Abstractors are being urged to plan ahead as the risk of water scarcity across the east of Scotland remains.
The latest weekly water scarcity report from the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) shows Findhorn has reached Moderate Scarcity with the Dee (Aberdeen) raised to Alert level.
This takes the number of areas in Moderate Scarcity to two; Findhorn and Tyne (Lothian) and the number of Alert levels to eight; Deveron, Ythan, Don (Aberdeenshire), Dee (Aberdeen), Firth of Tay, Firth of Forth, Almond and Tweed catchments.
SEPA publishes weekly water scarcity reports throughout the summer to provide abstractors with up-to-date information on conditions across the country. Reporting is designed to provide advance notice of developing conditions to support sustainable water use and help users plan ahead.
Early Warning means conditions are becoming drier. No action is required at this stage, but abstractors are encouraged to prepare and review water use.
Alert means river water levels are falling and SEPA advises voluntary reductions in non-essential water use by abstractors.
Moderate Scarcity means environmental impact is clear. Action from abstractors is expected to protect rivers and the species that rely on them.
Despite the recent unsettled weather, the eastern coastal areas are experiencing more long-term dry conditions, following on from a dry spring, with wetter conditions experienced in the west.
As river flows are low to very low across eastern areas for this time of year with ground conditions particularly in the east and northeast becoming very dry, we will be contacting local abstractors regarding the situation giving them as much notice as possible to prepare ahead.
SEPA continues to monitor conditions closely through its national water scarcity reporting.
SEPA’s drought risk assessment tool provides up-to-date local information on river flows and potential water scarcity risk to help abstractors monitor conditions and support planning ahead.
Eilidh Johnston, Senior Leader in Compliance, said: “With warm and dry weather continuing in the east of the country, we are now starting to see the impacts of water scarcity with additional areas moving to Moderate Scarcity and Alert level.
“Several eastern catchments are experiencing drier than normal conditions and river flows are low to very low for this time of year there. As a result, there remains a risk of water scarcity developing into summer, particularly across the east, if summer rainfall is lower than normal.
“SEPA’s water scarcity reporting provides abstractors and other water users with advance notice of changing conditions so they can review water use, check equipment is operating effectively and plan ahead if needed.
“We would encourage abstractors to make use of SEPA’s drought risk assessment tools and guidance to help understand local conditions, increase their resilience to the impacts of prolonged dry conditions and support sustainable water use during dry periods.”
Further information on water scarcity levels, guidance and weekly reports is available on SEPA’s website.
There must be a pause on all hyperscale data centre proposals in Edinburgh and East Lothian until the Scottish Government can put guidance in place to ensure there is minimal impact on the climate and local communities, say the Scottish Greens.
There is a wave of proposals currently lodged with councils across Scotland. If every proposal is approved, they would consume up to 6000 megawatts of power.
That equates to 1.5 times more than our entire country uses in a day.
In Edinburgh and East Lothian, 4 proposals have been put forward to the local authorities to build hyperscale data centres.
Without a national strategy in place, and no real definition of what a “green” data centre should look like, there is little in the way of guidance for councils to follow when they are assessing the suitability of these plans.
Scottish Greens MSP Kayleigh Kinross-O’Neill said: “A lot of local people are concerned about the impact that this application would have on our local environment and the community in Lothian.
“It’s time for a halt to all hyperscale developments until there is a national strategy and guidance in place for councils to consider them.
“Developments like this can have a catastrophic environmental impact, taking up far too much water and power. It’s no wonder that local people are so concerned about what it would mean.
“The huge expansion we are seeing is bad for people and planet, and is mainly about enriching giant AI companies.
“Communities around the world have experienced energy price rises as a direct result of similar developments.
“We don’t want the same thing to happen in Edinburgh.”
Plans to plant more trees and increase woodlands across an area home to around half of Scotland’s population has received almost £1 million in new funding.
The Clyde, Fife, Lothians and Forth ‘Climate Forests’ target investment in communities with the fewest trees and greatest climate vulnerability across central Scotland – expanding tree canopy cover by protecting existing woods and planting more.
