227: Rewilding At the Edge with Peter Cairns
From Conservation and Science by Tommy's Outdoors
May 5, 2026 · 1h 6m
About this episode
Peter Cairns discusses the evolution of rewilding and the challenges of species recovery in Scotland.
What has shifted in rewilding over the past five years? Why do recovery of species like lynx, beavers and wolves trigger reactions that go far beyond the animals themselves? And what is the real obstacle to bringing lynx back to Scotland, the ecology, the bureaucracy, or something much harder to name? In this episode, our returning guest is Peter Cairns, co-founder and former Executive Director of SCOTLAND: The Big Picture, board member of Trees for Life, public voice for the Lynx to Scotland partnership, wildlife photographer, and now host of the new podcast ' At the Edge '. Peter last appeared on the show back in 2021, and many things have shifted on the ground since then. More beavers, more red kites, more sea eagles and habitat restoration that has grown significantly. Peter argues that the conversation around land use is also maturing, even when daily progress feels like wading through treacle. Our conversation moves through the long road of the Lynx to Scotland project: years of education, consultation and community engagement sessions, all building towards a licence application that will ultimately land on a politician's desk. Peter is honest about the sticking points…
People in this episode
Host: Tommy
Guest: Peter Cairns
Topics covered
- rewilding
- species recovery
- lynx
- beavers
- wolves
- land use
- cultural impact
Keywords
- rewilding
- lynx
- beavers
- wolves
- habitat restoration
- land use
- Scotland
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: SCOTLAND: The Big Picture, Trees for Life, Lynx to Scotland partnership
Books & works: At the Edge
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