisely the conditions that attract them—vacant land. Of course, it may become necessary to remove non-native species if they become invasive, but removal should only take place when other plants are available to take their place. 

6.  Last but not least, take action.

After plants begin to naturalize, it could be time for human assistance. The principles of the sustainable agricultural practice known as “permaculture” lend themselves ideally to rewilding. Permaculture focuses on creating and enhancing ecological alliances between plants and wildlife by creating symbiotic guilds of floral species that include wildlife and pollinator-friendly species, nitrogen-fixing species, such as those in the legume (bean and pea) family, structural species (e.g. trees), and plants that create biomass for mulch and soil enrichment. Keeping guilds in mind when adding plants will allow the land to continuously improve in health and biodiversity toward ecological healing. 

When making any decisions on rewilding, I find Aldo Leopold’s (1949) land ethic provides the best guidance. He said, “A thing is right when it tends to preserve the integrity, stability, and beauty of the biotic community. It is wrong when it tends otherwise.” This sentiment embodies the spirit of rewilding. 

Trying to convince some humans to give up their manicured lawns and exotic landscaping in exchange for bugs and snakes would likely be futile. For the rest of us, the possibilities for rewilding are as infinite as the diversity of life, and every rewilded space heals a little piece of the world’s ecosphere. While not perfect, that might just be good enough to sustain this messy muddle of existence on Planet Earth.

Kathleen McNary (BSc. ALM, PhD) is a dual US/TCI citizen and has worked within environment-related fields for more than 35 years, specializing in transdisciplinary and transformative approaches to environmental conservation. She has designed, coordinated, and implemented more than 80 environmental impact assessments and independent research projects and is also the author of several publications including The Flowers of the Bahamas and Turks and Caicos Islands (2003) and “A Year of Rewilding: A co-operative scholarly interspecies narrative to deconstruct orthodox conservation science toward a truly restorative ecology” (PhD Dissertation, 2025). Her current research focuses on transforming traditional conservation science through fostering reciprocal relationships between people and their environments.

References

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Balasubramanian, A. (2019). Branches of Ecology. Unpublished. 

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de la Peña-Domene, M., Martinez-Garza, C., Palmas-Perez, S., Rivas-Alonso, E., & Howe, H. F. (2014). Roles of birds and bats in early tropical-forest restoration. PLOS one, 9(8), e104656. 

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Freedman, A. (2019). Just 5% of Earth’s landscape is untouched. Axios. https://www.axios.com/2019/01/11/earth-surface-human-activity-landscape-1547164584 

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Lovejoy, T. E., & Nobre, C. (2018). Amazon Tipping Point. Science Advances, 4(2), eaat2340. https://doi.org/doi:10.1126/sciadv.aat2340 

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Monbiot, G. (2017). Feral: Rewilding the land, the sea, and human life. The University of Chicago Press. 

Rosenberg, K. V., Dokter, A. M., Blancher, P. J., Sauer, J. R., Smith, A. C., Smith, P. A., Stanton, J. C., Panjabi, A., Helft, L., & Parr, M. (2019). Decline of the North American avifauna. Science. 

Soulé, M., & Noss, R. (1998). Rewilding and biodiversity: complementary goals for continental conservation. Wild Earth, 8, 18–28. 

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