He began his career as a scientist working on renewable energy at the University of Aberdeen and then as a Projects Officer with Central Scotland Countryside Trust. He was appointed as the first development officer of Reforesting Scotland in 1991. He became a self-employed writer and researcher in 1993. Over the next 20 years, he contributed to a wide range of debates on land use, land reform, the Crown estate, common good land, local democracy and fiscal reform. Author of a number of reports on these topics, he also served as a Specialist Adviser to the UK Parliament's Scottish Affairs Committee Inquiry on land reform 2014–2015.
