B-R-A-V-E (Badger Rescue And Vaccination Everywhere) is a personal, not-for-profit initiative launched by Norma and George Kearton in January 2013 from their home in Par, Cornwall.

Both Norma and George have a long history of voluntary sector fundraising and management experience. They have both worked for WWF (World Wide Fund for Nature, formerly World Wildlife Fund, which is how they first met in the early 1980’s) and Norma was also fundraising Manager for St. Michael’s Hospice in Basingstoke. Since retiring to Cornwall in 2001, Norma has helped St Austell & District Cats Protection as honorary secretary/website manager; an organisation which she still supports. George’s professional experience includes several years as a Constituency Agent for various Members of Parliament as well as fundraising management in the NHS, at an animal rescue centre on Merseyside and for Springhill Hospice in Rochdale. He was also Founder and Director of “Vivace” – a children’s arts charity which gave musical performance opportunities to over 62,000 children and young people across the North of England and the South West of Scotland over a 12 year period.

Norma spent hundreds of hours online during the Summer and Autumn of 2012 lobbying for Dr Brian May’s anti-cull petition. Following the postponement of the cull, rumours started to surface on the Internet that Cornwall would be a cull site in 2013. Thankfully it did not happen then.

However, more culls did take place in Gloucestershire and Somerset. Many, many people across the country (including Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland) have expressed their concerns, anger, unhappiness and frustration over decisions to still continue killing such an iconic animal. These culls go against all scientific evidence; bTB is a deadly disease but it seems that the badger is being made into a scapegoat. British tax-payers money being used to kill wildlife instead of using it to help the farmers - not hinder.

Very concerned about this, Norma was determined to do what she could to establish a country-wide organisation to oppose the cull and to raise funds for badger rescue and vaccination; B-R-A-V-E was the result and very quickly became known for facts, information and updates. Operation Badger became a focus of attention when over 150 Badger Champions, recruited through B-R-A-V-E, successfully organised local petitions. Following these some local councils banned badger culling on their land.

But still more culls have been announced by the Government; not only that, they want to see a roll-out into other areas, Cornwall being one of them. However, every county is just as important as the other; every badger is precious in all of our countryside and is part of the web of life so necessary for mankind too. B-R-A-V-E sees these 'killing' decisions as being totally wrong and very misinformed. We have our own advisors (science, farming and environment) who are always on hand to help with questions from the public. B-R-A-V-E looks for facts and a way forward to address this whole desperate situation as some believe anti-cull people are just cuddly animal lovers. This is what is so sad, but being sad is quite useless; no amount of tears will change anything. We must act and we must act NOW.

Norma and George took a break for a little while in the hope that sense would prevail. But it was a false hope and B-R-A-V-E is back. Most of the original pages will be archived for information and/or evidence as well as a thank-you to all those great people who helped and contributed. Not forgetting those wonderful people too, who go out into the field in all weathers, with the sole aim of protecting our badgers. You will always be remembered.

B-R-A-V-E's next campaign will be "?" Keep badgering!!