Highlands Rewilding launches crowdfund in bid for mass ownership

Scotland’s multi-award-winning rewilding project, Highlands Rewilding, has pledged continued commitment to combating climate meltdown and biodiversity collapse with the launch of its three-month fundraising and crowdfunding campaign.

Forest of Hope on Beldorney Estate

The campaign launches on a wave of existing investor support and local enthusiasm. While no funding limit has been set, it is hoped that at least eight million plus will be raised; £500,000 of which will be raised by ‘citizen rewilders’. The remainder from equity investors and financial institutions.

Everyday ‘citizen rewilders’, those with a passion for supporting the fight against climate change and biodiversity meltdown and who support the work being done by the Highlands Rewilding team can invest* as little as £50 and anything up to £200,000.

This second round of fundraising, which follows on from £7.5m being raised with just 50 investors in January of this year, is aimed at attracting everyday investors into co-ownership of its business, including all of its land and buildings, alongside institutional and other larger investors.

Jeremy Leggett, CEO of Highlands Rewilding

It is expected that most of its 50 original investors will re-invest in a clear statement of confidence that increases the chances of institutional and other investment. It is also hoped that the project can attract debt from banks in this round which would be a first for a for-profit rewilding project.

The ambitious Highlands Rewilding project, which stretches over 2,000 acres across two estates – Bunloit Estate in Inverness and Beldorney Estate in Aberdeenshire, – is pursuing a business model to scale nature recovery like no other.

With a firm focus on acting as a leader in helping the Scottish Government achieve its ambitious biodiversity and climate targets which are set on reversing nature loss by 2030 and substantially restoring and regenerating biodiversity by 2045, Scots and in particularly those from the Highlands are being encouraged to invest.

The 22-strong Highlands Rewilding team, made up of world-class scientists and led by founder, CEO and eco-entrepreneur, Dr Jeremy Leggett, are focused on growing the portfolio of land-in-recovery that they already own. This is in addition to providing a platform service based on scientific firepower and land management experience to support landowners and communities who are adapting their practices to combat climate change.

With community engagement, the creation of green jobs and generating profit-for-purpose at the heart of the pioneering project, the team already work closely with local farmers and landowners on their existing sites.

By managing their own land for carbon and biodiversity uplift, Highlands Rewilding aim to not only provide its shareholders with ethical returns of at least 5% p.a. annualised over 10 years, but the creation of a model capable of encouraging other landowners to pivot to net-zero carbon and nature positive practices.

With the funds raised, the company will be able to acquire South Bunloit, Beldorney Castle and one other estate that provides biodiversity opportunities.

If a significantly higher amount is raised, it would heighten the stakes with the team able to acquire more or larger estates which would widen nature recovery opportunities.

Additional funding would also take the team a step closer to fulfilling its long-term goals of offering corporate nature recovery retreats on each estate, the creation of eco-buildings, including zero-carbon energy affordable-housing and to further their scientific research.

Dr Jeremy Leggett, CEO of Highlands Rewilding, said: “This round of funding is an exciting opportunity to significantly scale the project as we look to invest in more land, people, and further improve Scotland’s biodiversity in our efforts to combat the climate crisis and biodiversity collapse.

“We ideally want to have hundreds, if not thousands of shareholders from across the world, but especially Scotland where we will continue to work as closely as we can with local highland communities, including via joint ventures with community organisations.

"Our citizen rewilder option within the crowdfund allows for genuine co-ownership for a minimum amount of investment.”

In its UK Nature Report published last year, the Green Finance Institute identified an investment gap to secure key nature-related outcomes in Scotland - such as biodiversity protection and restoration - of up to £27 billion over 10 years.

Before starting Highlands Rewilding in the spring of 2020, Dr Leggett founded Solarcentury, one of the world’s most respected solar energy companies.

Dr Leggett said: “The solar energy revolution saw this level of investment. It’s possible for this to happen again in the emerging nature recovery industry but it takes time and money.

"In our initial fundraising round, we attracted 50 founding funders but only one financial institution, MFS Investment Management. We hope we can encourage interest from more financial institutions during this funding round.

“Only with investors will we be able to fulfil our ambitions in helping to tackle biodiversity collapse and the climate emergency. More than that, investing in our project is an opportunity to invest in the future and be part of a truly meaningly project that will benefit generations to come.”

You can find out more about the Highlands Rewilding and the crowdfund at www.highlandsrewilding.co.uk/crowdfund