Always a rebel, mostly for the right reasons, John Burton ditched school for an education in the woods, fields and bomb sites around his south-London home.
By his teens, he was a brilliant naturalist, subsequently choosing fieldwork over university. (His later recognitions would include an honorary doctorate.)
From a young age, the one institution he loved was the Natural History Museum, and based on his field skills alone, in 1963 he got a job there, as assistant information officer.
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Then in 1969, he became assistant editor of the part-work Birds of the World. John’s subsequent journey through the world of wildlife journalism and conservation is long and varied, but he was always at the head of the wave.
In 1970 he became a consultant to the fledgling Friends of the Earth, lobbying for changes in legislation, including a ban on otter hunting.
RIP…John Burton, Fauna and Flora, World Land Trust. A man who not only cared deeply about wildlife, but knew which humans could be trusted and which could not . A man who got things done, world wide.He was my mentor ..I hope I helped him sometimes.
— Bill Oddie Official (@BillOddie) June 1, 2022
He was also founding chairman of the Bat Conservation Trust. By then, he was writing and editing natural history books – more than 40 by the end of his life.
It was in 1971 that he became assistant editor of BBC Wildlife magazine, then known as Animals, for a year, afterwards as a long term contributor to it – campaigning among other things to bring back the lynx – eventually joining BBC Wildlife’s advisory board.
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At 31, in 1975, he became the first leader of IUCN’s TRAFFIC International – the trade watchdog. It was also the year he became Executive Secretary (the CEO) of FFPS, now Fauna and Flora International – a champion of the underdog and supporter of on-the-ground conservation groups.
After 12 years, he and his partner Viv Burton went on to set up the highly effective World Land Trust, of which he was CEO of for 30 years, fundraising through the simple idea of ‘selling’ acres to help local conservation groups buy valuable habitats, on the basis that if you save the land you can save the species.
WLT is greatly saddened to have heard of the passing of our founder John Burton. Our deepest sympathy goes out to John’s wife Viv Burton, Lola and all of his friends.
— World Land Trust (@worldlandtrust) May 23, 2022
John leaves an incalculable legacy to conservation – a legacy we at WLT will work hard to build on. pic.twitter.com/KQFeLu4D6I
He died on Biodiversity Day, 22 May 2022.
Main image: John Burton in Armenia © David Bebber/WLT