Trees Archives - Page 4 of 11

New Era For Leading Conservation Charity

Jan 142016

Alan with new CEO, Steve Micklewright.

With thanks to Richard Bunting, Director, Richard Bunting PR.

Thirty years after founding award-winning charity Trees for Life, acclaimed conservationist Alan Watson Featherstone this week stepped down as the organisation’s Executive Director to take up a new role as Founder and Visionary, with Steve Micklewright becoming new Chief Executive Officer.

Alan Watson Featherstone said:

“This marks the beginning of an exciting new era for Trees for Life. I’m delighted to welcome Steve Micklewright as our new Chief Executive Officer, and I look forward to working closely with him to further expand and develop Trees for Life’s work to help restore the Caledonian Forest. It’s also a time to pay tribute to the excellent work of Trees for Life’s present and past staff and thousands of volunteers from all over the world who have done so much to rewild the Highlands.”

In his new role, Alan will have a focus on Trees for Life’s expanding conservation and forest restoration work, as well as liaison with its key partners and donors, and will continue to be the public face of the charity. While no longer responsible for the daily running of the organisation he founded, Alan will remain fully engaged with its work and will stay on its board of directors.

Steve Micklewright, who took up his new role on 4th January, said:

“It’s an honour to join this inspiring and pioneering charity which is making such a difference to Scotland’s wonderful wildlife and wild places – breathing new life into the stunning landscapes of the Highlands and helping to improve the lives of hundreds of people each year through hands-on and rewarding conservation opportunities.”

Steve has worked in nature conservation for over 25 years, most recently as Director of BirdLife Malta and previously for organisations including the Wildlife Trusts, WWF and CPRE (Campaign for the Protection of Rural England). He has placed a strong focus on the benefits of nature for the health and wellbeing of people throughout his career, and has worked on many forestry and woodland conservation projects.

Trees for Life’s story began in 1986 when Alan Watson Featherstone made a commitment during an environmental conference in Findhorn to launch a Caledonian Forest restoration project. Practical activity began in 1989, with tree guards used to protect Scots pine seedlings in Glen Cannich from being eaten by deer. In 1991, volunteers began planting some of the first new trees to grow in the forest for 200 years.

Trees for Life has since grown into a multi award-winning, leading conservation volunteering charity, with a dedicated staff team and thousands of supporters and volunteers.

Its volunteers have helped to plant more than one million trees at dozens of locations, and the charity has pledged to establish one million more trees by planting and natural regeneration by 2018. In 2008, it bought Dundreggan Conservation Estate, a 10,000-acre site and biodiversity hotspot in Glenmoriston to the west of Loch Ness.

Alan has won numerous awards for his work. At the end of 2015 he was awarded an alternative New Year’s honour by The Guardian newspaper in a celebration of the heroes of the year.

Next week, Alan will continue his acclaimed series of lectures with well-known writer and author George Monbiot, with events at the University of Exeter on 14 January and at the University of Plymouth on 15 January. The sold-out Plymouth lecture will be available via live web streaming, with details at www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/RewildingLiveStream.

The lectures will highlight the benefits of rewilding – the restoration of damaged natural ecosystems, and the return of keystone species.

People can support Trees for Life by becoming a member, carrying out conservation action, sponsoring trees for special occasions or sponsoring an acre of native forest. See www.treesforlife.org.uk.

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Rewilding Scotland And Tackling Climate Change

Environment, News No Responses »

Dec 082015

With thanks to Richard Bunting, Director, Richard Bunting PR.

People can help rewild the Scottish Highlands and take action on climate change this Christmas by having specially-dedicated trees planted for family and friends through conservation charity Trees for Life.
A dedicated native tree will be planted in the Caledonian Forest for each recipient of Trees for Life’s Christmas tree certificates – creating a home for wildlife and forests for the future.

A personalised certificate accompanies the planet-friendly gift, with one tree costing £15, and further trees £5 each.

Trees will also be planted for recipients of the charity’s ‘plant a tree’ winter gift card. Each card costs £6 + P&P, and contains information about the tree that will be planted and the wildlife that will benefit.

