I am now a retired GP in East Dorset. For 30 years I specialised in helping those with mental health issues, and in January 2000 was awarded an MBE for this work within the Dorset community.

I started Your Planet Doctors in January 2020 when I suddenly became aware of how vulnerable we could all become to possible food and water shortages in the future and how much mental health was deteriorating in our population. The combined effects of climate change and destruction of our ecosystems struck home, and then COVID 19 hit.

It’s been an eye-opener for two reasons. It showed how reliant many of us are on the supply chains of the big grocery stores, and what happens when those are disrupted, for whatever reason. On a more positive note, the lockdown illustrated how communities could come together to help each other out, even if they hadn’t met before.

Your Planet Doctors mission is to empower our friends and neighbours, and work with them to revitalise the soil and begin to grow their own food, learning to become self sufficient and avoid the anxiety of food insufficiency should it ever occur. If we plant in a sustainable way, as well as avoiding chemicals in fertiliser and pesticides, we could start to achieve our goals. We need to bring back the wildlife, to rewild, to attract the bees for pollination, the birds, by restoring the insect population and much much more. Then there is the benefit of low food miles. Fewer lorries travelling the highways, no refrigerated storage, and no plastic wrapping. All leading to a reduction in carbon emissions.

Your Planet Doctors and our colleagues will work alongside you and show you how.

Growing your own food within small neighbourhood groups addresses all 5 steps to wellbeing, evidence of which is found on the MIND webpage www.mind.org.uk

Getting out in the fresh air, being active, and learning new skills have huge mental and physical benefits, as I saw many times during my career Then there’s the great feeling of being with and helping others, volunteering to support the vulnerable, and then noticing how relationships improve in all walks of life. There is also a great opportunity to practice mindfulness, ie living in the present moment, which I will illustrate to you along your journeys.

So while global warming and our ailing environment feel like impossibly huge issues to try and solve, I believe that doing something always feels better than doing nothing and people power counts for a lot.

Its not about the few doing things perfectly, it’s about everyone doing something imperfectly!!

Together, we will continue to build those caring, sustainable and self sufficient communities, that lockdown has helped us start, and together we will develop that resilience required to face any challenges that might come our way

There are so many wonderful people, and together we can make that difference.