Hello! Welcome to the first episode of Copy This where we travel to Scotland to learn how a community raised £millions to buy 5,000 acres of local land for a new nature reserve. In this episode, hosts Ric Casale and Amanda Carpenter are reunited, having last met at COP26, moments after Ric had completed a gruelling 500-mile, 26-day walk from London. During that journey, Ric had the opportunity to meet our podcast guests, Jenny Barlow and Mairi Telford Jammeh, of the Tarras Valley Nature Reserve in Langholm. We hear about the incredible passion this small community has for protecting wildlife and restoring the area to its natural state. About how an unexpected opportunity to purchase a large swathe of land for the nature reserve sparked a fundraising mission that ignited people not only across Scotland, but globally as well. We learn about some of the characters and relationships that made it possible to raise the £millions needed – and about the plans to raise more and continue to grow the protected area. Listen now, to discover the power that people can have when they come together to achieve an impossible dream. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.