“People all over the world will be hoping that an effective global deal can be reached by the world’s governments currently gathered at the Paris Climate Change Conference. Alongside international agreements, we can all take personal action for our environment, with one tangible and specific way being the planting of a dedicated tree in the Caledonian Forest,” said Alan Watson Featherstone, Trees for Life’s Executive Director.

“Every tree dedicated will help reduce the impact of climate change by replacing the carbon footprint and packaging of Christmas presents with a gift that instead soaks up carbon dioxide, and that benefits wildlife and Scotland’s wild landscapes. It’s a meaningful and inspiring way of celebrating the festive season, which also makes a real positive difference for the planet.”

Only a fraction of the ancient Caledonian Forest now survives, but Trees for Life volunteers have helped to plant more than one million trees across the Highlands. Each tree dedicated for Christmas will help the charity to establish one million more trees by planting and natural regeneration by 2018.

Trees for Life also has available a range of unique Winter Gifts – including original artwork, T-shirts, and shopping bags – with all proceeds helping to restore the forest. The charity’s 2016 calendar (£10.95) provides an annual celebration of the richness of the Caledonian Forest and features stunning photography, while the beauty of the Highlands is also showcased in its 2016 Engagement Diary (£14.95).

A Sponsor a Squirrel gift pack (£30) – featuring a photographic print from wildlife photographer Peter Cairns and a soft toy or a signed limited edition Tori Ratcliffe art print – will help red squirrels return to areas of the Highlands from where they have been lost.

It’s also possible to sponsor an acre of wild forest at Trees for Life’s Dundreggan Conservation Estate near Loch Ness. Each sponsorship gift of £60 is recognised with a special certificate, and will help to expand Caledonian pinewoods for red squirrels, pine martens, wood ants and Scottish wildcats, and to create and restore precious habitats from wildflower meadows to wetlands.

For more details, please visit www.treesforlife.org.uk or call 01309 691292.

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Glen Tanar Estate Duo Branch Out Into Retirement

Aberdeenshire, News No Responses »

Nov 262015

With thanks to Jessica Murphy, Senior Account Executive, Citrus:Mix.

With a combined service of more than 60 years, two forestry workers from Glen Tanar Estate have branched out into retirement.
Head forester Mike Fifield and forestry worker Davey Goodfellow have reflected on healthy and happy times working in one of Scotland’s most stunning natural landscapes, in the heart of Royal Deeside.

Mr Fifield (65) can hardly recall being unwell since taking up his job at Glen Tanar 30 years ago and says:

“It’s obviously a very healthy job as I think I’ve only ever had a couple of days off sick. It’s kept me fit and very active and I’d have hated being in an office all these years.”

Meanwhile having spent more than half his working life at Glen Tanar, Mr Goodfellow (68) says he couldn’t have found a better place to work.

He even worked on three years beyond his retirement, helping out as a ghillie on the beats of the famous River Dee. Being a keen angler himself he particularly enjoyed meeting other people that share in interest in fishing.

“I’ve been here for 32 years and I have plenty of happy memories,” says Mr Goodfellow.

“If I had to do it all again I’d have no regrets about coming back to work at Glen Tanar.”

As well as tree planting and felling operations, dealing with storm damage and keeping roads open in the winter when normal forestry duties could not be undertaken due to heavy snowfalls is among the forestry team’s duties.

Conservation has become an increasing role, with almost half of Glen Tanar’s forestry area falling within the National Nature Reserve.

Working with partners including the Forestry Commission and Scottish Natural Heritage, the estate has successfully blended different land to deliver benefits – contributing to the latest thinking in habitat management.

Davey Goodfellow with Michael Bruce.

Glen Tanar forms a substantial part of the Cairngorms National Park, Scotland’s largest national park. Land uses are balanced through careful management to ensure a long term future for all rare wildlife and plants, and this approach to conservation has won Glen Tanar many awards, including the Green Butterfly Award and certification by the Forestry Stewardship Council.

Among Glen Tanar’s many woodland residents include red deer, roe deer, the occasional capercaillie, grouse, brown hare, and black cock.

