Natural Capital Laboratory

James Banks talks to Chris White, Principle Environmental Economist at AECOM, Professor Ian Convery from the University of Cumbria and Adam Eagle, Chief Executive of The Lifescape Project. They discuss the concept of Natural Capital and the progress that’s been made a year since launching AECOM’s Natural Capital Laboratory. AECOM’s Natural Capital Laboratory is a joint-venture with conservation charity The Lifescape Project, which is located on a 100-acre site near Loch Ness in the Scottish Highlands. Working with The Lifescape Project, the landowners and their local advisors, the site’s natural environment is being restored, bringing back native forest, reintroducing wildlife and engaging local communities with the aim of identifying and demonstrating the environmental and social benefits of rewilding. This tool is part of AECOM’s work to design and test experimental new techniques to quantify, measure and communicate environmental and social change, applying cutting-edge technologies such as drones, artificial intelligence (AI), virtual reality and satellites.