Nature and Community In Perpetuity: The NCIP model

NCIP is a model through which Highlands Rewilding offers plots of land for sale to buyers who can guarantee the restoration of nature and the growth of community prosperity, in perpetuity. The buyers are able to guarantee this through the formation of a charitable trust, which pledges to do so through commitment to upholding the trust’s articles and purpose.  

Highlands Rewilding manages the land to achieve these goals, sharing the proceeds from natural capital monetisation with the trust on a win:win basis.

It is a unique model that has already seen success at Barrahormid, a large tract of land that was a part of the Tayvallich Estate, sold to the Barrahormid Trust earlier this year. It was widely celebrated for the commitment to embedding community benefit into future carbon and biodiversity uplift, and for prioritising rural repopulation. The Trust entered into a long-term management arrangement with Highlands Rewilding, which operates all of the land management, in accordance with Highlands Rewilding’s mission and principles, the Memorandum of Understanding with the local community at Tayvallich, and the objectives of the Trust.  

The Barrahormid sale, in particular, provides a great opportunity for potential development of ruined plots across the estate. The Trust agreed to a Memorandum of Understanding signed by the local community body, the Tayvallich Initiative, and Highlands Rewilding, which ensured that Rural Housing Burdens will be applied to this area, enabling future repopulation as housing will be used as primary residencies. 

How NCIP Works:

All NCIP Land buyers must meet Highlands Rewilding’s Buyers Charter requirements, ensuring mission-congruence:  

Local communities are given priority as NCIP buyers, with mission congruent Environmental Non-Governmental Organisations and Family Offices also considered preferentially.