Mr Fifield and Mr Goodfellow were bid a fond farewell at a gathering at Glen Tanar Estate when owners Mr and Mrs Bruce presented them with long service certificates from the Scottish Lands and Estates.

Mr Bruce says:

“We greatly appreciate the sterling service that Mike and Davey have given, both giving more than 30 years of their working life to Glen Tanar.

“Their knowledge, skills and experience have been a great asset in the running and management of the estate and we wish them well as they embark on retirement.”

While Mr Goodfellow will continue to live at Glen Tanar, Mr Fifield and his wife Ann are moving to Alloa, near Stirling, to be nearer family – and other people!

Mr Fifield adds: “Our nearest neighbour was a quarter of a mile away and we were completely surrounded by trees so this is going to be a complete change!”

Glen Tanar Estate offers a wealth of activities and attractions from fishing and walking to adventuring on estate safaris. Glen Tanar Estate’s grand ballroom is available to hire for functions, including corporate events, weddings and conferences and the estate has a number of self-catering holiday cottages.

For more information on Glen Tanar Estate, visit www.glentanar.co.uk or contact 01339 886451.

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Emergency Rescue Appeal For West Affric Woodlands

Environment, News No Responses »

Nov 122015

Trees for Life team inspecting a section of damaged fence in West Affric; damaged fence in West Affric

With thanks to Richard Bunting.

Conservation charity Trees for Life has launched an emergency rescue appeal to protect tens of thousands of young trees on West Affric from grazing deer.

A new generation of trees, many planted by TfL volunteers, has become established on West Affric over the past 20 years, after Trees for Life and the National Trust for Scotland created a series of 10 fenced exclosures.

The exclosures – areas from which large grazing animals are excluded – were designed to boost the recovery of native woodland by preventing the pressure of browsing deer.

But recent damage to the fences has left many of these trees vulnerable to grazing by deer, and Trees for Life is appealing to the public to help raise £20,000 for vital fence repairs to protect the emerging forest.

“This is perhaps the most urgent appeal we have ever made. We need to protect the results of two decades of positive conservation action to restore the Caledonian Forest in this area,” said Alan Watson Featherstone, Trees for Life’s Executive Director.

“The exclosures are vital to the protection of trees and vegetation from the intense damage that can be caused by deer. Repairing the fences will ensure that the young trees – and the species they support – are safe and can continue to flourish, bringing greater life and diversity back to this depleted landscape.”

Only a few scattered trees survived on West Affric before the conservation work begun in the 1990s, but the transformation of the areas inside the exclosures has since been dramatic. Vibrant young woodlands are now supporting a wealth of insects and birds, including black grouse, while many flowering plants such as angelica, primroses and bluebells are flourishing.

However, because of the challenging terrain and climate, several sections of fencing have been broken by drifting snow, allowing deer to enter the exclosures and damage some of the trees. Other smaller, slower growing trees and flowering plants are now at risk, especially with the approach of winter when there is little else for the deer to eat.

Overgrazing by excessive numbers of red deer – the result of an ecological imbalance caused by humans, including the loss of natural predators and the dedication of large tracts of land since the 19th century for deer stalking and sheep grazing – is a major problem hampering natural regeneration of Scotland’s ancient Caledonian Forest.

Managing deer numbers is essential for native woodland restoration. In turn, restoring the Caledonian Forest and its native woodlands will provide improved habitat for balanced populations of deer in the future, allowing them to grow larger and healthier through having more shelter and more diverse and abundant food.

West Affric is a remote 10,000-acre expanse of wild land situated at the western end of Glen Affric, encompassing the headwaters of the Affric River. The National Trust for Scotland bought West Affric in 1993 and alongside its partners carries out vital conservation work to protect its natural ecosystems.

To donate to the emergency appeal, please visit www.treesforlife.org.uk or call 01309 691292.

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TFL Creates Conservation Opportunities For Young People

Environment, News No Responses »

Sep 282015

Phil Duffield from Scottish Power Foundation (centre) meets Trees for Life volunteers (left-right) Sam Manning, Grace Burger, Emily Warner and Rebecca Schmidt at Dundreggan Conservation Estate

With thanks to Richard Bunting.

