Wildlife Estates Symposium demonstrates strength and ambition of European Initiative

Press Release

From 8 – 10 September 2025, delegates from across Europe converged at the Fondation François Sommer in Paris for the annual Symposium of the European Wildlife Estates (WE) Initiative.  

Since 2004, WE has been recognising exceptional landholdings for their outstanding biodiversity and wildlife management practices.  There are over 580 members across 19 countries, covering over two million hectares of land.  

In a real demonstration of the commitment to work collaboratively to support and enhance biodiversity, the Paris event brought together public decision-makers, private environmental stakeholders and those already accredited by the scheme, to discuss how public bodies can best ensure biodiversity improvements alongside private landowners.

Delegates also heard the reflections of current label holders on the benefits and opportunities for accredited members, and shared ambitions for the scheme.

Neil Gunn, Wildlife Estates Scotland (WES) Project Manager who attended the Symposium, said: “Accredited Scottish members alone account for over 300,000 hectares of this total, highlighting the significant role that WES has in guiding and supporting the wider network.  

“There is also much to be learned from counterparts across Europe, with the Symposium a fantastic opportunity to understand the shared challenges and opportunities that members face.

“Thanks to the proactive work of WES members and Scottish Land & Estates, which manages WES,  the Scottish Government and NatureScot now recognise accredited members in Scotland as ‘Trusted Operators’.  

“This is an outcome that many other countries in Europe are looking to reach. We will continue to work to ensure that members in Scotland are appropriately rewarded for their achievement.”