Trees for Life’s flagship rewilding centre, Dundreggan and its tree nursery located in the Scottish Highlands
Cyrpess, CA – April 21, 2023 (news release embargoed until the day before Earth Day) – This Earth Day, the TreadRight Foundation, a joint initiative between The Travel Corporation’s (TTC) brands, announces its newest project partner, Scotland-based Trees for Life and support for its Wild Pine project. The rewilding project is restoring Scotland’s globally important Caledonian Forest and its unique wildlife. It is the first project TreadRight has announced since shifting focus to supporting nature-based solutions(NbS) in support of its three pillars of Planet, People and Wildlife. TreadRight is The Travel Corporation’s philanthropic arm, a global travel provider whose mission is to MAKE TRAVEL MATTER® for both its guests and the destinations and communities it visits with its family of 40 award-winning brands, including Trafalgar, Insight Vacations, Contiki, Uniworld, Highland Explorer Tours, HAGGiS Adventures and Red Carnation Hotels. In 2022, TTC became the first tour operator with validated near-term, long-term, and net zero targets. In support of these targets TTC also announced an internal Carbon Fund to invest in its net zero transition, in concert with TreadRight’s prioritization of nature-based solutions.
“This Earth Day’s theme is ‘invest in our planet’ and TreadRight is pleased to partner with Trees of Life, a strong nature-based solutions charity working to tackle the overlapping nature and climate emergencies and create a cascade of benefits for people,” says Shannon Guihan, The Travel Corporation’s Chief Sustainability Officer and Head of The TreadRight Foundation. “NbS include the conservation and restoration of natural ecosystems, and improved land management to either reduce carbon emissions or to store carbon in the planet,”she adds.
Trees For Life is dedicated to rewilding the Scottish Highlands. According to the charity, thousands of years ago wild pinewoods covered an estimated one million hectares of Scotland – but today only about 2% of this life-supporting habitat remains, broken into small and isolated fragments, many under threat and in poor condition.
With the support of thousands of volunteers from around the world, Trees for Life – which celebrates its 30th anniversary this year – is saving this magical forest habitat and its wildlife from being lost forever, while creating social and economic benefits for local communities.
Rewilding is an effective means to protect and restore sustainable biodiversity, natural landscapes, and wildlife while removing carbon emissions from the atmosphere. Alongside prioritizing the reduction of carbon emissions, supporting nature-based solutions which remove and store emissions already in the atmosphere is an integral component in the global journey towards net zero, which is the critical goal post to avoid a climate disaster according to the latest climate science.
Trees For Life is TreadRight’s third nature-based solution partner, in addition to US-based GreenWave and Project Vesta, both marine-based initiatives.
Travelers can join Highland Explorer Tours and Trafalgar with a visit to Trees For Life’s Dundreggan Rewilding Centre in the Scottish Highlands as a MAKE TRAVEL MATTER® Experience:
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- Guests get to explore Dundreggan’s wild landscapes with accessible trails and forest adventures which is located eight miles from the shores of world-famous Loch Ness
- Travelers will discover centuries of Gaelic history and connection with a landscape undergoing transformation through rewilding
- The Rewilding Centre is a gateway to a 10,000-acre flagship estate that has been rewilding since 2008 and is home to more than 4,000 species of plants and animals including golden eagles and native species such as the black grouse
Learn more about TreadRight’s nature-based solutions at treadright.org/planet.
About the TreadRight Foundation:
TreadRight is a joint not-for-profit initiative established by The Travel Corporation’s (TTC) family of brands. The foundation’s singular mission is to MAKE TRAVEL MATTER® by providing support to community-based projects worldwide that safeguard the planet, people and wildlife. To date, the foundation has supported 60+ sustainable tourism projects in 280+ communities worldwide. In 2022, The Travel Corporation became the first global tour operator with near-term, long-term, and net zero targets, and to support its journey to net zero, TreadRight shifted its focus to supporting nature-based solutions and conservation efforts that protect biodiversity and restore the planet. Current initiatives include Trees For Life’s Wild Pine project, Project Vesta, GreenWave, Rainbow Railroad, and The Tourism Pathways Project. To learn more about past and current work at TreadRight, please visit TreadRight.org and follow TreadRight on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter using our hashtag #MakeTravelMatter.