Rewilding Affric Highlands unveils new foundation
A Scottish rewilding initiative has launched as a new independent charity to provide a “new foundation from which to continue scaling up rewilding efforts across the 200,000-hectare Affric Highlands rewilding landscape in northern Scotland”.
Affric Highlands launched as Rewilding Europe’s ninth rewilding landscape – and the largest rewilding landscape in the UK – in late 2021.
Since then, Rewilding Europe and local NGO partner Trees for Life have been leading efforts to restore native woodland, peatland and riverside habitats – and support wildlife comeback – across a growing network of partner estates, delivering benefits for nature, climate and local communities.
With momentum, ambition and community involvement growing, the launch of a new entity as a standalone charity marks an exciting new chapter, enabling the Affric Highlands team to shape and share their own narrative of rewilding within a Scottish context, as they continue to scale up the positive impact of rewilding and build relationships grounded in mutual respect and trust.
Encompassing pockets of Caledonian pinewood and temperate rainforest, as well as peatlands, floodplains, rivers, lochs and uplands, this dramatic and extensive landscape stretches from Loch Ness in the east to Kintail on the Scottish west coast.
Rewilding Affric Highlands executive director Stephanie Kiel said: “The Affric Highlands rewilding team will keep working to create new opportunities and tangible benefits for local landowners, communities, and rural economies, so that nature, people, and livelihoods can all thrive together.
“Affric Highlands represents an ambitious, community-focused vision of hope. Setting out as a new entity provides fresh inspiration as we work to make that vision a reality.”
The Affric Highlands rewilding team will continue efforts to revitalise the landscape and its communities, delivering benefits for nature, climate, and people on a growing scale.
Working with local people, the Rewilding Affric Highlands initiative will continue efforts to restore and reconnect habitats across the landscape, revitalise natural processes, engage communities, and give nature-based businesses the opportunity to flourish. These efforts are already helping to boost biodiversity.
The involvement of people is critical to bringing about enduring positive change in the Affric Highlands.
This is why the team are working to form a broad coalition of partners – from landowners and entrepreneurs to students and community members. By the end of 2024, agreements with 19 estates were in place, covering more than 58,000 hectares.
Efforts to recover nature on these estates, which are breathing new life into the landscape, are currently focused on woodland, peatland, and riparian restoration.
Moving forwards, people in the UK and across the world can get even closer to the work of the Rewilding Affric Highlands team through the captivating new Rewilding Affric Highlands website. By promoting the team’s efforts, providing insight into the landscape and its iconic wildlife, and giving people the opportunity to get involved, the site will help to realise the rewilding vision in the Affric Highlands and upscale rewilding within Scotland and further afield.
The inspirational rewilding centre on the 10,000-acre Dundreggan Estate, which is owned by Trees for Life, is also playing a pivotal role connecting people with Affric Highlands rewilding.
The Rewilding Affric Highlands website is Rewilding Europe’s tenth dedicated rewilding landscape website, following the launch of the Rewilding Romania, Rewilding Rhodopes, Rewilding Oder Delta, Rewilding Danube Delta, Rewilding Apennines, Rewilding Portugal, Rewilding Sweden, Rewilding Spain, and Rewilding Velebit sites.
