THE future of forestry in Scotland will be considered at a major conference this month.

Industry figures from across the country will gather for the Better Forestry Conference in Birnam, Perthshire, on March 13.

Designed to unharness attendees’ collective insights and ideas in trying to answer a set of questions about what better forestry looks like north of the border, the Forest Policy Group event sets out to build an approach to help that happen.

Given the level of uncertainty ahead of forestry in Scotland, organisers say they will not be promoting any pre-determined vision. Rather, they will hear from a selection of speakers and use their experiences as inspiration for discussion as guests engage with these four questions:

1. What is the need for change – what are the drivers and challenges we face?
2. What resources do we have – what values, ideas, experiences and assets can we use?
3. What would ‘better’ look like?
4. How can we get there?

Speakers will include foresters and woodland consultants, and members of the Royal Society of Edinburgh and Scottish Land Commission.

READ MORE: Forestry has taken a hell of a beating in Scotland lately

An FPG spokesperson said: “The conference does not aim to label anything as ‘right’ or ‘wrong’. The conference is owned by all the participants, and we’ve designed it so that everyone has a chance to contribute their views and experience. Please do come feeling that your thoughts on these four questions are most welcome.”