Ed Sheeran shares plan to “rewild as much of the UK as I can”

Ed Sheeran has shared plans for a personal environmental commitment, wanting to “rewild as much of the UK as I can”.

Speaking to BBC Radio London, the pop star said he is buying plots of land across the country in order to be more environmentally sustainable.

“I’m trying to buy as much land as possible and plant as many trees as possible,” he said. “I am trying to rewild as much of the UK as I can. I love my county and I love wildlife and the environment.

Sheeran added: “I feel like I am going to get my head bitten off anytime I say that, as my job is not a hugely sustainable job as I go and play in cities, but I am trying my best.”

Discussing the environment in his own home in Suffolk, he said: “I have got a massive beehive. I have this massive wildlife pond with newts in it, salamanders and there’s a grass snake that lives in there and hedgehogs.

“The thing with sustainability and being a public figure is when people support it, suddenly people try and find things to call them out on.”

Sheeran’s plan comes after major record labels, including Sony Music Group, Universal Music Group and Warner Music Group, signed up to a new pact that aims to tackle the effects of climate change by “decarbonising” the music industry.

The initiative, named the Music Climate Pact, has been launched by the UK’s Association of Independent Music (AIM) in collaboration with the record labels association, the BPI.

The Pact sets out “a series of high-level commitments that will serve as a declaration of intent for the global music sector”, including a commitment to either sign up to the Science Based Targets Initiative or join the UN’s Race to Zero programme by February 2022.

As well as the Sony, Universal and Warner music groups, labels such as Beggars Group, BMG, Brownswood Recordings, Ninja Tune, Secretly Group, Warp and Partisan Records have also joined the Music Climate Pact.

Paul Redding, CEO of Beggars Group (UK), said: “The Music Climate Pact shows the willingness of the whole music industry to work collaboratively on climate issues. Building on IMPALA’s project to develop a carbon calculator tool, all signatories will be pulling in the same direction on sustainability topics.

Back in October, Coldplay announced plans to make their 2022 world tour as environmentally friendly as possible.

“We’re very conscious that the planet is facing a climate crisis,” the band said in a statement. “So we’ve spent the last two years consulting with environmental experts to make this tour as sustainable as possible, and, just as importantly, to harness the tour’s potential to push things forward.”