Join Edinburgh Science on the new BUY LOCAL ACT GLOBAL coffee trail

Edinburgh Science charity, known for its climate work and producing the annual Science Festival, presents a new Buy Local Act Global Coffee Trail in Edinburgh.

This is the second of this kind of trail that the Edinburgh Science team has presented, following the success of the Toast to Gaia drinks trail which has won several awards, including the Regional and National Working Together for Tourism Scottish Thistle Award by Visit Scotland.  

Over 95 million cups of coffee are consumed daily in the UK with many bought from independent coffee shops. However, the coffee industry is experiencing increasing challenges caused by climate change, ranging from the production of coffee beans to supply chain disruptions caused by extreme weather events.

Through the Buy Local Act Global campaign, Edinburgh Science hopes to demonstrate the powerful impact that supporting everyday businesses can have, not just locally, but globally.  

Featuring 6 independent Edinburgh-based coffee shops and roasters, the Buy Local Act Global trail is the key component of an environmental campaign aiming to both shed light on the impact of climate change on the coffee industry and highlight the ways in which Edinburgh businesses – and especially small to medium size enterprises (SMEs) – are taking climate-conscious actions to build resilience.  

The 6 independent Edinburgh-based coffee shops and roasters participating in the campaign are: 

Coffee enthusiasts can pick up a card in any participating venue, the card links to the Buy Local Act Global website. The website details the actions that businesses are taking and the local and global impact of these as well as actions that they can take themselves.  

The campaign is associated with The NetZeroToolkit – a free online resource by Edinburgh Science that supports organisations of any size, but particularly micro businesses and small-to-medium enterprises (SMEs) to build carbon management strategies. 

Many coffee shops on the trail have signed up to and are using The NetZeroToolkit and visitors to the trail are encouraged to share this resource with their own businesses or SMEs that they use to get more Edinburgh SMEs building effective carbon reduction strategies.  

Emily Stone, Climate and Sustainability Business Development Manager at Edinburgh Science said: “Small-to-medium size enterprises – or SMEs make up a massive 99% of the UK business community, their contribution is vital if we are to meet our ambitious – and necessary –net zero targets.

“The good news is that there are many SMEs, such as these, working incredibly hard on making climate conscious and sustainable decisions even in areas that are being badly affected by the impact of climate change such as the coffee industry.

“Any business, from any sector can – and should – sign up to The NetZeroToolkit today, for free. At Edinburgh Science we believe that if we work together now; we can build a better future for everyone.”  

A representative from the Machina coffee shop said: “The impact of climate change is being felt throughout the coffee industry – from the producers themselves, through the supply chain and right to our own shops in Edinburgh.

“Taking climate-conscious and sustainable actions has long been a priority for Machina and so we’re delighted to appear on this project, highlighting both our own actions and those of our colleagues across the city.

“As small businesses we all have a responsibility to act now so that we can build an Edinburgh coffee scene for the future.” 

A spokesperson from Williams and Johnson coffee shop said: “At Williams and Johnson, we’re proud to be a part of the Buy Local Act Global campaign. Our ethos isn’t just great coffee – it’s great coffee and contributing to a better future for our planet and people.

“ It’s incredibly fulfilling to know that our efforts can make a difference and we’re excited to continue our work towards a more sustainable future as well as inspire others to join us in this crucial mission.” 

Scotland sends emergency relief to Malawi

Funding to provide food, shelter and healthcare in wake of Tropical Cyclone Freddy

Two charities will each receive £200,000 from the Scottish Government for emergency relief projects in Malawi, after the country was hit by severe flooding following a record-breaking cyclone in March.

More than 500 people were killed and over 500,000 displaced as a result of Tropical Cyclone Freddy, which struck even as Malawi was dealing with the deadliest cholera outbreak in the country’s recorded history.

The funds being given to Scottish Catholic International Aid Fund (SCIAF) and Save the Children International will be used to provide food, shelter and improved access to water, sanitation and healthcare for those affected by the cyclone.

