EFLN aims to bring together academics, researchers and postgraduate students with policy, business and third sector professionals with an interest in sustainable forests and landscapes based in and around Edinburgh. We hope to develop an informal meeting place, providing opportunities for sharing insights, experiences and perspectives that will benefit a diverse audience.Most sessions will take place on first Wednesday of the month 4-6pm in the Edinburgh Climate Change Institute (ECCI), starting with a 60-75min of plenary session followed by informal networking with refreshments. Please note that there will be no sessions in January, July and August.If you have any suggestions, would like to contribute to future Edinburgh Forests and Landscapes Networking events, or sign up to our mailing list, please email Nataša Honeybone. Upcoming sessions Date and timeTitleSpeaker(s)Location4 Nov 4-6pmUndisciplined research at the landscape scale: reflections from a decade of solution-focused, integrative, interactive and emergent research, involving strong collaboration and partnership.Marc Metzger, University of EdinburghConference Room, ECCI 10 NovFood-secure ScotlandPeter Alexander, University of Edinburgh; Jayne Jones, Scottish Food Commission; David Michie, NFU Scotland; Ruth Ashton-Shaw, NFFN ScotlandConference Room, ECCI 2 Dec 4-6pmUrban tree planting for community benefitsCharlie Cumming, Edinburgh and Lothian Greenspace Trust; Des Hacket, Future Woodlands Scotland; Peter Glasgow, City of Edinburgh Council; TBC, The Tree CouncilConference Room, ECCI 3 Feb 4-6pm Lee White, University of Stirling and Pangea Climate PartnersConference Room, ECCI 3 March 4-6pmTBCTBCConference Room, ECCI 7 April 4-6pmSustainability and innovation with Scottish timberChris Beckett, University of Edinburgh; Thomas Reynolds, University of Edinburgh, and Daniel Ridley-Ellis, Napier UniversityConference Room, ECCI 5 May 4-6pmWoodland biodiversity metricsChloe Bellamy, Forest Research, Eleanor Harris, freelance natural capital and creative consultant; Nathalie Meiklejohn, Scottish Forestry; Lucy Wells, University of EdinburghConference Room, ECCI 2 June 4-6pmA contemporary history of environmental advocacy and land reform in Scotland 1970-1998Maya Ström, University of UppsalaConference Room, ECCI Past sessions Date Talks7 October 2026'High Integrity': what's needed for scientifically credible nature markets, and how can we achieve it? with Sophus zu Ermgassen, University of Oxford (presentation), Julia McCarthy, UoE (presentation), Hannah Wauchope, UoE (presentation), and chaired by Hannah Rudman, SFNCAccess the video recording of all three presentations here.2 SeptemberMSc Dissertation Showcase:Emotions as political expressions: (mis)alignment, power and relationships in community-based conservation in the Gola landscape, Liberia, Anneliese Sinclair (presentation) Socio-cultural acknowledgement for environmental regeneration (S.A.F.E.R.). A learning approach to local place meaning in two Scottish regeneration sites,Carla Fiore (presentation) Reference state selection in Scottish restoration: a case study of Ardtornish Estate, Chizoba Kama (presentation) Connecting UK coffee consumption with a 'no deforestation’ policy, Erin Moran (presentation)3 JuneHow and where should Scotland restore and expand the woodlands we need for biodiversity? with Andrew Weatherall, RSPB (presentation) and James Rainey, Trees for Life (presentation) with panellists: Lucy Jenner, head of Natural Capital Scotland at Savills & PhD student; Dr Helen McKay OBE, Chief Forester for Scotland; David Bruce, Forest and Peatland Manager, UoE; Mat Williams, Scottish Government Chief Scientific Adviser for Environment, Natural Resources and Agriculture6 MayA globally important carbon sink in the dry tropics, revealed by fieldwork and remote sensing with Casey Ryan and the SECO partnership4 MarchMaking soils work for a changing climate with Saran Sohi (presentation) and Ashish Malik (presentation)4 Feb 2026Conservation translocations in Scotland: reflecting on the past and future possibilities with Martin Gaywood, NatureScot, UHI & and one author of the Scottish Code for Conservation Translocations; Cat Barlow, CEO of Supporting Upland Nature; Louise Hughes, Saving Wildcats; Professor George Holmes University of Leeds, and introductions by Felix Clarke, University of Edinburgh, and Toryn Whitehead, King's College London (full presentation)3 December 2025How and where should Scotland grow the timber and fibre we need for a lower carbon bioeconomy? with Dr Helen McKay OBE FICFor, Chief Forester for Scotland (presentation); Simon Hart, Head of Forestry Scotland at John Clegg (presentation); Jo Ellis, Head of planning and environment at Forestry and Land Scotland; Dr Mike Perks, Principal scientist climate change at Forest Research; Dr Eleanor Harris, Natural capital and carbon leader at Galbraith, and Shireen Chambers MBE, Chief Executive of Future Woodlands5 November 2025Day of access: Scotland's landscapes and the not-walking movement, with Prof Hayden Lorimer, cultural geographer, UoE; Alec Finlay, poet and artist, and Tamara Colchester, forager and researcher1 October 2025Climate impacts on Amazon rainforest: Analysis across scales, Patrick Meir, Pedro Sanchez Martinez, Lion Martius, UoE, and Kristian Bodolai, Space Intelligence3 Sept 2025Peatland Surface Motion: Applying InSAR to investigate the surface motion dynamics of Slamannan Bog, North Lanarkshire, Catriona Bruce, UoEBeneath the Canopy: Understanding Ecosystem Change in Madagascar through local knowledge and remote sensing, Dr Elliot Convery-Fisher, RBGEHow do tropical forest soils respond to nitrogen deposition?, Dr Galina Toteva, UoEEncouraging Human-Wildlife Coexistence in Scotland: Implementing Key Stakeholder Perspectives and International Mechanisms to Design a Wildlife Coexistence Fund, Olivia Navarrete Zur, University of Edinburgh Access past EFLN sessions (before September 2025) This article was published on Monday 18 September 2023
