Abstract:
?Enhancing wildness? is an increasingly prominent objective on Scotland?s nature conservation agenda as conservation practices move further beyond the protectionist paradigm towards more creative strategies for habitat restoration. However, while conservation bodies are increasingly concerned with maintaining - and enhancing - Scotland?s landscapes of wild character, there is no consensus on the meaning or objectives of ?rewilding? in Scotland. Equally, the potential for this largely North American conception to represent a sustainable land management option in the Scottish ?wild land? context, with its distinct natural and cultural history remains contested. This research uses a Delphi model as part of a multidisciplinary, mixed methodology to examine the complexities of Scotland?s emergent wild land strategy. It seeks to improve the conceptual clarity and congruence of ?managing for wildness? within the idiosyncrasies of the Scottish wild land context, and to integrate it within the broader environmental management agenda.
About the Speaker:
Holly join the Department of Geography and Sustainable Development at the University of St Andrews as a PhD student in September, 2010. Prior to this she graduated from the University of St Andrews with a B.Sc (Hons) degree in Geography in 2008 and spent the following interim period working in UK marine conservation policy and designated protected areas. Her research interests lie in the areas of environmental management, nature conservation and land use policy and she is currently specifically focussed on wild land management in the Scottish Highlands and the emerging environmental ethic of ?rewilding?.