In the 1990s, Eigg was home to about 60 people. Many of them were deeply unhappy about how the island was managed, particularly a lack of security in the tenure of homes and farms.Ms Fyffe said the purchase by crofters of the 21,000-acre North Assynt Estate in the north west Highlands in 1993 gave Eigg's residents the confidence they could be successful.
A fundraising appeal - called Let's Crack It - was set up with help from Highland Council and the Scottish Wildlife Trust to raise money for the purchase.Highlands and Islands Enterprise provided a grant of £17,000 but the rest was raised by donations, including an anonymous donation of £750,000. Ms Fyffe said: "It was very, very hard won. There was no land reform legislation and there was no land fund at the time."She added: "A huge number of people helped us along the way - 10,000 individuals donated to our appeal.Since 1997 the population has grown to 110, and includes young families.
Its renewables scheme was the first in the world to provide electricity 24 hours a day from a mix of wind, sun and hydro power, and has inspired similar systems in Africa and the Americas.Eigg achieved a world first with its wind, sun and hydro renewable energy system