Award-winning conservation charity Trees for Life is running a new project to develop high-quality conservation volunteering opportunities for young people, thanks to a grant of £20,000 from the ScottishPower Foundation.

Those benefitting from the initiative include students from Aberdeen University, Peterborough Open Awards Centre, Glasgow University and Leicestershire’s Brooksby Melton College.

“This generous grant from ScottishPower Foundation is excellent news for the Caledonian Forest and its rare species, and for dozens of young people who will be able to study and carry out practical hands-on conservation work – including the establishment of native woodlands and managing land for wildlife,” said Alan Watson Featherstone, Trees for Life’s Executive Director.

“The funding will enable us to make our project accessible to the widest range of young people – particularly those facing disadvantages and financial barriers to participation.”

Ann Loughrey, Trustee and Executive Officer at the ScottishPower Foundation, said:

“The ScottishPower Foundation is committed to supporting community programmes that inspire young people to get more out of life, whilst giving something back to their local community.

“Through the Trees for Life initiative, the young people involved will gain practical skills that will support their career ambitions, as well as valuable life skills. We are delighted to support Trees for Life and wish all the young people involved every success for the future.”

The project will benefit 70 young people aged 18-25 years old during 2015. Through both week-long courses and long-term volunteering placements, the young people will be able to develop new skills and strengthen their employability.

Activities will include the planting of native trees and plants to expand woodland habitat, collecting and propagating seeds in a specialised tree nursery at Trees for Life’s acclaimed Dundreggan Conservation Estate near Loch Ness, and carrying out biodiversity surveys.

Although only a fraction of the former Caledonian Forest now survives, Trees for Life volunteers have helped to plant more than one million trees at dozens of locations across the Highlands, and to create 10,000 acres of new forest. The charity has pledged to establish one million more trees by planting and natural regeneration by 2018.

For more information about Trees for Life, see www.treesforlife.org.uk or call 01309 691292.

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Project Seeks Major Boost In Red Squirrel Numbers

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Aug 252015

Red squirrel (Sciurus vulgaris) in scots pine forest, Cairngorms National Park, Scotland.

With thanks to Richard Bunting.

An innovative new project by conservation charities Trees for Life and the Highland Foundation for Wildlife aims to secure a major increase in the range of Scotland’s red squirrel populations for the first time in decades.

The Caledonian Forest Wildlife Project – which launches this summer – has the ambitious goal of establishing 10 new populations of the species in the Highlands over the next three years, with the long-term aim of boosting red squirrel numbers in Scotland by more than 10 per cent.

It will also provide a unique opportunity for volunteers, including those from remote communities, to take an active part in wildlife conservation.

The project will involve conservation experts carefully relocating red squirrels from areas of Scotland where they are thriving to remote forests in the north-west Highlands where there are no squirrels at present, but good quality habitat for them.

It will build on pioneering work by Roy Dennis MBE of the Highland Foundation for Wildlife which has demonstrated impressive results – 40 red squirrels that he moved into woodlands at Dundonnell in 2008, for example, have already expanded into a thriving population of around 400, and two further translocations were also very successful.

“Through an effective and proven approach, this exciting initiative will help red squirrels return to the forests where they belong for the first time in decades – leading to significant new populations of this iconic species and offering real hope for its long-term survival,” said Alan Watson Featherstone, Trees for Life’s Executive Director.

“Increasing red squirrel numbers will also benefit our native forests and the many species that depend on them, because red squirrels are nature’s tree planters. They collect and bury thousands of tree seeds each autumn, but frequently forget these hoards – which in spring take root and so expand our woodlands.”

The project has been made possible by a grant of more than £61,000 from the Heritage Lottery Fund.

Colin McLean, Head of the Heritage Lottery Fund in Scotland, said:

“Thanks to National Lottery players, HLF grants have helped to protect an amazing range of landscapes, habitats, and species of plants and animals. The Heritage Lottery Fund is delighted to support the Caledonian Forest Wildlife Project – which will provide opportunities in both rural and urban communities for volunteers to learn about wildlife, as well as training in practical conservation skills.

“We are pleased to support projects that will stimulate an interest in our precious natural heritage and so help conserve it for future generations.”

