IAP-26-127

Regenerative farming in upland landscapes, roots and reality- a long view.

Upland (hill) farms, with their focus on grazing (sheep and cattle) are perceived as being of low economic value with land often considered ‘marginal’ for agriculture and food production. The result is that many of these landscapes and their land use are threatened with abandonment with hill land seen as suitable for ‘rewilding’ (Navarro & Pereira 2015), commercial forestry or as space for new woodlands to increase biodiversity and to offer carbon sequestration and storage. However, these landscapes have complex histories of human-environment interactions often over millennia and within such cultural landscapes there is a difficulty in establishing baselines for rewilding. Rewilding or extensive tree planting in these upland areas would also change the diversity of these landscapes with the potential loss of grassland, heathland and moorland, maintained through seasonal grazing. These diverse habitats have developed in tandem with human activity and been maintained by highly skilled farmers with the knowledge and experience to manage livestock and habitat productivity in these upland landscapes (Costelo 2025). Regenerative farming, with a focus on soil health and livestock, is being recognised (Scottish Government 2022, 2025) as a route whereby food production, sustainability and increased biodiversity can be achieved. This route is challenging, particularly in upland areas, in part due to polarised debates and negative perceptions of hill grazing (Ehgartner and Hirth, 2026; Monbiot, 2013).
This project seeks to use the evidence of agriculture and land use practices in the past to explore how the agricultural value, biodiversity potential and cultural associations of these upland farms have changed over time in response to climate, economics and politics (Burton 2004, Costello 2020).
This project will examine the following main questions:
– What were the approaches to farming and food pastoralism in these upland landscapes in the past? Were these ‘successful’ or ‘unsuccessful’, from cultural, productivity and biodiversity perspectives?
– Can we detect past use of the techniques being proposed for regenerative farming? ? This includes techniques such as careful maintenance of stock levels and grazing intensity, use of soil management techniques, a diversity of landuses and the role of habitat mosaics in the farm structure.
-How can the long view, provided by examining past farming dynamics, be used to better understand the challenges faced and in deciding how best to manage these landscapes and for whom? The long view of farming and agriculture in these landscapes, alongside listening to those who currently live and work in these landscapes could provide new insights into cultural values, stewardship and perceptions of these landscapes. These can inform policy perspectives and societal views on the future of upland farming and landscape change.
Palynology (pollen analysis) has been the most widely used proxy to determine vegetation change and land use in the past. As a tool it can be used to determine how vegetation changes in response to human activity and climate change, but differentiating between these factors is challenging (Davies 2025). This project will thus draw on a range of palaeoenvironmental proxies, such as beetle remains, dung fungi and charcoal fragments. In addition, the record of land use contained in the soils themselves will be used, with soils representing a conviviality of human and non-human interactions (Given, 2017). This project will also involve the voices of farmers and farming communities who live and work in these upland areas, to provide perspectives and oral histories alongside archaeological, historical and documentary sources to provide a fuller exploration of the biocultural history of these landscapes.
The focus of the project will be in Scotland, and site selection will be directed at the farm scale. Scotland has extensive hill and upland agricultural areas with a well-documented and accessible data base of the archaeological evidence (TROVE). Case studies such as RCAHMS, 2001 (Ochils, Central Scotland) and Tipping et al., 2016 (Ben Lawers, Central Highlands), exemplify how multiproxy approaches can be used to explore farming and farmer histories at a pivotal time in the future direction of these landscapes. It is anticipated that policy recommendations will be co-created with a range of actors from the farming community including those who use regenerative farming approaches.

The project will use high resolution palaeoecological analyses which could include: (1) generating new high-resolution pollen records to improve data coverage in poorly researched areas, (2) the application of novel palaeoecological techniques such as insect remains (beetles) to determine changes in habitat type and health, (3) quantitative analysis of herbivory using dung fungi to determine variations in grazing. The methodology proposed offers the opportunity to generate novel palaeoecological data sets, with the application of a range of environmental and ecological proxies.
The soils in these landscapes contain palaeoenvironmental archives but these are often difficult to interpret chronologically. Here soil thin section analysis as well as pollen and dung fungi analysis of soils from secure contexts (e.g. buried soils or from archaeological contexts) will be used to provide a unique perspective on the evolution these landscapes through their soils. Other analytical techniques such as soil biodiversity and chemistry could also be used to determine aspects such as soil health.
The palaeoenvironmental records will be constrained using radiocarbon dating (supported by NERC-RCF) and other techniques to define recent environmental change. Analytical techniques to understand vegetation responses will include rarefaction (pollen richness). Here it is proposed that the palaeoenvironmental data sets, the archaeological evidence and if applicable documentary and historical data sets, will be used in conjunction with oral histories and experiences gathered from the farming community. This would be through interviews, questionnaire surveys or participatory workshops. This integrated and participatory approach will provide a blueprint for future collaborations on cultural and ecological heritage and future and will ensure that research outcomes are relevant to the research users, both informing and informed by land and heritage management issues.

Year 1

Year one will focus on a review of the literature in particular the methodologies. There is scope within the research design to develop novel approaches to address the research questions. The first year will also have skills training in the palaeoecological method and fieldwork, in the spring and summer.

Year 2

Year two will consolidate the methodological approaches, with initial findings helping to inform any additional methods required or adjustments in sampling resolutions. There will be further field work. Data analysis of the first site with the potential to publish the findings from this first site.

Year 3

Year 3 will have a focus on completion of the data analysis as well as final data collection such as documentary or archival sources. Writing up of data chapters as well as methods will be completed in year 3.

Year 3.5

Final write up of the thesis.

The PhD student will receive training in field techniques and sediment coring and will develop expertise in palaeoenvironmental reconstruction techniques, which can include the application of different palaeoecological techniques. The project also allows the student to develop skills in soil thin section analysis. The PhD student will also receive training in chronology construction, including Bayesian age-depth modelling. The PhD student will also gain experience of archaeological approaches for investigating human/landscape interactions. The supervisory team will provide complementary expertise and deliver project specific training in high-temporal resolution palaeoecological analyses, and multivariate analysis of palaeoecological time-series (Whitehouse/Davies/Tisdall), soil thin section preparation and analysis (Wilson) and mixed method approaches and policy creation (Jones). The student will benefit from the vibrant conservation and biogeography research community at Stirling, as well as a strong palaeoecological and archaeological research group in Glasgow. Current interdisciplinary projects in St Andrews on the social-ecological values attributed to tropical peatlands, and their implications for conservation offer opportunities to network and develop interdisciplinary research skills. The supervisory team are part of number of research projects examining cultural heritage, public participation and habitat restoration. The PhD student would be a member of this diverse research group, providing them with unique insights into land management approaches that seek to address climate change and biodiversity loss. Additional training and support in transferable skills will be available (University of Stirling Graduate School), including seminars/workshops on project management, oral and written communication, dealing with the Media, the Viva and troubleshooting. All students are expected to present their work annually at internal seminars and at external conferences. Students are also required to produce annual reports and undergo annual review meetings to ensure that they are progressing and receiving appropriate support for submission to a high standard. The student will also attend training and networking events within the Iapetus DTP and offered via NERC.