With billions of pounds of investment, a world-renowned visitor economy and extraordinary natural and cultural assets, the Highlands has the potential to demonstrate how economic prosperity, thriving communities and a healthy environment can go hand in hand.

By Yvonne Crook, Chair of Highland CIC

There are moments when a region has the opportunity to shape not just its own future, but to demonstrate something important to the wider world.

I believe the Highlands is at one of those moments.

We are experiencing an extraordinary period of investment and transformation. Renewable energy and infrastructure projects are creating opportunities on a scale few of us could have imagined twenty years ago.

Alongside this, we have a world-renowned tourism industry, exceptional food and drink, a rich cultural heritage, extraordinary natural assets and ambitious Highland businesses.

The opportunity now is to bring these strengths together around a shared vision for the Highlands as a place.

Emerging analysis identifies an estimated £100 billion pipeline of renewable energy and infrastructure projects at various stages of development.

The Highlands already makes a remarkable contribution to the UK’s energy transition, accounting for around 5.5% of renewable energy capacity, despite representing just 0.36% of the population.

Tourism is another tremendous strength. In 2024, 1.79 million overnight visits generated £756 million in visitor expenditure across the Highlands, supporting thousands of jobs and businesses.

Yet there is an opportunity to create even greater value. If average expenditure per overnight trip reached the Scottish average, the illustrative additional value could be around £118 million annually, without increasing visitor numbers.

Imagine what that could mean for Highland accommodation providers, restaurants, food and drink producers, cultural attractions and the communities in which they operate.

These are not simply impressive statistics. They represent opportunities for Highland businesses to grow, for young people to develop careers, for communities to thrive and for our natural environment to be restored and protected.

For the past five years, Highland CIC has been working with business and community leaders to explore how the Highlands can become a world-leading region in sustainable development.

More recently, working with renewable energy developers and other partners, we have been mapping investment alongside community benefit, tourism, population change, housing, infrastructure and natural assets.

What becomes increasingly clear is that the greatest opportunities often lie in the connections between them.

Housing, skills, business growth, tourism, energy and nature are not separate ambitions. They are all part of creating successful places.

That is why we believe the Highlands would benefit from a shared long-term vision for the region, supported by a Highland Sustainable Development Plan.

Not another document to sit on a shelf, or something that replaces the important work already being undertaken by public agencies, businesses and communities, but a framework that helps connect our collective efforts, identify opportunities and measure lasting outcomes.

One of the most encouraging developments has been the growing interest from international leaders who recognise the Highlands’ potential to demonstrate a new approach to sustainable development.

We are delighted that Dr Pavan Sukhdev, internationally recognised economist and sustainability leader, will join us at the Highland Sustainable Development Summit in November.

Through our relationships with GIST Impact and the Global Alliance for a Sustainable Planet, we are also benefiting from international expertise and encouragement as we develop this ambition.

What excites me is that international leaders can see the potential here – and so can so many of our own Highland leaders.

Across renewable energy, tourism, business, community development, education, culture and the environment, we are bringing together people who understand the scale of the opportunity and want to help shape it.

Imagine looking back twenty years from now and seeing a Highlands where more young people have chosen to stay, businesses have grown through the opportunities created by investment, communities are thriving and our natural and cultural heritage is stronger than ever.

That is the legacy we have the opportunity to create.

And it is why our Highland Sustainable Development Summit on 18 and 19 November at the Kingsmills Hotel in Inverness is so important.

On Wednesday 18 November, the Highland Renewables Network Exhibition and Supply Chain Sessions will connect developers, contractors, investors and Highland businesses with opportunities emerging from the investment pipeline.

On Thursday 19 November, we will bring together Highland and international leaders to explore our shared ambition and the partnerships needed to turn that vision into practical action.

Our ambition is not simply to host another conference. It is to build momentum behind a shared vision for the Highlands and the partnerships needed to deliver it.

We have an extraordinary opportunity in front of us. The investment, the businesses, the communities and the expertise are here.

The Highlands has the opportunity to do more than benefit from a changing world. We can help show the world what a better future looks like.

Yvonne Crook is Chair and Founding Director of Highland CIC.

Highland Sustainable Development Summit
18–19 November 2026 | Kingsmills Hotel, Inverness

Programme and tickets: https://tinyurl.com/58umyp2h