Urgent conservation action is needed to secure the long-term future of the red squirrel, which is increasingly rare in Britain and is recognised in the UK Biodiversity Action Plan as a priority species. Only an estimated 138,000 reds are left in the UK, and their populations – devastated by disease and competition from the introduced grey squirrel – are still in decline.

Red squirrel numbers have also been adversely affected by the loss of their forest homes, which have been reduced to isolated remnants. Although many forests in the north-west Highlands offer suitable habitat, red squirrels travel from tree to tree and do not usually cross open ground. This means they cannot spread back to areas of fragmented woodland from where they have disappeared.

The Caledonian Forest Wildlife Project will see squirrels transported to carefully selected release sites in specially constructed nest boxes, lined with hay for comfort and warmth, and provisioned with peanuts for food and apple for hydration. These nest boxes will then be nailed to trees and their exit holes filled with moss – so that the squirrels can find their way out in their own time, once people have left, minimising stress for the animals.

Food will be provided for several months after release, to help the squirrels settle easily into their new surroundings.

Situated far away from disease-carrying grey squirrels, the relocated reds will quickly establish new populations.

Animal welfare measures will be central to the project. Once a squirrel has been caught, the trap will be covered with a dark cloth to keep the animal calm and reduce stress. All traps will be checked at a maximum of two-hourly intervals, and all squirrels will undergo a health check by a qualified veterinarian, to ensure that diseased animals are not introduced into the new populations.

No more than two squirrels will be taken from any donor site, so that their removal does not negatively affect the donor population.

Volunteers – including those from remote communities and disadvantaged backgrounds – will be able to join training courses covering red squirrel surveys and conservation, and will be given the opportunity to help monitor the progress of the translocations. An online training programme will allow people to develop the skills to monitor red squirrels in their local area.

The scheme will also involve the creation of partnerships with landowners, ongoing monitoring, and pioneering research to learn more about red squirrels, in order to strengthen conservation action. Talks and seminars will be held with communities to inspire people to get involved with the conservation of endangered wildlife.

Trees for Life is dedicated to restoring the endangered Caledonian Forest in the Scottish Highlands – one of the UK’s wildest landscapes. The award-winning charity’s volunteers have helped to plant more than one million trees at dozens of locations, and Trees for Life aims to establish one million more trees by planting and natural regeneration by 2018. For more information, see www.treesforlife.org.uk or call 01309 691292.

About red squirrels:

* The red squirrel (Sciurus vulgaris) lives in conifer-dominated boreal forests and in broadleaved deciduous forests. It is not ideally suited to woodlands now covering much of Britain, and has been outcompeted by the more adaptable introduced non-native grey squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis) in much of the country. Greys also spread and transmit squirrel pox virus, to which they are immune but which is lethal to reds.

* While mainland Europe enjoys healthy populations of red squirrels, the species is now extremely rare in the UK – with current population estimates being 138,000 individuals. Approximately 120,000 of these are in Scotland, 3,000 in Wales and 15,000 in England.

* The red squirrel occurs throughout most of mainland Scotland, with the largest populations in Caledonian Forest remnants in the Highlands, and in Dumfries and Galloway. The Scottish population has increased slightly in recent years, probably due to the expansion of tree cover – but the animal’s range and population would have been much larger in the past, before the loss of most of the Caledonian Forest.

* The Eurasian red squirrel is widely distributed in Europe and northern Asia, from Scandinavia south to Italy and Bulgaria, and from Ireland and Britain across to Russia. Beyond Europe, its range extends as far as Mongolia, China, Korea and the northernmost of Japan’s islands.

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New Eco-designed Office For Environmental Charity

Environment, Information No Responses »

Jul 242015

With thanks to Richard Bunting.

Alex Walker, Managing Director of Ekopia (left) with Alan Watson Featherstone, Executive Director of Trees for Life, at the new eco-designed office in Findhorn

After more than 20 years at its current premises in Findhorn, Conservation charity Trees for Life is this week moving into a new environmentally friendly office based at the Findhorn Community near Forres in Moray.
The award-winning charity is moving to a brand new building that has been constructed to high ecological standards, thanks to financial assistance from the European Union’s European Regional Development Fund.

