24 Facts About Chris Baines

John Christopher Baines was born on 4 May 1947 and is an English naturalist, one of the UK's leading independent environmentalists.

Chris Baines is a horticulturalist, landscape architect, naturalist, television presenter and author.

Chris Baines worked in the local parks department when he left school, and then studied horticulture and landscape architecture at Wye College, University of London.

Chris Baines built the first wildlife garden ever allowed at Chelsea Flower Show in 1985, and in the same year his television programme Bluetits and Bumblebees, and his book, How to Make a Wildlife Garden, inspired many people to begin gardening with wildlife.

Also in 1987, Chris Baines recorded an album, The Wild Side of Town, with the folk-rock Albion Band and then toured the UK, raising money for the British Wildlife Appeal.

Chris Baines is one of the UK's leading environmental campaigners, and in recent years he has particularly championed the cause of trees.

Chris Baines led the fight to prevent cable television and other utility companies chopping through the roots of urban street trees.

Chris Baines has promoted the concept of urban forestry in the UK Chris Baines was a founding member of the steering committee of CABE Space, the UK Government's urban greenspace adviser.

Chris Baines was principal adviser to Trees of Time and Place, a campaign for the millennium which encouraged people to gather seeds from a favourite tree, grow a seedling and plant it for the future.

Chris Baines was a member of the steering board for the BBC's Breathing Places campaign.

Chris Baines works from home in Wolverhampton, is a national vice-president of the Royal Society of Wildlife Trusts.

Chris Baines is a former trustee of the Heritage Lottery Fund and completed a further five years as a member of the HLF Expert Panel.

Chris Baines is president of the Association for Environment Conscious Building and the Thames Estuary Partnership and the Essex Wildlife Trust.

Chris Baines is the patron of the Countryside Management Association and the Wildlife Gardening Forum, and president of the Wildside Activity Centre.

Chris Baines is a member of the National Trust's natural environment advisory group.

Chris Baines is particularly active as a professional environmental adviser to the housebuilding and development industry in the UK.

Chris Baines chaired the independent design review panel for the largest new housing development in the Thames Gateway, East of London at Barking Riverside and he advised on sustainability at the 2012 Olympic Athletes' Village and Westfield Shopping City in Stratford, East London.

Chris Baines advised on regeneration in the UN World Heritage city of Bath, Somerset, and in the new township of the Hamptons, Peterborough, and was retained by developers Lend Lease to advise on green infrastructure for the redevelopment of the Heygate Estate, Elephant and Castle.

Chris Baines has a particular interest in the environment of retirement housing and worked for several years as an adviser to specialist developer Beechcroft.

Chris Baines advised the UK government's Department for Communities and Local Government on biodiversity aspects of their proposed ecotowns.

Chris Baines has particular expertise in the field of sustainable water management.

Chris Baines has worked for a number of UK water companies, spent time as an adviser to the water regulator OFWAT and has worked with the Environment Agency to improve communication of whole river catchment management.

Chris Baines has written frequently in BBC Gardeners' World, BBC Wildlife and Country Living magazines.

Chris Baines is a Companion of the Guild of St George.