Ten Principles Guiding the Land+ Project
A Community-Led Approach
The Ten Principles guiding the Land+ project were developed by the team throughout the work of the NW2045 Regional Land Use Partnership.
They reflect an important reality within many rural communities across the North West Highlands. Over time, communities here have experienced numerous short-term, externally driven projects. These initiatives have often relied heavily on the time and goodwill of a small number of volunteers and have not always resulted in the lasting change people hoped for.
Through the Land+ project, we are taking a different approach. The aim is to support genuine collaboration and respectful dialogue between those connected to the land and the communities who live and work here.
By doing so, the project seeks to empower each community of place to identify the changes it believes are needed and to work together towards achieving them.
The following principles guide how this work is carried out.
The Ten Principles
Principle 1
The NW2045 RLUP respects the knowledge, experience and expertise of people within the community of place.
Principle 2
People within the community – those who have a long-term commitment to the well-being of the place – are at the heart of the work, and are supported by a wider team who are also ‘of’ the area, who understand the full reality of life in the North West.
Principle 3
Provision is made within the budget to pay for the time of these ‘Community Co-Leads’, rather than relying on voluntary input, in order to:
Ensure that different demographics within the community are represented.
Mitigate the problems of volunteer fatigue and elite capture (i.e., only those who can afford, in terms of finances or time, to volunteer get involved).
Underline/emphasise that people’s time and input is valued: they are experts of their place.
Principle 4
The Community Council is the node of democracy from whom the project seeks the mandate to proceed; who hold us to account, and who are consulted and involved as appropriate.
Principle 5
The voices of the children and young people must be integral to conversations about long-term changes in land use.
Principle 6
The approach also respects the ‘carrying stream’ of knowledge from older generations, and seeks to strengthen intergenerational and cross-community links.
Principle 7
The team finds ways to encourage ‘hidden voices’ – those within the community who may not normally express their opinions publicly – to be heard.
Principle 8
The approach strives to be grounded, practical and useful, and make all communications accessible and jargon-free. The project strives to flex and adapt to changing circumstances, and work with other initiatives in the area for maximum efficiency and efficacy.
Principle 9
Whilst being embedded in ‘the place’, the approach integrates knowledge and expertise from the wider national, UK and international conversations, to ensure that the community benefits from any appropriate opportunities.
Principle 10
The approach strives for reciprocity and exchange: to optimise and build on the capacity and skills that already exist within the place: the local asset base in the widest, most holistic sense.