Established in 2021, Climate Forests are working with local councils, community groups and landowners on projects to plant 35 million trees by 2035.
Backed so far with almost £13 million in Scottish Government funding, around 5 million trees have been planted in this area to capture carbon, protect the environment, increase biodiversity, improve access to nature, and support local communities to become more climate resilient.
Speaking ahead of a parliamentary debate this week on Climate Change, Climate Action Secretary Gillian Martin said: “This latest investment builds on and expands the benefits of Climate Forests to help increase canopy cover in urban and rural areas.
“We want to create greener, healthier, more resilient places where people can live well and connect with nature – offering spaces for people to rest, exercise, and improve their physical and mental health.
“Trees and woodlands do so much for us – from absorbing carbon from the atmosphere and providing habitats for wildlife to helping protect communities from flooding and extreme heat. Increasing tree canopy cover across Scotland’s towns, cities and rural communities will deliver all of these benefits for generations to come.
“This programme will help contribute towards our national woodland creation targets and, indeed, is central to Scotland meeting its climate targets.
2It is also about fairness and we are targeting investment in the communities with the fewest trees and the greatest vulnerability to a changing climate, because everyone deserves to live in a place that is greener, healthier, and more resilient.”
Douglas Worrall, Director Forth Climate Forest said: “The Climate Forests are delighted to receive this Scottish Government funding. As well as creating healthy, liveable communities, both urban and rural, trees are essential in helping to tackle biodiversity loss and climate change.
“Over the coming year we will use the Scottish Government funding to deliver projects across Central Scotland with local people. We will be planting trees in areas where the need is greatest, connecting habitats, and providing multiple benefits for people and wildlife.”
Martin Willcocks, Calais Woods Community Group, Dunfermline said: “Duloch Park was just a blank lifeless canvas of grass sitting there for 20 years whilst development was hurriedly increasing all around. Our community group formed to bring life into the park and support the well-loved ancient woodland next to it.
“The tree planting we have done has been extensive and rewarding, bringing important habitat for nature and biodiversity and creating an attractive and natural setting which will now develop into a prime space where nature and human recreation will coexist in harmony.”
As we take in the fearful effects of the worsening climate crisis and the uncertainty that takes hold of the many challenges we are facing around our planet today, looking ahead to a hopeful future can be a very daunting task.
For this, we find great importance & delight in announcing the return of this year’s Edinburgh Climate Festival, a free festival that aims to celebrate & inspirate climate action in our local communities.
A day that brings together numerous climate related organisations, projects and individuals, all looking to help positively raise awareness & work towards creating a brighter future!
The festival will be taking place at the Edinburgh Meadows, Melville Dr EH9 1ND, on Saturday 27th June 2026, from 12 to 7pm.
During the day, attendees can find a variety of free lively performances, fun workshops, art installations & themed talks, as well as wellbeing activities, facepainting and activities aimed towards younger audiences as we welcome everyone of all ages.
The festival will also be welcoming stallholders that cover topics related to circular economy, mitigation, adaptation, climate education, transport, activism, conservation and more.
As a special feature to this year’s edition is our theme: Intertwined. Following last year’s theme of Root & Rise, the question remains: what makes a forest truly strong, resilient, and nourished?
The answer lies beneath our feet, in mycelium. Mycelium is an underground root-like network of entangled threads of fungi. It creates vast connections between plants and trees serving as a shared resource for nutrients, supporting growth as well as being a magnificent communication highway, sending signals and protecting one another.
The 2026 theme embodies this ethos – supporting connection between ourselves, those around us and nature, expanding from local action to global solidarity.
A reminder that fundamentally, we are all nature.
Facing climate challenges alone can feel overwhelming. But when we recognise how deeply intertwined we are, we also recognise our shared strength.
Through collective action we can exchange ideas, re-energise, and cultivate meaningful change. Whether you’re beginning your sustainability journey or deeply rooted in climate work, you can join the festival to build a hopeful and connected community – forming a vibrant, intertwined network.
