International Collaboration

Historic Scotland has recently celebrated the completion of its nationwide survey of hydroelectric power in Scotland with a conference in Perth and the publication of a book cataloguing the history of the sector. Entitled Power to the People: the built heritage of hydroelectric power’ which was launched by Fiona Hyslop, Minister for Culture and External Affairs.



Power to the People Conference (opened by Fiona Hyslop, Minister for Culture & External Affairs). The conference was followed by a study tour of the power stations in the Tummel Valley. Further images of the conference can be seen here.


The conference provided the opportunity to celebrate the major contributions of a number of Scottish designers and engineers to the development of the sector and to some internationally important technological breakthroughs. The international connection was also emphasised by delegates from the sector in Norway.

The opportunities provided by a comprehensive nationwide survey and the partnerships developed with key stakeholders in the industry for successful collaborative future management were also debated, ensuring that the cultural and historic value of the development of hydroelectric power can continue to add value to the sector’s cutting edge role in the provision of renewable energy.



The conference has been followed by further international collaboration, with Historic Scotland presenting the survey and a pilot partnership management agreement to a broad international audience at a recent conference in Tampere, Finland.

We intend to explore the resulting opportunity to provide a lead in Europe for the designation and successful partnership management of some of our most important industrial heritage.



You can request a hard copy of the book on our website at www.celebratingscotlandsarchitecture.org and find our more about the thematic listing project.