\n<\/p>\n
Some think it might. In the United States, federal and state governments can claim land using eminent domain, but we rarely see communities take control to provide affordable housing, let alone empower local residents to make it happen themselves. \u201cIt is impressive,\u201d said John Lovett, a law professor at Louisiana State University, who studies Scotland\u2019s land reform laws. Scotland is \u201ctrying to achieve something that we just don\u2019t even think about in the U.S. It\u2019s creating a way for the government to enable or facilitate the disassembly or the decentralization of landownership. We\u2019ve never tried that in the U.S.\u201d<\/p>\n
If funds were provided to communities to make purchases, as they are in Scotland, perhaps small American communities could develop affordable housing or communally run stores. Urban communities could buy abandoned or derelict property and repurpose it, preventing speculators from sitting on it waiting for values to rise.<\/p>\n
Critics might argue that experiments such as Ulva\u2019s are too small and too remote to be replicated in the United States. But in an age where we\u2019ve grown used to tackling issues with sweeping infrastructure bills and large-scale projects, there\u2019s something refreshing \u2014 and also quintessentially American \u2014 about small-scale, community-led development.<\/p>\n
These tiny Scottish democracies are not so different from the self-governing communities established by the people who created the blueprint for much of American settlement, blending private property with communal spaces like schools, libraries, churches and parks. Recreating these experiments in the United States could give something back to Americans that we\u2019ve lost. They might help us reimagine growth: how to build slowly, grow sustainably, reestablish local democracy and deepen our relationship with the land. And in our atomized, secularized and screen-addled age, they could help address our modern-day yearnings for connectivity, spirituality and nature.<\/p>\n
I couldn\u2019t find any memorials for the villagers who were once forced off Ulva, but there is one for William Francis Clark \u2014 a marble gravestone on a hilltop<\/a>. When I climbed that hill in 2018, I looked over the island and saw nothing but remnants of a vanished civilization. But on this visit I could see Highland cattle grazing and cozy-looking homes. I heard a farmer\u2019s A.T.V. rumbling across the land to help a tenant with her water problem.<\/p>\n A \u201cwee bit better,\u201d indeed. There is hope in small but meaningful improvements \u2014 not just for Ulva, but for communities everywhere.<\/p>\n Ken Ilgunas is the author of \u201cWalden on Wheels<\/a>\u201d and \u201cTrespassing Across America<\/a>.\u201d He lives in Scotland.<\/p>\n The Times is committed to publishing <\/em>a diversity of letters<\/em><\/a> to the editor. We\u2019d like to hear what you think about this or any of our articles. Here are some <\/em>tips<\/em><\/a>. And here\u2019s our email: <\/em>letters@nytimes.com<\/em><\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n Follow the New York Times Opinion section on <\/em>Facebook<\/em><\/a>, <\/em>Instagram<\/em><\/a>, <\/em>TikTok<\/em><\/a>, <\/em>Bluesky<\/em><\/a>, WhatsApp<\/em><\/a> and <\/em>Threads<\/em><\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n