The era of universities becoming climate landowners? Justice insights from a community case study in Scotland

In an age where land is increasingly perceived as central to resolving climate and biodiversity crises, this commentary asks what the justice implications may be of Scotland’s higher education institutions becoming rural landowners in the name of net zero. It draws on a case study of the University of Edinburgh’s first land acquisition for carbon sequestration – a 430-hectare site purchased in 2022. Through an arts-informed workshop with seven local community members in May 2023, the research sought to explore local people’s visions and concerns for the site’s future through a procedural justice lens. Reflecting on both the process and findings of this research, this article explores the justice implications of universities becoming large-scale rural landowners, focusing on three key dimensions: the institutional justification to achieve climate goals through land acquisition; the tendency to manage, rather than engage with, communities; and the organisational politics of researching and critiquing one’s own institution. It calls for the academic community to critically consider the desired role of universities in this emergent space of land-based climate action and, above all, contends that justice should not be lost in the institutional drive to fulfil net-zero ambitions.