OICC Press Geoconservation Research 2588-7343 4 1 2021 02 03 The North West Highlands UNESCO Global Geopark: Oldest Fossils in Europe 10.30486/gcr.2020.1911147.1034 EN Michael J. Benton School of Earth Sciences, University of Bristol, Life Sciences Building, Tyndall Avenue, Bristol, BS8 1TQ, United Kingdom 0000-0002-4323-1824 Alexander J Brasier School of Geosciences, Meston Building, University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen, AB24 3UE, UK Peter Harrison North West Highlands Geopark, The Rock Stop, Unapool, Kylesku, Sutherland, Scotland IV27 4HW Laura Hamlet North West Highlands Geopark, The Rock Stop, Unapool, Kylesku, Sutherland, Scotland IV27 4HW Journal Article 2021 02 03 The North West Highlands Geopark is probably one of the largest geoparks anywhere, comprising 2000 km2 of remote, mountainous and coastal terrain. It was the first European Geopark to be recognised in Scotland in 2004 and was designated by UNESCO as a Global Geopark in 2015. Since then, it has been very successful in delivering projects to support sustainable community and economic development based on the region’s Geoheritage and giving informative introductions to the geology, wildlife, landscapes, and human heritage of the region. The geological importance resides in the incredible age of the Lewisian rocks, which are some of the most ancient in Europe, and the organic-walled microfossils of the Torridonian rocks, amongst the oldest evidence of life in the continent of Europe, and possibly the oldest evidence of complex (eukaryotic) non-marine life in the world.