A new vision for land use in Scotland: A Story for the Future

A series of evenings discussing future land use in Scotland, presented by SEDA on conjunction with the James Hutton Institute.

Over the course of six weeks, nearly 50 of the best-informed speakers on all aspects of rural land use will engage in six “conversations” — each focused on a different aspect of how land is used and how it could be better used, in Scotland. The speakers will include LEAF (Linking Environment  And Farming) CEO Caroline Drummond, social entrepreneur and former Greenpeace scientific  director Jeremy Leggett, Glasgow University economist Prof Ronald MacDonald, NatureScot CEO  Francesca Osowska, Director Crown Estate Scotland & Corrour Estate Hugh Raven, representing sectors from farming, forestry, renewable energy, to tourism and landowners.

Joining the speakers will be a selection  carefully curated contributions from Scotland-based poets and musicians, intended to  stimulate fresh ways of thinking. Musicians and  artists who will participate include Hamish Napier, Pau de Planet, Su-a Lee, Chris Powici, Kirsty  Law and The Poozies.

By going back to basics, analysing the evidence and discussing new ways of building bridges between different sectors, SEDA hopes the event will move the debate out of the silos of traditional entrenched positions, opening up new ways of thinking about land use. One goal is to feed into the Scottish Government’s programme of creating Regional Land Use Frameworks by 2023 – a coherent programme of land reform to maximise the potential of Scotland’s land in tackling climate change. As importantly, the aim is to make connections between potentially competing future uses of the land, to see ways they can join up to have the maximum effect, to start discourse on how they can work together, and build a picture of what can be achieved and how this process can involve the wider population of the country, in changing the way the land is seen and used for the future.

• Monday 01 March: The Lay of the Land
• Monday 08 March: Soil and Growth
• Monday 15 March: Ecosystems and Energy
• Monday 22 March: Natural Benefits
• Monday 29 March: New Rural Economy
• Monday 12 April: A Story for the Future

Tickets for the whole series or individual evenings can be booked here.