International Development Minister Christina McKelvie said: “The loss of life and the substantial damage to thousands of people’s homes and livelihoods in Malawi is devastating particularly at a time when the country is facing a severe cholera outbreak. 

“Scotland has a longstanding relationship with Malawi and our ability to fund this humanitarian response is a good example of the role and importance of the Scottish Government’s strong international relationships.”

Head of Save the Children Scotland Claire Telfer said: “This support from the Scottish Government will make a big difference to the children and families we work with in Malawi, as they come to terms with the devastating effects of Cyclone Freddy and try to piece their lives back together. 

“With more than 100,000 households in Malawi displaced by the cyclone, there’s a critical need for food, water and sanitation facilities, which our teams are working to provide. Children are also at risk of water-borne disease, particularly as Malawi was already experiencing a serious cholera outbreak. 

“Save the Children will use these funds to support thousands of families displaced by the cyclone through cash transfers, nutritional support targeted at pregnant women and new mothers, and water, sanitation and hygiene support in the areas worst affected.” 

Chief Executive of SCIAF Alistair Dutton said: “Once again the Scottish Government has stepped up and responded at a time of need for the people of Malawi. 

“On a visit in January, we could see the difference made by previous funding from the Scottish Government in response to Storm Ana and Cyclone Gombe which struck in 2022. Working through our partners, the funds were used to help communities prepare and protect themselves against further weather events. This included flood defences such as dykes and channels. Just weeks later Cyclone Freddy struck, testing these defences to the limit.

“This latest cyclone brought devastation to much of southern Malawi in March and we are very grateful for this further funding which will be used to relieve some of the suffering the cyclone caused. Access to water, sanitation and health services as well as food and shelter are our priorities as we work with our partners in the wake of this catastrophe.”

The £400,000 in support for Malawi was awarded through the Humanitarian Emergency Panel from the Scottish Government’s International Development Fund.

The funding was announced on 23 March by the then First Minister, Nicola Sturgeon, in a letter to President Chakwera conveying expressions of condolences for the tragic loss of life.

In January 2023 the Scottish Government provided £236,137 to the Malawi Government through its partnership with UNICEF Malawi in response to the cholera crisis.

Brush up your study skills at West PIlton Neighbourhood Centre

SHORT COURSE FOR ADULTS STARTS 4rh MAY

The city council’s local Life Long Learning team are offering a new training course for people who would like to go back to learning.

Brush up on Digital Skills and improve your writing skills. This and more to prepare for future learning.

The course runs at West Pilton Neighbourhood Centre from May 4th.

Contact Melinda to book or for more info on 0131 552 5700 or email melinda.peto@ea.edin.sch.uk

New measures to ‘Stop the Boats’ in Illegal Immigration Bill

Reforms will ‘speed up the removal of people with no right to be here and enhance safeguards to protect unaccompanied children’

THE UK government has tabled a number of amendments to the Illegal Migration Bill to strengthen it further, ahead of it returning to Parliament next week – helping to deliver our priority of ‘stopping the boats’.

The amendments tabled this week will help to speed up the removal of people with no right to be here and enhance safeguards for unaccompanied children who cross the Channel in small boats.

Amendments also include a commitment to consult local authorities within three months of the bill becoming law to understand their capacity to support people coming to the UK through safe and legal routes, and to publish a report on existing, and any proposed additional safe and legal routes, within six months of the bill becoming law.

Together these will provide greater clarity and ensure progress on delivering our plans for safe and legal routes with an annual cap, agreed by Parliament, to ensure we are properly supporting people to rebuild their lives in the way communities would expect.

The UK will continue to play a world-leading role in protecting those in need who come to the country illegally. However, to tackle the abuse of the system which detracts from our ability to help those in need, further amendments are being made to ensure the UK can better protect its borders.