With the aim to become more sustainable as an event itself, this year the festival is also promoting different initiatives in hopes to achieve better waste reduction & improve its practices overall.
A few to highlight, is their additional single use packaging fee that will be implemented by all food vendors as well as a free raffle that aims to encourage attendees to bring their own containers, rewarding their commitment by offering a chance to win one of three prizes (which are valued at 60, 50 and 40 pounds).
Franciele Sobierai, the ECF Event Coordinator said: “The climate crisis can be daunting, leaving us feeling powerless. However, when we intertwine, work together, and support one another, we can accomplish far more.
“This is the message the Edinburgh Climate Festival aims to spread — encouraging community-driven climate action and solidarity to tackle the climate emergency.”
Scott Davidson, Deputy Director for Social Responsibility and Sustainability and Head of Sustainability at the University of Edinburgh, said: “It’s a privilege to be the Climate Champion Partner for this year’s festival.
“As climate projections become more severe, society is increasingly in a race between opportunity and dire outcomes. The University of Edinburgh is committed to playing its part in this race.
“Our sector-leading regenerative sustainability strategy ensures all students have access to meaningful education on climate and nature, and our research drives action in the circular economy, ecological regeneration and in the transition to renewables, to name just a few.
“Supporting the Festival recognises the importance we place on supporting our local community too, and our role in creating a more sustainable future for Edinburgh and beyond.”
The attractions and activities will include various artwork, free workshops, such as yoga, musical performances from Àirdan Band, SNR, Fava Beats, a circular economy fashion show, an energetic Ceilidh & much more! Don’t miss this opportunity to engage, learn, and celebrate our collective efforts towards a sustainable future!
Confirm your presence on the event here, with the option to give a donation here.
The Edinburgh Climate Festival is brought to you by Edinburgh and Lothians Regional Equality Council (ELREC) & Networking Key Services (NKS), through the Communities’ Reduce Reuse & Recycle (C3R) Project.
The festival is funded by The National Lottery Community Fund’s Climate Action Fund and is supported by the University of Edinburgh and in partnership with Caledonian Horticulture.
Peacock voted Britain’s Favourite Butterfly in first-ever poll
THE nation has spoken and crowned the Peacock Britain’s Favourite Butterfly in a landmark poll. Wildlife charity Butterfly Conservation has revealed that the colourful Peacock has beaten off fierce competition from a colourful cast of species to take the top spot as Britain’s Favourite Butterfly.
Topping the first-ever vote to find the nation’s champion, the garden favourite beat 59 other butterflies to claim the highly coveted title, in a vote that saw over 20,000 votes cast across the UK between 15 May – 7 June.
The top five was a rainbow of colour, with the Orange-tip coming a close second, Red Admiral third, Holly Blue in fourth, and the bright yellow Brimstone coming in fifth. But ultimately, the stunning Peacock, with its eye-catching and instantly recognisable beauty, stole the nation’s hearts.
Butterfly Conservation’s Head of Engagement, Kate Merry, said: “The response to Britain’s Favourite Butterfly has been absolutely wonderful, and we’re not surprised. It’s clear that people up and down the country love butterflies of all shapes, sizes and colours, and voted in their thousands for their favourites.
“The Peacock is a worthy winner, it’s a true showstopper and a species that I bet a lot of us picture when we think of butterflies. It’s been really special seeing people get so passionate about their favourites and throw their support behind them!
“Now we can’t wait to see how many Peacocks are spotted up and down the country in this summer’s Big Butterfly Count.”
The result comes at a critical moment for the UK’s butterflies. In 2024 Butterfly Conservation declared a butterfly emergency after numbers recorded during its Big Butterfly Count fell to their lowest ever.
Now the charity is calling on everyone, everywhere to take part in this year’s Big Butterfly Count between Friday 17 July – Sunday 9 August to help conservationists get an updated picture of how Britain’s most common butterflies are faring.
