RESPECT and responsibility for nature, and a close connection with the land, have long been part of Scotland’s story. Gaelic words for places and animals – like coille and iolaire – reveal the value that earlier communities placed on the woods, the wildlife and a more nature-rooted way of life.
Millennia later, and for my own part, I’ve seen first-hand how an inspiring intertwining of people, community, nature and the land still holds true. Not least through my role in south Scotland’s largest community buyout, which – led by the Langholm Initiative charity, and completed in 2022 – led to the creation of the 10,500-acre Tarras Valley Nature Reserve, to offer new opportunities for community regeneration, nature recovery, and climate action.
Rewilding – the large-scale restoration of nature to the point it can take care of itself, and us, again – learns from the past but looks to the future through a new lens. In the face of the climate and biodiversity crises, nature is our best ally. Rewilding offers a pathway to the natural world’s recovery across Scotland.
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That’s why we must see rewilding in the Fourth Land Use Strategy currently being developed by the Scottish Government.
Rewilding is inspiring. Just this past week, we saw up to 100 people from across Scotland gather outside Holyrood in the first event of its kind to take place at the Scottish parliament.
Individuals, communities and businesses – representing thousands of people and organisations – were there to call on our politicians to stop stalling and start rewilding.
The powerful, visual stunt was part of the growing campaign for Scotland to declare itself the world’s first Rewilding Nation, with a commitment to nature recovery across 30% of land and seas for nature, climate and people.
Rewilding is popular. Up to 80% of Scots think the Scottish Government should have policies in place to support rewilding.
And the Rewilding Nation campaign has gained support from high-profile figures including actors Alan Cumming and Brian Cox, singer Nathan Evans, Hollywood star Leonardo DiCaprio, and activists such as Laura “Less Waste Laura” Young.
Rewilding is effective. Almost 200 rewilding projects are currently under way across 2.5% or 195,615 hectares of Scotland. And research published by Rewilding Britain last year showed a whopping 412% increase in jobs at Scotland rewilding sites that are members of the Rewilding Britain-managed Rewilding Network.
But this groundswell of hope is happening in spite of a government that ignores and overlooks rewilding. Rewilding remains noticeably, inexplicably absent from policy and representation on governmental working groups. Furthermore, a substantial funding gap persists between payments for traditional rural activities and the investment required for significant nature restoration and climate action.
The Scottish people need government support, clarity and regulation to help the country meet its ambitious climate and nature goals. Access to healthy nature improves our own health and wellbeing, and the health of our climate, communities and economy. If we want our children to grow up with those benefits, surrounded by and supported by nature, we need to change course politically – and start working with nature rather than against it.
Ultimately, we must decide how we as a society use our land, and how our government guides, enables and supports this. The current development of Scotland’s fourth Land Use Strategy is an important opportunity to reassess our direction of travel and begin to plan for the long term.
The Scottish Rewilding Alliance is calling for nature to be recognised as a key land use, and for that recognition to inform government decisions around the future of Scotland’s land and seas.
At the same time, investment in rewilding would bring nature back in a big way, helping to breathe new life into communities, support the Scottish Government’s goals for tackling the climate and biodiversity crises, and help the economy grow in a fair, strong, and sustainable way.
Rewilding 30% of Scotland can be achieved by restoring wild habitats including peatlands, native woodlands, rivers and seas, while maintaining and benefitting productive farmland.
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Tweaks to the status quo will not work. Minor shifts in direction will not work. Disengaging from difficult conversations will hold us back. We need targeted land-use change, and honesty, clarity and vision from our government to create a wilder future for Scotland.
We need transformational, fundamental shifts in land use and ownership, with communities involved at the heart of decisions about land use change. Our political leaders need to be bold and ambitious.
Rewilding across 30% of Scotland is critical if we are to respond effectively to the interconnected nature and climate emergencies, and ensure sustainable production of essentials from food to timber.
Without nature, there will be no farming and no food. We need our politicians to recognise that prioritising environmental and climate benefits is a viable, important and productive use of the land.
Scotland does not need to remain one of the world’s most nature-depleted countries. Delivering both net zero and a richer, wilder Scotland abundant in life is possible. This will create a Scotland where the large-scale restoration of natural processes, habitats and species works hand-in-hand with sustainable farming, forestry and leisure to the benefit of us all.
Kevin Cumming is rewilding director at Rewilding Britain and deputy convener of the Scottish Rewilding Alliance
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