To speed up removals, amendments will make clear that the UK’s domestic courts cannot apply any interim measure to stop someone being removed if they bring forward a legal challenge, aside from in the narrow route available under the bill where they are at risk of serious and irreversible harm.

Instead, challenges would be heard remotely after the person concerned had been removed. This will ensure that someone would only be able to apply for a domestic injunction to prevent their removal if they were to face “serious and irreversible harm” in the country they were due to be removed to.

Amendments will also make clear that ministers may exercise discretion in relation to interim measures issued by the European Court of Human Rights, and set certain principles under which they would make a decision whether to comply or not.

Alongside the amendment, the government is having constructive discussions regarding reform to the Rule 39 process in Strasbourg, to support greater timeliness, accountability and representation in such cases.

Further amendments include:

  • giving immigration officers new powers to search for and seize electronic devices like mobile phones from people who come to the UK illegally – to help them assess whether someone has the right to be in the UK
  • increasing protections around the safeguarding risk caused by adults pretending to be children, by bringing in new regulations that will see age-disputed people treated as an adult if they refuse to undergo a scientific age assessment.

Home Secretary Suella Braverman said: “The British public are rightly fed up with people coming to the UK through dangerous small boat crossings, and myself and the Prime Minister are absolutely committed to stopping the boats once and for all.

“The changes I am announcing today will help secure our borders and make it easier for us to remove people by preventing them from making last minute, bogus claims, while ensuring we strengthen our safe and legal routes.

“My focus remains on ensuring this landmark piece of legislation does what it is intended to do, and we now must work to pass it through Parliament as soon as possible so we can stop the boats.”

Immigration Minister Robert Jenrick said: “It is not fair that people can pay criminal gangs thousands of pounds and pass through multiple safe countries to come to the UK illegally.

“The only way to break the business model of the evil people smugglers and secure our borders is to make sure that if people come to the UK illegally, they won’t be able to stay.

“These amendments will make it easier to swiftly remove individuals who come here illegally from safe countries, whilst re-affirming our commitment to help those directly from regions of conflict and instability.”

These new powers are part of further amendments tabled by the government yesterday to strengthen the ‘landmark’ Illegal Migration Bill, which will see people who come to the UK illegally in scope for detention and swift removal.

The amendments relating to safe and legal routes were laid by Tim Loughton MP, and measures to prevent UK courts from interfering to stop a removal were laid by Danny Kruger MP – the government will support these measures when the bill goes back to the House of Commons for report stage next week. The remaining measures have been tabled by the government.

The amendments can be found on the Parliamentary website: Illegal Migration Bill publications – Parliamentary Bills – UK Parliament

Pilton Youth & Children’s Project: New programme starts next week

✨ New Term Programme ✨

Our new term starts next week! Clubs are back on as normal and we’re excited to see all our children and young people every week until Summer!!

If you are new to us, please pop in for a consent form and make sure it’s signed by your legal guardian!

#YouthWorkMatters

#YouthWorkWorks

The impact of the UK’s exit from the European Union to be debated by MPs

On Monday 24 April, MPs will debate a petition relating to the impact of the UK’s exit from the European Union.

Martyn Day MP, a member of the Petitions Committee, has been asked by the Committee to open the debate. MPs from all parties can take part, and the Government will send a minister to respond.

We call upon the Government to hold a Public Inquiry into the impact of Brexit

The petition, which has more than 137,000 signatures, states: “The benefits that were promised if the UK exited the European Union have not been delivered, so we call upon the Government to hold a Public Inquiry to assess the impact that Brexit has had on this country and its citizens.”

In its response to the petition, provided on 5 December 2022, the Government said: “The UK’s departure from the EU was a democratic choice and the UK-EU institutions are functioning as intended. The Government does not believe this to be an appropriate subject for a public inquiry.”

What are petitions debates?

Petitions debates are ‘general’ debates which allow MPs from all parties to discuss the important issues raised by one or more petitions, and put their concerns to Government Ministers.

