This downloadable short Powerpoint presentation makes, in an entertaining but graphic way, an important point about the peripherality of much of the Highlands and Islands. This small but lively area on the edge of Europe provides the backdrop for all our activities – and is a great place to live, work and learn in.
Powerpoint frames:
- Shows the UK and the key centres of authority.
- Shows the HIE area and the key centres of authority within the area.
- Shows the HIE area in a UK context. A second click shows the distances involved in our area. Note that Newcastle, Carlisle, and even Belfast are nearer to Inverness than Lerwick (which is not even our farthest flung point, that honour belonging to Muckle Flugga). Note, too, that almost all of Northern Ireland and the whole of the Lake District are nearer to Inverness than Shetland. So is the Isle of Man.
- Shows the Moray Firth area, centred in Inverness - by far our most rapidly growing and populous area. A second click shows the area with the M25 ring superimposed, and shows the scale. Note particularly that Loch Ness ( which contains more water than all the lakes in England and Wales combined) stretches the whole way across the M25
- Shows London and the M25 in more detail. This area has a population of approx 10 million. Another click shows the Moray first area on the same scale. This area – our most populated, remember – has about 100 thousand people, just one per cent of the London area population.
- Shows the UK in an EU context. A second click shows the UK running south rather than north from London. Note that this shows that Lerwick is just about the same distance from London as Milan. Our beautiful Muckle Flugga would be a Mediterranean island. (This is a good one for parties!)
- Shows the Highlands and Islands in a broader EU context – certainly special, certainly unique. Certainly the place to be.
Powerpoint presentation - HIE area location (PPT 1.5 MB) 
