Work alongside other volunteers and project staff to remove target invasive non-native species from across northern Scotland.

“Pulling invasive Himalayan balsam” - © Ewen Weatherspoon “Pulling invasive Himalayan balsam” - Copyright © Ewen Weatherspoon

Project topic: Habitat and species


The Scottish Invasive Species Initiative (SISI) is an exciting and ambitious 4-year partnership project set up to tackle invasive non-native species alongside rivers and water courses in northern Scotland. The key target species for the SISI project are Giant hogweed, Japanese knotweed, Himalayan balsam, American skunk cabbage, White butterbur and the American mink.

The SISI project area is vast, covering an area of 29,500km2 encompassing Perthshire, Angus, Aberdeenshire, Moray and Highland.

We are looking for volunteers in all these areas who have a passion for the countryside (no other experience necessary!) who’d like to help. There are lots of ways to get involved; adopt a mink monitoring raft, undertake survey work, help treat invasive plants with herbicide or come along on a conservation work day. We can provide training and qualifications for volunteers to enable the control of invasive species to be centred at a local level, embedded in the community.  Read more about Volunteering Opportunities with SISI.

SISI works at a local level, in partnership with ten fishery trust/board partners, to support, train and equip volunteers with the skills and equipment they need to control invasive species. The SISI project is funded until October 2021, when we hope that local community control of invasive species will continue - providing a sustainable long-term solution to control.

The SISI project is led by Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) and is funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund, SNH and by in-kind support from the project partners and volunteers. Contact us on sisi@nature.scot


This page was last updated on 13 Feb 2020

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