Petition debates don’t end with a vote to implement the request of a petition. This means MPs will not vote on whether to hold a public inquiry into the impact of the UK’s exit from the European Union.  

Petition debates are scheduled by the Petitions Committee. Only e-petitions started on the parliament petitions site are considered by the Petitions Committee.

Spreading Positivi-tea! Care home hosts Tea Dance on National Tea Day

Strachan House care home in Blackall celebrated in style, by brewing up a wonderful afternoon for National Tea Day yesterday with a Community Tea Dance afternoon.

Supplied with a tasty selection of biscuits, sandwiches, cakes, and of course, teas for the event, residents and their families of Strachan House had an amazing afternoon together. 

Gordon Philp, General Manager at Strachan House said: “In these unprecedented times with the cost of living, providing a range of community events for our local community and their families is more important than ever.

“Our residents really enjoyed the choice of teas, cakes and events for National Tea Day, and as a nation who truly loves their tea, it was great excuse for an afternoon brew and a natter”. 

May Lesueur, a wife of a resident at Strachan House said: “It was a lovely afternoon, and I love a cup of tea so it was a wonderful combination to end the week on.

“And it was lovely for the families and staff join in too. They always take such good care of us.”

 Strachan House is run by Barchester Healthcare, one of the UK’s largest care providers, which is committed to delivering high-quality care across its care homes and hospitals. Strachan House provides 83 beds for nursing care, residential care, and respite care.

£15 million mental health funding

Community support for third year of fund to help more projects

Projects to support mental health and address social isolation and loneliness in adults will share a further £15 million this year.

The Communities Mental Health and Wellbeing Fund for adults, launched in 2021, has now provided around 3,300 grants to community organisations delivering mental health and wellbeing support, bringing total investment to £51 million.  

Activities will target older people, areas of economic deprivation, people with  long term health conditions or disability and LGBTI communities. The Fund has also had a particular focus on responding to the cost of living crisis, which remains a priority this year.

Improved mental health and wellbeing support is one of the commitments in the Scottish Government’s Policy Prospectus, which outlines firm actions to be achieved by 2026.

Health Secretary Michael Matheson visited Pause and Breathe, a social enterprise, in High Bonnybridge yesterday (Friday 21 April) where he announced the additional funding. 

He said: “This investment reflects the importance we place on promoting good mental health and early intervention for those facing mental health challenges –  ensuring that people can access a range of different types of help to match their needs.

“The Fund will continue to support a range of valuable community mental health and wellbeing projects, reflecting one of the priorities set out by the First Minister earlier this week.”

Pause and Breathe was awarded £10,000 from last year’s fund to offer a variety of wellbeing sessions and activities. Work is underway to change a building that has lain unused in High Bonnybridge for 20 years.

Managing Director Susie Hooper said: “This funding will enable us to hold free weekly wellbeing sessions throughout the whole year and means we can support people who wouldn’t otherwise attend due to financial constraints.”

Abortion Rights Scotland – supporting safe, legal, NHS abortion services

Saturday 22nd April Edinburgh 11am-1pm

THIS MORNING (Saturday), Abortion Rights Scotland is celebrating the fifty-fifth anniversary of the date the 1967 Abortion Act became law in England, Scotland, and Wales, from eleven am to 1pm on Lothian Road Edinburgh – Usher Hall side – because on the other side of the road, SPUC (the Society for the Protection of the Unborn Child) are holding their protest against access safe, legal, local abortion, provided and delivered by the NHS. 

The SPUC protest against safe legal abortion and the feminist celebration of the Abortion Act, are both now in their tenth year – two years missed because of lockdown.

Audrey Brown, retired NHS abortion care consultant, says: “NHS Scotland has long supported women to make their own choices about pregnancy.

 “Abortion care is extremely safe, and in fact is safer than continuing a pregnancy. NHS doctors, nurses and midwives working in abortion care are trained to provide a safe and supportive service.

