Setting the Land Free

'A powerful beacon of hope' Seán Ronayne

As a mass Irish rewilding movement takes shape, Eoghan Daltun takes to the high roads and byroads to meet those leading a quiet revolution on the land.

Rewilding, already proven in Scotland, is gathering momentum in Ireland. It offers a radical reimagining of our relationship with the natural world, restoring balance to landscapes long dominated by extraction, industrialised farming and monoculture forestry. By creating space for nature to recover, on land and at sea, it promises renewed biodiversity, resilient ecosystems and a future less defined by depletion. Yet the challenge is stark: Ireland remains one of the most ecologically altered countries in Europe.

In Setting the Land Free, Daltun travels across Ireland and beyond to Scotland and Costa Rica, encountering pioneers restoring bogs, reintroducing native species and regenerating forests and coastlines. Their work is practical, urgent and deeply hopeful, rooted in the belief that repair is still possible.

This is not just a chronicle of change, but an inspiring call to imagine differently - and act.