New Research Centre Opened by Corrour in Partnership with the University of St Andrews

Corrour has opened a new centre for environmental research at it’s a 57,000-acre estate near Fort William for use by the University of St Andrews as part of the organisations’ 100-year partnership. 

On Saturday 12 September, an opening ceremony was held to celebrate the completion of the Corrour Research Centre. This facility is part of a 100-year partnership between the University and Corrour, which intends to tackle the climate crisis through nature-based solutions, sustainable land management, woodland regeneration and peatland restoration programmes. 

Those attending the event included university leaders, such as St Andrews’ Principal and Vice-Chancellor, Professor Dame Sally Mapstone. 

“The opening of the Corrour Research Centre is very significant for the University’s commitment to understanding and promoting sustainability, and to working with like-minded partners,” Mapstone stated. 

The new facility holds 24 beds, a field laboratory, and conference spaces. The site will act as a permanent, dedicated base for academic fieldwork, research, and teaching. 

The partnership is expected to help offset the University’s carbon emissions. The combination of nature-based carbon offsets from woodland, and carbon abatements through emissions avoided from restoring peatland for the University are an estimated 100,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalents (CO2e). These can be used to report against the University’s unavoidable emissions to support the University’s mission of achieving Net Zero by 2035. 

This will be achieved through sustainable projects including the creation of naturally regenerative woodland and local peatland restoration. When degraded, peatlands can release massive amounts of trapped carbon into the atmosphere; therefore, by restoring these areas, the partnership hopes to prevent this harm while also fostering healthy biodiversity. 

The Research Centre’s sustainable mission is reflected in its construction and operation. Timber for the facility was sourced locally from Corrour’s forest. The building itself was built offsite in Invergordon by Ecosystems Technologies Ltd. The estate's hydro-electricity schemes provide power to the site and support a low-carbon operation. 

New opportunities for research and teaching will be launched from this facility. 

In a written statement shared with The Saint, a Corrour x St Andrews Partnership spokesperson stated that “the new Centre provides purpose-built accommodation, laboratory facilities, teaching space and meeting areas, making it easier for staff and students to undertake fieldwork, deliver teaching activities and develop interdisciplinary projects.”

Projects open to St Andrews students include the partnership’s annual summer internship. The spokesperson described this as an “opportunity to undertake a residential research project at Corrour.” 

The inaugural summer internship programme focused on biodiversity and its response to peatland restoration. The theme of the 2027 internship is yet to be announced. Applications for this opportunity are set to open in March 2027 through the St Andrews Career Centre. 

The completion of the Centre promises to support researchers working in Corrour’s “living laboratory.” 

“In practical terms,” the spokesperson said, “the accommodation and facilities […] will make field visits easier to undertake for approved research projects under the Partnership and allow university members to carry out more of their research on site.”

Existing research projects will now have “greater capacity to develop […] and to pursue new questions as they emerge,” stated the spokesperson. 

Interdisciplinary research is also a priority of the Centre, with the new space facilitating collaboration between different academic perspectives.   

“By providing a common space for researchers from different projects and Schools, the Centre will also encourage greater collaboration and exchange of ideas, while helping research remain grounded in the landscape and its management,” the spokesperson added.

The Partnership is currently developing teaching programmes to be held at the Research Centre. The spokesperson stated that “within the School of Geography and Sustainable Development and the School of Biology, one possibility being explored is taking small Honours-level field classes to Corrour for short residential visits.”

The University welcomes research and teaching proposals across a range of academic fields. All proposals are reviewed by the Partnership Board, a body composed of members from both the University and Corrour. 

Image Courtesty of the University of St Andrews