Minto Biodiversity Project

Humans have been part of the ecology of the Scottish Borders since the end of the last ice age, yet faced with climate and biodiversity crises, these fertile lands need to work differently - and fast.

As sponsor of the Minto Biodiversity Project, you can accelerate that change by:

• planting over 100,000 trees to deliver over 15,000 carbon units over their lifetime.
• delivering almost 700 Biodiversity Units.
• establishing 26km new hedgerow.
• creating extensive wetland habitat.
• implementing biodiversity farming on land equivalent to the global footprint of over 500 people. *
• securing rural green jobs for a generation.
• working with a family who have managed the land for centuries.
• delivering climate adaptation measures to protect farmland against extreme weather events.
• providing a model and research hub for farms across the Scottish Borders to follow.
• protecting natural and cultural heritage including ancient woodland and a Border Rievers’ castle.

The Minto Biodiversity Project has been developed by the family owners in collaboration with Galbraith. In the long term the aim is to deliver more resilient and sustainable food production. However, in the short term, implementing change requires capital investment and loss of immediate income that global food markets will not pay for. A sponsor’s investment in this natural capital could be transformative and provide a model for others to follow across the landscape.

* Based on an average UK global footprint of 0.6 hectares (using data in the Dimbleby National Food Strategy, 2021).