The National Trust, the charitable organisation that takes care of around 250,000 hectares of countryside, 720 miles of coastline, and numerous historic places in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, has announced celebrity endorsements of its restoration of the White Cliffs of Dover, the cliffs that form part of the British coastline on the English Channel.
Dame Judi Dench, Joss Stone, Ben Ainslie and Rick Stein have joined the campaign conducted by the National Trust to raise £1.2 million to acquire a stretch of the Dover coastline.
Soul singer Joss Stone, a native of Dover, said, ‘I love Dover and the White Cliffs. They mean so much to me and I hope that the National Trust raises enough money to buy the land for future generations to enjoy.’
Fiona Reynolds, the director-general of the National Trust, said, ‘In just one month, thousands of people have backed our appeal and we’ve raised almost half of the money needed.
This tremendous support shows the love we as a nation have for our special places – thank you to everyone who has contributed. We now need to keep going to make sure we reach the target and secure this piece of coastline forever.’
The funds generated from the campaign will be used to conserve the coastal areas, improve habitat for local wildlife, and offer public access to the White Cliffs for future generations. The cliffs are home to a rich biodiversity, which includes wildlife such as the Adonis blue butterfly, rare coastal plants that include the oxtongue broomrape and sea carrot, and birds including the skylark and peregrine falcon.
