Overview
SCOTLAND: The Big Picture is a charity dedicated to making rewilding happen across Scotland. Its vision is of a vast network of rewilded land and water where wildlife flourishes and people thrive.
Unlike land-buying charities, it does not own large estates. Instead it works through impactful communications and advocacy, collaborative partnerships and action on the ground, supporting the people who own and manage Scotland's land to rewild it themselves.
The Northwoods Network
Launched in April 2021, the Northwoods Rewilding Network is a Scotland-wide chain of farms, crofts, smallholdings and community woodlands committed to rewilding. It is aimed at the 'missing middle' of Scottish land: sites too small for landscape-scale rewilding projects but too big for garden-scale efforts, typically between 50 and 1,000 acres.
The network passed 100 partner sites covering around 31,500 acres, and partner surveys indicate that rewilding activity across the network is generating jobs and investment in rural communities. Members receive practical advice, funding signposting and peer support from other land managers on the same journey.
Storytelling & Advocacy
The charity grew out of the acclaimed SCOTLAND: The Big Picture photography and film project, and storytelling remains central to its approach. Books, films, events and rewilding journeys are used to build public understanding of why Scotland's landscapes need to recover and what a wilder future could look like.
It also campaigns on the big policy questions facing Scottish rewilding, including deer management, river restoration and support for nature-based rural economies, working alongside organisations such as Trees for Life and the Scottish Rewilding Alliance.
How to Support
Donations and supporter memberships fund the Northwoods network's practical work with land managers. The charity also runs rewilding journeys and training events that combine education with income for rural communities.
If you manage land in Scotland, you can apply to join Northwoods. Visit scotlandbigpicture.com to become a supporter, book a rewilding journey or find out about joining the network.
Further Resources
Watch
We're Making Rewilding Happen | SCOTLAND: The Big Picture
The organisation's own film on why Scotland needs rewilding for nature, climate and people.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is SCOTLAND: The Big Picture?
SCOTLAND: The Big Picture is a Scottish rewilding charity that works to make rewilding happen across Scotland through communications, advocacy, partnerships and practical support for land managers. Its vision is a vast network of rewilded land and water across Scotland where wildlife flourishes and people thrive.
What is the Northwoods Rewilding Network?
Northwoods is a Scotland-wide network of farms, crofts, smallholdings and community woodlands committed to rewilding, convened and coordinated by SCOTLAND: The Big Picture. Launched in April 2021, it reached 100 partner sites covering more than 31,000 acres, making rewilding accessible to smaller landholdings of between roughly 50 and 1,000 acres.
Does SCOTLAND: The Big Picture own land?
No. Rather than buying land itself, the charity supports and connects the people who own and manage land. Through Northwoods it provides practical advice, funding signposting and peer support to help smaller land managers rewild, and it uses storytelling and advocacy to build public support for rewilding.
How can I get involved with SCOTLAND: The Big Picture?
You can become a supporter, join one of its rewilding journeys or training events, or apply to join the Northwoods network if you manage land in Scotland. Donations fund the network's practical support for land managers.
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