Riverwoods launches online tool set to transform river woodland restoration projects - Scottish Wildlife Trust

The Riverwoods Digital Centre of Excellence is equipped with the latest tools and live information to support practitioners through every step of their river woodland restoration journey, from planning and funding to delivery and monitoring.

After several years in development, the Digital Centre of Excellence has launched – a key milestone for the Riverwoods Blueprint Project, a partnership project led by the Scottish Wildlife Trust. The new online hub provides a centralised resource for knowledge and data sharing, best practice guidance, and storing key resources related to river woodland restoration and creation.

Meeting industry need

Demand for a platform such as this was highlighted during the Development Phase of the Blueprint Project.

Consultation with Riverwoods partners and other stakeholders across the sector highlighted substantial challenges in delivering river woodland restoration schemes – primarily during the funding and planning stages. The lack of centralised resources, combined with the absence of effective tools for scenario exploration and stakeholder negotiation, was found to exacerbate these issues. To address this a working group was created, and through audience and case study analysis, consultations, scoping and design exercises, the Digital Centre of Excellence was developed.