WWT, which now runs 10 wetland bird reserves across the UK, is campaigning to restore one million hectares of lost wetland. The aim is partly to give endangered species safer habitat, and partly because of the carbon those wetlands can hold.
The reserve at Slimbridge is the starting point. Over the years it became home to thousands of ducks, swans and geese, as well as migrating wildfowl.
Many people still come for the swans, geese, flamingoes and other birds. Fewer realise how strongly these habitats can soak up carbon and slow climate change, according to the account reported by the BBC.
Most people know rainforests matter in the fight against climate change. Scientists now say wetlands could be even more important, because they absorb carbon far quicker than forests.
In Bristol, one scheme has moored small floating islands of wetland plants in the city's harbour, a compact version of the same idea.
That carbon role sits beside a stark loss. Scientists calculate that 85% of the world's wetland habitats have gone, as marshes were drained for agriculture and swamps cleared for construction while cities expanded.
What started at Slimbridge has spread across those 10 UK reserves. The charity is also working with local councils to restore wetlands, including in small city areas.
What began 80 years ago as a bird reserve on a riverbank in Gloucestershire has grown into a global campaign to restore wetlands, which campaigners call a"soggy secret weapon"against climate change. Fowler said that 40% of the world's species rely on wetland habitats for survival, a figure that underlines why the loss matters beyond climate alone.
Moore said Scott was talking about the impact people were having on the natural world long before public debate turned to climate change and global warming.