Membership Money

Last week I was surprised to receive a nice cheque from the tax man as they'd taken too much of my money last year. My first thoughts were of new Fairtrade dresses but then I started to think how this unexpected money would be put to best use.

A chunk of it is going into the wedding fund but I've also decided to join three new nature charities so that my money helps look after the UK's wildlife. Definitely something that matters to me now and in the future and the good the money will do will last longer than any enjoyment I get from a new dress.

So, which charities to choose? I picked my local Wildlife Trust, because I've been meaning to join it for ages and I use their website to look up wildlife all the time. Next on my list was Buglife, because getting support for cute and cuddly wildlife is quite easy, but convincing people to protect beetles, bugs and creepy crawlies is much harder, but these animals are vital to sustain larger ecosystems and food chains. Finally, the Woodland Trust the UK's charity for protecting our woodlands. So many birds, insects, mammals, and plants rely on woodlands that protecting this key habitat is really important if we want the UK's wildlife to thrive. Also, I never want to live in a world where a walk through a bluebell wood isn't possible and supporting this charity will help to make sure that never happens. 

So, that takes my charity memberships up to 5. The RSPB, Plantlife, Buglife, Devon Wildlife Trust and the Woodland Trust. Much better than a dress, I'll get much more pleasure from wildlife than fashion so that's money well spent on my new memberships. If you've got a few tenners spare this month, why not spend it on something that will make you feel good all year, join a wildlife charity.