“This is a very important development for us. We are delighted to be moving into this new eco-friendly office, which will provide a warm, welcoming and modern space for our staff and volunteers to work in,” said Alan Watson Featherstone, Trees for Life’s Executive Director.

“The office’s greatly-reduced energy needs brings our working environment into line with the charity’s ecological principles. With its significantly larger size, the new building is also enabling us to increase staff numbers, to facilitate an expansion of our work to restore the Caledonian Forest”.

Situated behind Findhorn’s Universal Hall, the building is owned by Ekopia – a Findhorn-based community benefit society that has invested over £1 million in a range of community enterprises.

The office is heated by an air-source heat pump, powered by electricity from the Findhorn Community’s wind turbines – making the building fossil fuel free in terms of its heating.

Energy efficiency has been increased through high levels of insulation – with Warmcel insulation made from recycled paper fibre in the walls and ceiling, and Thermafleece sheep’s wool insulation under the floor. All of the windows are double-glazed.

Water usage has been minimised through low flush toilets, a solar panel on the roof provides a hot water supply, and interior walls have been painted with ecological, non-toxic Auro paint.

Trees for Life is dedicated to restoring the endangered Caledonian Forest in the Scottish Highlands to one of the UK’s wildest landscapes. The charity’s volunteers have helped to plant more than one million trees at dozens of locations across the Highlands, and Trees for Life has pledged to establish one million more trees by planting and natural regeneration by 2018.

For more information, see www.treesforlife.org.uk or call 01309 691292.

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Rewilding Scotland And Return Of Lynx In Spotlight

Environment, Featured No Responses »

Mar 272015

Eurasian lynx (Lynx lynx) in winter birch forest, Norway (c).

With thanks to Richard Bunting.

Rewilding Scotland from restored forests to the return of predators such as the lynx was in the spotlight at a topical lecture by leading conservationist Alan Watson Featherstone, founder and Executive Director of award-winning charity Trees for Life, at Edinburgh Zoo on Tuesday.
The event highlighted the benefits of rewilding the restoration of damaged natural ecosystems for Scotland.

This includes putting Scotland on the map as a wildlife tourism global hotspot and as a world leader in the international drive to tackle global forest loss.

The lecture was the final one in a special eight-week series that has been running at Edinburgh Zoo this year, focussing on Scottish species diversity and conservation.

Mr. Watson Featherstone said:

“In the Highlands we have an opportunity to reverse environmental degradation and create a world-class wilderness region offering a lifeline to wildlife including beavers, capercaillie, wood ants and pine martens, and restoring natural forests and wild spaces for our children and grandchildren.”

Long-term deforestation and overgrazing by too many deer and sheep has left much of Scotland depleted and barren, with wildlife in retreat or missing. The Caledonian Forest Scotland’s equivalent of a rainforest is one of the UK’s most endangered habitats, with many of its rare species facing extinction.

Yet action across Scotland is showing how restoring natural processes and protecting wilderness areas, and reducing human interference in ecosystems, can make a positive difference. This includes the restoration of native forests at many Highland sites, the re-establishment of birds of prey such as sea eagles, ospreys and red kites, and the trial reintroduction of European beavers at Knapdale in Argyll.

Future rewilding could involve the reinstatement of missing species, including apex predators which play a crucial top-down regulatory role in ecosystems.

Trees for Life believes that the Eurasian lynx, already reintroduced to areas of Europe such as the Alps and Jura mountains, is a realistic candidate for reintroduction. It offers little threat to sheep and none to humans. It is a specialist predator of roe deer, a species which has multiplied in Britain in recent years and which holds back the natural regeneration of trees through intensive browsing.

Trees for Life is restoring Scotland’s ancient Caledonian Forest, and offers many opportunities for volunteers to support its work and gain conservation experience. See www.treesforlife.org.uk.

Background to reintroducing the lynx

Across Scotland high numbers of deer are having a negative impact through overgrazing and trampling on reforestation, habitat quality, biodiversity and ecosystem services such as carbon sequestration and flood prevention. The loss of native carnivores means that deer now have no natural predators.

