The Partnership

History

Riverwoods was established in 2019 in response to growing interest from environmentally focused organisations wanting to work together to scale up efforts aimed at creating and restoring river woodlands and river systems across Scotland.

Since then, Riverwoods has seen a number of key pieces of work including the publication of the Riverwoods Evidence Review, the launch of the Riverwoods Film as well as the Riverwoods Investment Readiness Pioneers project. The most recent project being undertaken under the Riverwoods umbrella is the Riverwoods Blueprint Project.

The Partnership

Riverwoods is a wide partnership of organisations that are committed to working together under the Riverwoods vision, in accordance with our values and principles, known as the Riverwoods Charter. The Charter was drafted by the Riverwoods partnership in a workshop in 2023 and is our guiding statement as the initiative moves forwards.

Our Charter

“Creating a network of river woodland and healthy, resilient river systems throughout Scotland to deliver a range of environmental, socio-economic and financial benefits”

Together we are:

  1. Impactful
  2. Collaborative
  3. Connected
  4. Transparent
  5. Adaptable
  6. Resourceful

To achieve the Riverwoods vision we will:

  1. Work together towards the Riverwoods vision, recognising that no single organisation can achieve this on their own
  2. Recognise that partners have different capacity and resources – and can take different roles and responsibilities when needed
  3. Promote distributed leadership and decision-making, with decisions made by the partners closest to an issue, recognising that Riverwoods will not be centralised, nor will everything need to be achieved by consensus, but that the vision will be the unifying factor
  4. Make it easy for partners, communities, citizens and broader stakeholders to make a meaningful contribution to Riverwoods, by allowing a range of roles to emerge
  5. Respect the autonomy, responsibilities, accountability and statutory duties of individual organisations and projects, while recognising the impact of each stakeholder’s actions on others
  6. Trust that partners will represent and advocate for Riverwoods in different forums
  7. Commit to resolving conflict through agreed processes, recognising that solutions often require discussion, flexibility and compromise
  8. Test and learn together as we implement this new approach, noting that ownership and governance are not fixed and immovable

Governance

Riverwoods follows a dispersed decision-making approach, meaning no one organisation is responsible for approving and managing activity. Those closest to the activity or issue are empowered to make decisions and collaborate with other organisations as and when appropriate, and are not required to seek approval from any one organisation.

How it Works

The Riverwoods initiative is made up of Advisory Groups covering four key disciplines that are vital in us achieving our vision: Delivery, Science, Finance and Advocacy. Each has a specific role to play and are interlinked with one-another. In order to ensure works in these areas are aligned, these four groups are overseen by our Strategic Advisory Group.

Please note that our Advisory Groups and wider partnership pages are currently being reviewed and will be updated shortly.

Our Groups

The Strategic Advisory Group has responsibility for providing strategic oversight and guidance for all activities within Riverwoods, monitoring against agreed objectives set by the Advisory Groups and monitoring overall partnership membership and progress.

To find out more please see here.

The Delivery Group brings together organisations which are practically delivering river restoration projects, and acts as a forum for sharing good practice and identifying barriers to delivery.

To find out more please see here. 

The Finance Group brings together a range of organisations and individuals to advise on the finance aspects of Riverwoods. This includes discussing approaches to finance, developing proposals and overseeing delivery of the finance mechanisms deployed in the project.

To find out more please see here.

The Advocacy Group works to influence Scottish Government policy frameworks to ensure appropriate delivery and incentive mechanisms are created to support a network of healthy, resilient rivers and river woodlands across Scotland.

To find out more please see here.

Want to find out more and get involved?

Join the Partnership today!

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