“The majority of women now choose early medical abortion in the privacy of their own home. Restricting access to abortion won’t stop abortion, it will push it underground and make it less safe. We must continue to support free, safe and legal NHS abortion care.”

The counter-vigil against the anti-abortion protest, is both in support of the continuing right to safe, legal, local abortion in Scotland, provided and delivered by the NHS, but also standing with people in countries like Poland and the United States, where the anti-abortion movement has achieved its goal of denying free access to safe legal abortion.

SPUC’s frequent assertion is that they want to make this essential reproductive healthcare “unthinkable” – and most people in Scotland oppose that goal.

SPUC has organised a ‘Pro Life Chain’ event from 11am – 1pm

Organisers say: ‘Remember the lives hurt and lost through abortion by attending SPUC’s 2023 Pro-Life Chain. This peaceful act of witness spreads the message that abortion kills unborn children and hurts women and families.’

Arachnophobe catches the bug for tasting whisky – with edible insects!

Lifelong hater of creepy-crawlies overcomes fear at an unusual tasting event in Edinburgh which saw whiskies paired with crickets, mealworms, locusts and a surprise scorpion!

A lifelong arachnophobe with a fear of creepy-crawlies discovered a taste for edible insects at an unusual whisky tasting in Edinburgh which saw the flavours of crickets, mealworms, locusts and scorpions matched with different types of Scotch. 

Scott Begbie from Aberdeen was one of three adventurous whisky fans taking part in a special event called ‘A Pairing With Legs’, which was hosted at The Vaults in Leith, the home of  The Scotch Malt Whisky Society, a global whisky club with an unconventional approach to whisky tastings.

The unusual flavour pairing event took place as part of The Scotch Malt Whisky Society’s 40th anniversary year celebrations. Previously, the Society has paired whiskies with unusual items such as ice cream and also staged a tasting on top of a Munro. 

After the event, Begbie, who was given the tasting experience as a present for his 60th birthday, said: “I’ve always had a phobia of spiders and creepy crawlies generally, so I was initially pretty nervous. Seeing the insects and picking them up was quite tricky at first, but I ended up enjoying it. 

“My favourite flavour pairing was the smoked crickets with a blended malt featuring smoky whiskies from Islay and Orkney. That pairing of smoky, salty flavours worked really well.

“The mealworms were crunchy and tasted like Bombay Mix with less spices. The locusts were challenging but they reminded me of Twiglets. The scorpion surprised me – it was really good, a bit like a salty Pretzel.”

The flavour pairings

At the event, the first flavour pairing saw mealworms matched with Disco Diva, a 12-year-old whisky from Speyside described as tasting like “an all-singing-and-dancing karaoke of icing sugar-coated biscuits, dried coconut and hot cross buns”.

The second pairing featured locusts paired with Raspberry Fields Forever, a whisky described as having a palate of “creamy custard with juicy raspberry sorbet on apple crumble”. 

Finally the smoked crickets were paired with Smokus Fruticosus, a sweet, rich & intensely smoky blended malt featuring whiskies from the islands of Islay & Orkney.

The scorpion was a surprise bonus with the participants trying it at the end of the tasting with a whisky of their choice.

A second ‘A Pairing With Legs’ event is taking place in May with the Society working with Dr Vladimir Blagoderov, the principal curator of invertebrates at the National Museum of Scotland, to explore different types of edible insects.

40th anniversary adventures

This year, the Society is celebrating its 40th-anniversary and is approaching 40,000 members around the world. To mark this milestone in its journey, a series of special releases, events, collaborations and happenings, all inspired by founder Pip Hills’ unorthodox outlook, will continue throughout the year.  

Helen Stewart, Head of Brand Marketing & Membership, said: “Whisky and insects? Precisely. This type of tasting personifies what the Society is all about. Our 40th anniversary year is going to be our most adventurous yet.

“‘A Pairing With Legs’ is just one of many unconventional tastings taking place this year as we continue bringing adventurous whisky fans together to explore the flavours of whisky and enjoy interesting sensory experiences.”