Resilient Landscapes & Seas Symposium 2026 Programme

The Resilient Landscapes & Seas Symposium: Collaborating at scale for nature and people taking place at the Royal Botanic Gardens in Edinburgh on 10-11 February 2026 is the first annual RLAS Symposium. It will bring together leading organisations and stakeholders interested in large-scale land, freshwater, coastal and marine transformation.

The Symposium aims to help build a more cohesive community in landscape transformation, share knowledge and best practice, and to connect and provide mutual support to landscape-scale projects across the UK. Registration has now closed.

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Programme Overview*

*Times are approximate

  • 09:00 Registration / refreshments

    09:40 Introduction to the Symposium | Prof. Bridget Emmett OBE, British Ecological Society

    09:45 Welcome to Scotland | Dr Clive Mitchell, NatureScot

    10:00 Opening Address | Dr Tony Juniper CBE,‍ Natural England

    A century of transformation: plotting Nature's recovery from the 1970s to the 2070s

    10:30 Session 1: Setting the Scene

    Session Keynote | Jessica Findlay, NatureScot

    Land and seascape scale nature restoration and climate adaptation in Scotland

    Session talk | Prof. Mike Morecroft, Natural England

    Science for nature recovery: learning by doing in a changing climate

    11:25 Break

    11:45 Session 2: Working at Scale

    Session Keynote | Sally Hayns, CIEEM

    Professional challenges and opportunities in restoring resilient landscapes and seas

    Session talk | Dr Caroline Sullivan, ACRES Breifne

    Incorporating Landscape Action into a national agri-environment scheme: Lessons from Ireland

    Session talk | Emma Hutchins, Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust

    Severn Treescapes; Wye to Wyre, connecting nature and people

    Short talk | Vicky Vanderstichele, North Star Transition

    The Fens Transition Lab: Working at scale to bring transformational change towards a regenerative Fens 

    13:10 Lunch and networking

    14:05 Session 3: Working in Partnership

    Session Keynote | Rachel Blount, Nattergal

    The power of partnerships: scaling up ecological restoration through collaboration

    Short talk | Dr Stuart Smith, James Hutton Institute

    The Ripa Gar-Hutton Glen Lochay Biodiversity Partnership

    Short talk | Dr Anna Griffin, Galloway and Southern Ayrshire UNESCO Biosphere

    Resilient landscapes and seas across the Galloway and Southern Ayrshire UNESCO Biosphere

    Short talk | Dr Martin Varley, RSPB

    A framework for nature recovery in farmed landscapes

    15:10 Break

    15:30 Short talks

    Short talk | Liz Humphreys, Natural England

    LIFE WADER Nature Recovery from source to sea

    Short talk | Peter Powell, The Welsh Dee Trust

    How to manage a cross-border river system

    Short talk | Abel McLinden, Loch Abar Mòr

    Loch Abar Mòr: building nature networks from sea to summit 

    Short talk | Theo Nickols & Nigel Cotterill, Plymouth City Council

    Plymouth Natural Grid: an urban conservation story

    16:10 Poster session

    17:00 Close

  • 09:00 Registration / refreshments

    09:40 Session 4: Engaging and Involving Communities and Landowners

    Session Keynote | Diana Sandon (formerly Diana Pound), Dialogue Matters

    Landscape governance and justice - enabling positive and resilient landscape change

    Session talk | Dr Jan Hogarth, SCAMP Landscape Connections, Dumfries and Galloway Council

    SCAMP Landscape Connections - coastodians and custodians

    Session talk | Prof. Ellen Weerman, HAS University of Applied Sciences

    Fast forward to sponge landscapes: Experiences from a case study in the Netherlands

    10:55 Break

    11:15 Interactive session with Harriet & Rob Fraser, somewhere nowhere arts practice

    Language matters

    12:00 Session 5: Funding for Landscape-Scale Projects

    Session Keynote | Will Stephens, 3Keel

    Exploring Landscape Enterprise Networks (LENs) for resilient landscapes and stakeholder value

    Session talk |  Melissa Swartz & Keith Davie, Environment Agency

    Blending funding at scale – what is possible

    Short talk | Henry Leveson-Gower, Promoting Economic Pluralism

    Relationships, adaptation and a just transition

    13:05 Lunch and networking

    13:55 Session 6: A Vision for the Future

    Session Keynote | Dr Hannah Rudman,James Hutton Institute & The Scottish Forum on Natural Capital 

    14:30 Discussion and feedback | Prof. Bridget Emmett OBE,British Ecological Society

    15:00 Close