The reintroduction of a top predator is crucial, and the Eurasian lynx (Lynx lynx) is a realistic candidate. The species is still present in many northern and eastern and some southern countries in Europe. It represents no threat to humans, and there are no European records of anyone being attacked by a lynx.

While the reintroduction of predators is often proposed as a means of reducing excessive numbers of red deer in the Highlands, the main impact would likely be in disturbing deer populations causing these animals to move more frequently so that their grazing is less concentrated in specific areas.

Trees for Life believes the lynx could be reintroduced to the UK by 2025. Restoring enough native woodland as habitat would be crucial, and some experts estimate that the Highlands could support a genetically viable population of 400 animals.

Experts are uncertain as to when the lynx died out in Britain, although some discoveries suggest its extinction date may have been some 1,500 years ago.

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Rewilding Creates Jobs And Training At Conservation Estate

Environment, Featured, News No Responses »

Mar 242015

An acclaimed forest restoration project near Loch Ness is demonstrating how conservation can create employment opportunities in the Highlands, says award-winning charity Trees for Life. With thanks to Richard Bunting.

This week Trees for Life introduced two new seasonal staff roles at its Dundreggan Conservation Estate in Glenmoriston, bringing the number of employees at the biodiversity hotspot to six – a substantial increase on the single employee under the site’s previous ownership, when it was managed as a traditional sporting estate.

With concerns about employment in much of the country, and across the Highlands in particular, Trees for Life says that the steady growth in employees at Dundreggan since its 2008 purchase of the estate –combined with high job satisfaction levels – shows how conservation action can be good for jobs.

“People benefitting from a wild, natural environment is part of our vision for a restored Caledonian Forest. Dundreggan shows that breathing new life into native woodlands and other natural habitats can offer fulfilling employment and meaningful training opportunities,” said Alan Watson Featherstone, Trees for Life’s Executive Director.

“When conservation groups buy Scottish estates, fears are sometimes expressed about possible reductions in employment – but Dundreggan shows that the opposite can be true. Bringing the land back to ecological health actually creates major benefits for local people and communities.”

Alongside the new jobs, hundreds of volunteers from diverse backgrounds – including the unemployed and those with limited access to healthy outdoor activities or training opportunities – are now gaining the chance to develop environmental skills, knowledge and accredited training each year.

With most practical work at Dundreggan carried out by volunteers, one of the new posts created by Trees for Life is a Long-term Volunteer Coordinator. In this role, former volunteer Tony Henry will help people to gain hands-on conservation experience, through Trees for Life’s Long-Term Volunteer Programme.

In the role of Seasonal Nursery Assistant, Emma Beckinsale will help run Dundreggan’s Native Tree Nursery. Here Trees for Life grows more than 30,000 locally sourced native trees each year, and is trialling innovative ways to propagate rare and hard-to-grow species such as aspen and montane willows.

Doug Gilbert, Dundreggan Operations Manager who oversees the estate’s management said:

“This is a very exciting time at Dundreggan. We are expanding our capacity to accept long-term volunteers as well as increasing the size of our tree nursery, so creating these additional jobs will really help us in our conservation work. It’s great to see enthusiastic people getting the chance to live and work in this wonderful Highland setting.”

Dundreggan has been described as a Highlands “lost world”

The establishment of the new roles has been made possible thanks to funders including the Scottish Power Foundation, which is supporting the Long-Term Volunteers Programme in 2015.

Since being purchased by Trees for Life, the 10,000-acre estate has been transformed into the charity’s flagship rewilding project. Home to a wealth of rare and endangered species – including 10 never recorded in the UK before – Dundreggan has been described as a Highlands “lost world”.

The expanse of wild land contains substantial areas of ancient woodlands, including remnants of the original Caledonian Forest and Scotland’s largest area of dwarf birch. It is home to a group of wild boar in a fenced enclosure as part of a native forest regeneration project, and also hosts groundbreaking scientific research projects.

Dundreggan’s previous role as a sporting estate has left much of it in poor ecological condition however, and restoration of its woodlands and habitats requires long-term conservation action and sustained funding.

