“Scotland: The Big Picture” is an organisation of biologists, conservationists and wildlife photographers that are working towards the reintroduction and regeneration of Scotland’s wilderness.
… Centuries of sheep and deer grazing have reduced our uplands to shadows of the vibrant, species-rich landscapes they could be. We’ve lost all of our large carnivores and most of our large herbivores. Cultivation of land for grouse have further reduced biodiversity and we now stand as one of the most nature-depleted nations on Earth.
Their main weapon in the fight to bring Scotland’s landscape back to its former glory is “Rewilding”. It is principle of large-scale restoration of naturally functioning ecosystems. This means allowing nature to do its own thing and establish natural processes – such as predator-prey dynamics and carcass scavenging.
Governments, NGOs & scientists now concede that nature does a much better job at conservation that we can, so let it do its job by allowing it to rewild.
“Northwoods” is a sub-project of “Scotland: The Big Picture” and it creates more rewilded land by bringing together a diverse group of estates, farmers & landowners under a shared brand, ideology and agreed set of rewilding principles.
- Restoration and reinstatement of native woodland
- Removal of wildlife migration barriers such as fences with fine wire mesh
- Returning missing native species such the the Beaver and Lynx
- Engagement with local communities to explore opportunities around recreation, education and employment
- Establishment of natural grazing patterns rather than intensive livestock farming
I’m particularly passionate about the concept of rewilding and believe it will form an enormously important part of conservation in the UK and abroad. This project in-particular will benefit from additional help from other Foundations and donors like ourselves. If you’re interested please do get in touch with me to talk about how we could work together to promote / help this project.
Latest Project Updates
October 17, 2022
Northwoods Rewilding Network grows to 50 sites in 18 months
As the project approaches the halfway point of our funding period, we are delighted to report that the network is rapidly expanding, successfully increasing more and more of Scotland’s biodiversity.