Duke of Edinburgh’s Award Residential - The Regeneration Generation: Are you a part of it?

4 Jan

Who on Earth has a 200 year plan for anything? Most Governments,Corporations, Individuals have plans for the next 5, 10, 25 years at the most. But when it comes to saving our environment, these timescales will not do.

In 2022, Hillgoers and about 30 young people from across the UK were lucky enough to work with the Conservationists and Rangers on the National Trust for Scotland’s 70,000 acre Mar Lodge Estate in the heart of the Cairngorm National Park. The NTS have a 200 year plan to regenerate the estate: the great, great, great, great grandchildren of those working on this project will see the fulfilment of this project. But that’s not to say that there are not clear signs of progress. And you could be part of this!

Mar Lodge Estate — Mar Lodge - This grand Victorian hunting lodge was built by the first Duke of Fife and his wife Princess Louise, Queen Victoria’s granddaughter.

The Hillgoers groups - most working towards their Duke of Edinburgh Gold Award - have been playing a part in this ambitious plan. Reducing the human impact (this isn’t Nature’s fault) is a huge part of this project: managing deer numbers, managing and educating the humans, protecting fragile habitats and then encouraging the indigenous species to flourish again, whether they be the iconic Scots Pine and Red Deer or the lesser known Alpine Sow-Thistle or Narrow-headed Ant. This is a simple plan on the face of it, supported by some very clever science. Planting trees (the ones which need encouragement like Aspen), creating essential deadwood habitats (by, yes, killing selected trees), putting up protective or deflecting fences, taking down old fences, creating shade for the salmon on the rapidly warming River Dee, monitoring young saplings in some remote corners of this vast estate, up to an hour’s drive from Basecamp: these are just some of the projects which the 2022 groups have been working on.

Mar Lodge Estate Regeneration — The regenerating forest

Then and Now photos of areas of regeneration taken over the first 25 years of the project provide simple evidence of huge progress with greater biodiversity in the wooded, moorland and montane landscapes of the estate. But we cannot sit back and enjoy this success. There is plenty more work to be done and you could play a significant role simply by joining one of Hillgoers’ 2023 Conservation Residential weeks: living and working with like-minded young people (perhaps working towards their Gold), working with the Rangers, Conservationists and each other, to help regenerate this beautiful, awe-inspiring and yet fragile landscape. Simply have a look at Conservation Residential — Hillgoers to find out more.