The Caledonian Forest is one of the UK’s most endangered habitats, with many of its rare species in danger of extinction. Trees for Life has planted more than a million trees and aims to establish a million more by planting and natural regeneration by 2018. People can help by becoming a member, volunteering, and sponsoring trees for special occasions. See www.treesforlife.org.uk or call 01309 691292.

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Film-maker Backs Bid To Develop Wilderness Base

Articles, Environment, Featured No Responses »

Nov 212014

L-R, George McIntyre and Kay Jackson (The Gordon and Ena Baxter Foundation) and Alan Watson Featherstone (TFL)

With thanks to Richard Bunting.

A leading wildlife film-maker is backing a bid by Trees for Life to transform an iconic but derelict mountain bothy into an eco-friendly weather-tight base that will be used to launch a quarter century of forest restoration in one of Scotland’s great wildlife wildernesses.
Glasgow-based cameraman and film-maker Gordon Buchanan is supporting the conservation charity’s appeal to raise £30,000 to renovate Athnamulloch Bothy in Glen Affric on the Forestry Commission Scotland managed National Forest Estate.

And in a major boost, Trees for Life’s ‘Build the Bothy’ appeal has just secured a grant of £20,000 from the Moray-based Gordon and Ena Baxter Foundation, which supports worthy projects and charitable organisations, particularly in the north of Scotland and the Highlands and Islands.

The initiative to restore Athnamulloch Bothy is key to the next stage of large-scale forest restoration work being delivered in partnership by Trees for Life and Forestry Commission Scotland, in which volunteers will plant 250,000 trees to extend Glen Affric’s endangered forests further west, creating vital forest corridors and habitats for unique wildlife.

“For me, time spent in Glen Affric’s ancient forest is precious. Watching eagles soaring against the mountain peaks, red squirrels in the branches and glimpsing pine martens hunting amongst the heather is as wild and remote an experience as Britain can offer. How lucky we are to have this unique and wonderful landscape,” said Gordon Buchanan.

“The problem is that this forest is tiny, and these ancient pines are just a fragment of the forest that once filled the glen. Further west, the grasslands are silent and empty, and the only signs of the former forest that once grew there are tree roots scattered in the peat.

“I am thrilled to be supporting Trees for Life’s appeal for a new base in Glen Affric. It’s not possible to plant trees in this remote location without a place for volunteers to stay. We now have a fantastic opportunity to renovate Athnamulloch Bothy in the western glen, saving it from dereliction and bringing it back to life.”

Lying to the west of Loch Affric, the remote bothy became unsafe and was closed in 2008. Trees for Life’s volunteers had previously used it as a base for planting the first new Scots pines to grow in the area for centuries, but restoration of the Caledonian Forest in this part of the glen stalled with the bothy’s closure.

However, detailed plans have now been drawn up to renovate the building to a high ecological standard while retaining its rustic character, and the charity has signed a 25-year lease for the building with Forestry Commission Scotland. Generous donations and grants have contributed towards much of the total £137,000 cost.

The most recent of these grants is £20,000 from The Gordon and Ena Baxter Foundation based in Fochabers. Brothers Gordon and Ian Baxter, with their wives Ena and Margaret, established the foundation in 1981 so that the family could continue to extend its support for the Fochabers and district communities. In the last 12 months, the Foundation has widened funding activity to assist projects in the north of Scotland and the Highlands and Islands.

“We’re proud to support Trees for Life’s restoration of the Caledonian Forest and its Build the Bothy appeal. It is inspiring to think that this will lead to the planting of thousands of trees and create opportunities for hundreds of people to benefit from being physically active in spectacular Glen Affric,” said Kay Jackson, Manager of the Gordon and Ena Baxter Foundation.

A final £30,000 is now needed to complete Trees for Life’s most ambitious fundraising endeavour of recent years. This will bring the bothy back to life with new timbers and flooring replacing rotten woodwork, and the installation of a kitchen, living room, bedrooms, drying room, and a bathroom with eco-friendly energy and water systems.

To support the Build the Bothy appeal, please visit www.treesforlife.org.uk or call 0845 458 3505. The names of those donating at least £250 will be listed on a celebratory plaque at the bothy.

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