Matt Parkins is passionate about the conservation of the beautiful, wooded valleys around Dartmoor. The focus of his work is on the restoration of woodlands that have, for many years, been used and changed by human activity. Several of these sites are now being carefully worked to make a gradual transition from blocks of single exotic species that have been planted for timber, to a more diverse place where wildlife can thrive in a habitat that supports a sustainable local timber supply. Within these magnificent gorges and valleys stand a few remnants of truly ancient oak woods, also known as temperate rainforest, due to the prevailing humid conditions that blow in from the Atlantic and the damp, mossy atmosphere that characterises these wonderful places.

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Matt took on the name ‘Raven Quest’ after several close encounters with this large and powerful member of the crow family. The raven is known to be an intelligent bird with the ability to communicate with other species and a repertoire of sophisticated calls, kronks, knocks, pops and clicks when responding to its own kind. It is a bird of the open moor but also one of the larger-than-life characters that nest in the tall trees of the Dartmoor valleys. Matt loves Dartmoor and he feels compelled to take on the quest of learning more about the multitude of species and the complex interactions between them. This is the knowledge and experience that he enjoys sharing with others and is a regular contributor to the Fingle Woods and East Dartmoor Woods blogs.

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As a qualified walk leader, he has trained and supervised young people on moorland expeditions across the high moor and led many educational walks in the varied and interesting woods of Dartmoor. He is inspired by the endless interconnectedness of nature and the style of early conservationist, John Muir who took the view that, "When we try to pick out anything by itself, we find it hitched to everything else in the Universe."