Ben Goldsmith
We need rewilding on a massive scale
Following a family tragedy, Ben Goldsmith sought solace in regenerating his Somerset farm. Now he hopes his innovative “natural capital” model will inspire others to invest in biodiversity
“I felt a longing for nature all my life. But it was definitely the deep, dark grief following the loss of my daughter that made me realise that this was more than just a hobby,” says the financier and environmentalist Ben Goldsmith. “I realised that this love of nature was something more vital for me.”
Goldsmith’s 15-year-old daughter, Iris, died in 2019 in a vehicle accident on the family’s Somerset farm, Cannwood. His 2023 memoir, God Is An Octopus, reflects his experience of profound grief, and how it was only turning his attention to the natural world that brought him any solace. “Even in the days immediately after the accident, I felt ‘held’ by nature,” he says. “I took to swimming in the river near my house every day.”
Goldsmith had already built a unique career that reflected his conservationism, delivering profitable investment opportunities, but only in companies compatible with what he sees as the coming “green industrial revolution”. He founded his investment fund, Menhaden, in 2014, and another green investment business, WHEB Group, in 2008. As a passion project, in 2008 Goldsmith also created Conservation Collective, an international network of hyper-local foundations.
It’s about liberating nature to come back to life in self-willed fashion
The handful of years since Iris died have seen Goldsmith go far further on his conservation journey. Significantly, he set about transforming Cannwood’s 300 acres of Somerset lowland into a model of “rewilding”; restoring rich biodiversity and native species to its landscapes, partly inspired by Isabella Tree and Charles Burrell’s Sussex farm, Knepp. Together with Burrell, Goldsmith is now developing an innovative company, Nattergal (the name is Danish for nightingale, a symbol of renewal), that he hopes will offer a model of how to better finance rewilding in the UK and internationally.
Reimagining Cannwood included reducing the number of grazing animals, reconsidering its vegetation and reintroducing once-native species, such as beavers. “Beavers are a keystone species important for holding water in landscapes,” says Goldsmith. “If those keystone processes are allowed to play out, there are cascades of other benefits through the ecosystem. It’s about liberating nature to come back to life in self-willed fashion.”
Farm to closet
The youngest son of billionaire financier James Goldsmith, Ben grew up an instinctive environmentalist. “I think all children are born with a kind of biophilia,” he says. “In my case, I was surrounded by people who had taken that love of nature into adulthood.” Goldsmith’s uncle Teddy co-founded what would go on to become the Green Party, and also started The Ecologist magazine. The title would later be edited by Ben’s older brother Zac – since 2010 a politician who now sits in the House of Lords.
Goldsmith grew up in the leafy London suburb of Richmond. “Zac would get me up at dawn, and we’d go looking for foxes and badgers and birds’ nests,” he remembers. As a child, he bristled at being described by some adults as “keen on nature”, unable to imagine why anyone wouldn’t be. Having engaged with rewilding first-hand at Cannwood, Goldsmith hosts a podcast on the topic, Rewilding the World, chatting with guests such as Stephen Fry.
For the first time, it’s possible to consider this as an investible proposition
Nattergal has seen him expand his reach. “We’ve bought three sites,” says Goldsmith. “One is a former wetland in Norfolk, where we are restoring the natural hydrology and creating an amazing mosaic of areas that will flood in the winter and remain wet in summer. We want to create the perfect habitat for migrating swans, geese and cranes, with elk as grazers.” The other two projects so far are “large wood pasture and wetland mosaic projects” in Lincolnshire and Essex.
“The growth plan [for Nattergal] is to partner with communities, or existing landowners, managing their land with them,” says Goldsmith. “We want to prove this model on sites that we own but, in due course, we will expand to that different model.” He regards the work as vital, and his perspective is informed by his long career in investment. “We need to be rewilding on a massive scale. It’s always been a philanthropic endeavour and now, for the first time, it’s possible to consider this as an investible proposition. If we can prove that, then significant sums of money can flow into restoring nature all over the world.”
What natural capital means
The market for biodiversity credits, which businesses buy to demonstrate that they have supported an environmental effort, is instrumental in Nattergal’s “natural capital” paradigm. Goldsmith gives an example: “You might be restoring wood pasture on the higher ground and selling biodiversity credits [from that]. And then you’ll stack on that a nature tourism plan, and you may also get some stewardship payments from the state.”
Investors, including Aviva and Lansdowne Capital, are putting their weight behind Nattergal’s model. “Charlie [Burrell] and I wanted to create more Knepps, so we had the idea of raising money from institutional investors, as well as individuals. We wanted to prove that we could generate long-term, stable financial yields from rewilding these landscapes. In other words, to show that nature as infrastructure can be an investable asset class, just like student accommodation or solar power.”
To show that nature as infrastructure can be an investable asset class
Of his wider career journey, Goldsmith says, “I used to be more mainstream green investment – but perhaps when it wasn’t so mainstream. And now I’m more nature investment, which is the future.” For a grieving parent, the future could be a frightening prospect, yet Goldsmith seems to have made some peace with it. “You use your time more thoughtfully after such an event,” he says. “The things I do professionally now are much more geared towards my deep love for nature, and with my kids, I’m more present than ever. I feel that everything I do is infused with Iris, and everything I do is for her.”
