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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Environment
Patrick Barkham

‘Intrinsically connected’: how human neurodiversity could help save nature

Joe Harkness standing on an 'ancient tree'
Joe Harkness says neurodiverse conservationists find they can be uniquely effective at their job. Photograph: Ali Smith/The Guardian

When Joe Harkness received a message from a friend about macerating moth abdomens to check their genitalia to identify the species, it sparked an idea for a new book about wildlife obsessions. But over time, this developed into a completely different book: a clarion call to embrace neurodiversity in the fight against the extinction crisis.

Across Britain, 15% of people are thought to be neurodivergent. In the process of writing Neurodivergent, By Nature, Harkness discovered that an estimated 30% of conservation employees were neurodivergent. Why?

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