Interesting NYT article on community buyouts in Scotland

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Good read that Archie. I like watching the shows on't telly about lives out on the islands.

Good find 👍🏻
 
it’s not clear what the lesson to be learned is. It just comes over as some yank had a nice trip to a remote Scottish island, visited a commune and thinks this would be a good lifestyle to adopt?
 
BurbankHibee said:
it’s not clear what the lesson to be learned is. It just comes over as some yank had a nice trip to a remote Scottish island, visited a commune and thinks this would be a good lifestyle to adopt?
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I can see how you might see it that way. It's about communities being funded to buy land that they live on and work. The suggestion is that it could be applied in rural areas in the US that are essentially collapsing.

I think it's not without issues. But giving people a stake in where they live and work can be a factor in addressing depopulation in stressed areas.
 
Thanks Archie. I think this is lovely idea, and the (I’d argue) adjacent concept of workers cooperatives similarly. In fact they are close to theoretical ideals. Not in practice though, outside their niches, because a) they don’t scale - or more precisely the community council eventually, with scale, becomes the national government and we are where we are and b) they require homogeneity which is why they are goals of the furthest of the (true) far right.
 
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I think there's a few examples of this and very good it is too.

On the other hand we have Anders Holch Povlsen, the Danish fashion tycoon, who is busy buying up huge swathes of land and peoples houses and turning it all into some sort of rich person's playground where real people are actively discouraged from going anywhere near. A new age Highlands clearance on the quiet.
 
Jack said:
I think there's a few examples of this and very good it is too.

On the other hand we have Anders Holch Povlsen, the Danish fashion tycoon, who is busy buying up huge swathes of land and peoples houses and turning it all into some sort of rich person's playground where real people are actively discouraged from going anywhere near. A new age Highlands clearance on the quiet.
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Should probably blame the government really don't you think?
 
Smurf said:
Only if it's the UK Government.
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Not sure what you mean, was that a dig at me? Apologies if not but if people don't like foreigners buying up land and property it's hardly the foreigners fault is it? In many countries this sort of thing is very difficult or virtually impossible. A sign of a government caring about it's citizens.
 
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Jack said:
I think there's a few examples of this and very good it is too.

On the other hand we have Anders Holch Povlsen, the Danish fashion tycoon, who is busy buying up huge swathes of land and peoples houses and turning it all into some sort of rich person's playground where real people are actively discouraged from going anywhere near. A new age Highlands clearance on the quiet.
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This report makes it sound more like a rewilding project than a rich persons playground.

www.bbc.co.uk

Anders Povlsen: Why a Danish billionaire bought the Highlands

Anders Povlsen fell in love with Scotland on a fishing trip and is now its biggest private landowner.
www.bbc.co.uk

I mean that’s not necessarily better - I can readily imagine a right on billionaire sacrificing the interests of regular people to some green vision.

Quite a tragic figure the guy is incidentally, lost three of his (then) four children to Islamist attacks in Sri Lanka.
 
Bangkokhibby said:
Should probably blame the government really don't you think?
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Bangkokhibby said:
Not sure what you mean, was that a dig at me? Apologies if not but if people don't like foreigners buying up land and property it's hardly the foreigners fault is it? In many countries this sort of thing is very difficult or virtually impossible. A sign of a government caring about it's citizens.
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That wasn't really the point I was making but yes foreigners buying up that should be addressed, whether that's huge swathes of the countryside or anonymous entities buying property.

The issue I have with this chap is the depopulation of Highland areas he owns and has landlord holdings.

Encouraging employers to leave the area and making it very difficult generally to maintain a viable population.

@egb_hibs for rewilding read preparing everything for game shooting.
 
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