ENVIRONMENTAL and recreational charity South West Lakes Trust is celebrating after scooping National Lottery funding from the Social, Economic and Environmental Development (SEED) Programme for an education project in West Devon and Dartmoor.

Sustainability is increasingly being accepted as an important part of daily life and ceasing to be a novel issue, with a majority of people living in West Devon and Dartmoor being aware of the need to recycle.

Through the SEED Programme, the Trust has been able to employ a new education officer who is based at Burrator Lodge, near Yelverton.

Liz Eagle will be working towards raising the awareness of sustainability issues in the community, especially to schoolchildren.

The project will be involved with Mary Tavy Hydro, renewable energy, which has a composting site alongside.

Liz said she was very excited about leading the project with South West Lakes Trust.

She said: 'There are some daunting targets to reach in the 13 months of the project. I will be aiming to become involved with many of the excellent schemes already underway in the area such as the 'Don't Let Devon Go To Waste' campaign and West Devon Borough Council's Sustainable Development Strategy.'

She added: 'I have always been fascinated by the natural world and I find that children often share the same fascination, so I am hoping that together we can help their friends and families view it as we do.'

Liz has a teaching background and is one of the leaders of the Root Group, one of Devon Wildlife Trust's junior environmental Watch Groups, based at Roadford Lake.

The objectives Liz has to meet include the raising of awareness of sustainability at a community level, especially the necessity for minimising waste and conserving resources with resulting benefits for the environment and to promote a more sustainable lifestyle to West Devon and Dartmoor's rural communities, thereby aiding economic activity.

The project will promote sustainable development through advice groups, events and open days and the production of informative literature.

The £15.3 million SEED programme, managed by the Royal Society for Nature Conservation (RSNC) and 11 consortium partners, distributes National Lottery money on behalf of the New Opportunities Fund.

The project is also funded by the Dartmoor Sustainable Development Fund — a partnership between Dartmoor National Park Authority and DEFRA. It is designed to spread wider the good practice already being carried out and to raise awareness of alternative ways to aid the conservation of resources and our natural environment.

Any West Devon or Dartmoor youth group interested in becoming involved in this project should contact Liz on 01822 859139.