East Midlands community action

The East Midlands is one of nine official regions of England at the first level of ITL for statistical purposes. It comprises the eastern half of the area traditionally known as the Midlands. It consists of Leicestershire, Derbyshire, Lincolnshire (except North and North East Lincolnshire), Northamptonshire, Nottinghamshire and Rutland. The region has an area of 15,627 km² (6,034 sq mi), with a population over 4.5 million in 2011. The most populous settlements in the region are Derby, Leicester, Lincoln, Mansfield, Northampton and Nottingham. Other notable settlements include Boston, Buxton, Chesterfield, Corby, Coalville, Gainsborough, Glossop, Grantham, Hinckley, Kettering, Loughborough, Louth, Market Harborough, Matlock, Newark-on-Trent, Oakham, Skegness, Wellingborough, Worksop and Towcester

With a sufficiency-level world city ranking, Nottingham is the only settlement in the region to be classified by the Globalization and World Cities Research Network.

The Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust founded in 1963 is a wildlife conservation charity working to protect and enhance the wildlife and habitats of Nottinghamshire. They care for over 60 nature reserves covering more than 2,000 acres (8.1 km²) of wildlife habitat ranging from wildflower meadows to wetlands to ancient woodland. Key reserves are Attenborough Nature Reserve and Idle Valley Nature Reserve.

They engage the local community through events, information, volunteering and education opportunities and seek to ensure the county is a healthy and wildlife rich place to live. They are one of the 46 members of The Wildlife Trusts and have 11,000 members.

Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust also advise other landowners how to manage their land to benefit wildlife.

Attenborough Nature Reserve is a nature reserve at Attenborough, Nottinghamshire, England, located 5 mi (8 km) south west of Nottingham city centre. It is owned and managed by Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust, supported by Broxtowe Borough Council, following the completion of purchase from Cemex UK in December 2020.

At its centre is a building called Attenborough Nature Centre, comprising visitor services and educational facilities.

The Idle Valley Nature Reserve, also known as Lound Gravel Pits or Sutton and Lound Gravel Pits, is a wetland Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) situated north-west of the town of Retford in the Bassetlaw district of north Nottinghamshire. The nature reserve is situated along the western bank of the River Idle and east of the villages of Sutton cum Lound and Lound. The nature reserve is managed by the Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust.

Several towns in the southern part of the region, including Market Harborough, Desborough, Rothwell, Corby, Kettering, Peterborough, Thrapston, Oundle and Stamford, lie within the boundaries of what was once Rockingham Forest – designated a royal forest by William the Conqueror and was long hunted by English kings and queens.

The National Forest is an environmental project in central England run by The National Forest Company. Areas of north Leicestershire, south Derbyshire and south-east Staffordshire covering around 200 square miles (520 km²; 52,000 ha) are being planted in an attempt to blend ancient woodland with new plantings. It stretches from the western outskirts of Leicester in the east to Burton upon Trent in the west, and is planned to link the ancient forests of Needwood and Charnwood.

Sherwood Forest in Nottinghamshire attracts many visitors, and is perhaps best known for its ties with the legend of Robin Hood.