A just response to the biodiversity and climate crises
The twin nature crises are of central importance to us and our members. We recognise and strongly support the pressing need for action to address both the climate emergency and linked biodiversity crisis. We are working to highlight and support community-led action on these crises.
We are at the forefront of promoting the community-led response to ecological crisis and demonstrate the good work our members are undertaking. We focus on the following areas to achieve this:
- Work with a broad range of allies to demonstrate that community landownership and empowered communities can and should be at the heart of our response to the nature crises
- Ensure that large-scale interventions based upon natural capital ventures do not work against the policy objectives of diversifying land ownership, building community wealth, ensuring a Just Transition to Net Zero and furthering community landownership
- We need to work at landscape scale to address the crises, but collaboratively and across multiple landholdings, as many of our members and colleagues on the European mainland do
- We need to hold government to account on its pledge for a ‘just transition' and ensure that the rush toward carbon markets, renewables and rewilding does not undermine other key policy objectives outlined above
We will continue to advocate for community-led action on the climate emergency and biodiversity loss, as evidenced by rural and urban community landowners in Scotland, in ways which support the sustainable development of individual communities and of Scotland as a whole.
Climate and Biodiversity Resources
Climate and Biodiversity News
Let’s re-embrace Dùthchas as we rewild and repeople
A joint opinion piece from Ailsa Raeburn, Community Land Scotland and Kevin Cumming, the Scottish Rewilding Alliance.
Beyond community benefit – a new deal for thriving communities
This paper proposes a transformational system of new community partnership agreements to ensure community priorities are included from the earliest stage of new economic developments.
Landmark decision paves the way for the Knocknagael charity to take the Scottish Government owned green field at Knocknagael into community ownership
Following a detailed and lengthy process, an independent panel has recommended that the original decision to refuse the asset transfer be overturned, subject to a number of conditions, and Scottish Government ministers have accepted this recommendation.
The Credibility Gap for Green Finance
This research and analysis critiques the ‘green finance gap’. Written by Jon Hollingdale, an independent forestry and land use consultant and researcher, who has worked in Scottish community forestry since 1999.