The winner – a showstopping garden icon
The Peacock, Britain’s official favourite, is an iconic butterfly. This showstopper is instantly recognisable with its striking colours and stand-out eye-spots, a remarkable evolutionary defence mechanism designed to ward off predators many times its own size.
It is a regular visitor to gardens and green spaces across the whole of the UK, particularly where patches of nettles can be found as they are its caterpillars’ favourite foodplant.
The top five – a rainbow of joy across the country
Completing the top five in the vote to find Britain’s Favourite Butterfly are four species that between them create a kaleidoscope of colours and show why Brits love butterflies so much.
In second place, the Orange-tip is a worthy runner up, with its glowing white wings and vivid tangerine tips in the males, this uplifting species is a sure sign of spring and that warmer summer days aren’t far away.
Taking third is the Red Admiral whose striking jet-black wings, bold red bands and white spotted tips make it one of the most iconic species in the UK. A long-distance migrant, it travels all the way from North Africa to flutter around UK gardens each year, although it is now commonly sticking around through the winter, a sign of our warming climate.
In fourth, the fairy-like Holly Blue, which counts British icons Dame Joanna Lumley and Geri-Halliwell Horner amongst its fans. Its powder-blue wings are a shimmering delight when spotted in gardens, this species has been steadily spreading northwards in recent decades, bringing its appealing beauty to gardens and hedgerows across more of the country than ever before.
And rounding out the top five, the Brimstone, whose sunshine-yellow wings may have given all butterflies their name – the original butter-coloured fly, whose appearance is often heralded as the first sign of spring.
The Peacock, Red Admiral, Holly Blue and Brimstone, along with 16 other butterflies and day-flying moths, can be recorded as part of this summer’s Big Butterfly Count in July and August.
Butterfly Conservation’s Big Butterfly Count is the world’s largest butterfly survey, and this year it carries greater urgency than ever. Conservationists are hoping that a surge in public participation in 2026 will both improve the data picture and help galvanise support for butterfly-friendly habitats across the UK.
Kate Merry said:“Taking part in the Big Butterfly Count couldn’t be easier, simply spend 15 minutes in any outdoor space and count the butterflies and day-flying moths you see and submit your sightings to help build our interactive map.
“This information will help conservationists to see how some of our more-common species are faring, which in turn helps to build a wider picture of how all butterflies and moths are doing. It’s easy, fun for all the family, and a great excuse to get outside and experience the simple joy of spotting butterflies.”
This year’s Big Butterfly Count takes place from Friday 17 July – Sunday 9 August. Simply download the free app, spend 15 minutes in any sunny spot and record the number and types of butterflies spotted.
Join us Saturday, June 27th for this year’s climate festival at the Edinburgh Meadows from 12 – 7pm Come along to enjoy one of our many free performances, workshops, talks and art installations as well as the festival’s stalls and vibrant atmosphere!
Creating inspirational outreach to engage children and young people with the natural world has brought international recognition for Edinburgh’s Eve Armstrong.
School visits around the country, virtual lessons, and a series of videos have won her the Botanic Garden Conservation International (BGCI) 2026 Marsh Award for education in botanic gardens.
Since 2023 Eve, an Education Outreach Officer at Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh, funded by The National Lottery Heritage Fund, has built up an extensive Scotland-wide outreach programme. She has engaged with over 7,000 pupils, by visiting schools from the Borders to Aberdeen and the Outer Hebrides.
In addition, she has reached a further 13,000 pupils in live streaming and enabling virtual visits to the research institute’s Glasshouses, Herbarium, Plant Nursery and Herbology room, as well as the Garden itself.
These interactive experiences have beamed into classrooms in 23 of Scotland’s 32 local authorities. Along the way, Eve has enthused primary and secondary age pupils on topics ranging from Rainforests to Scottish Native Plants and Botanic Careers.
Amy McDonald, Project Engagement Manager, nominated Eve for the award. She explained: “Eve always goes the extra mile to share the joy and importance of plants. The enthusiastic feedback we receive shows that pupils and teachers love her approach and session content.
“She always finds innovative and creative ways to connect with pupils in-person and virtually. Her videos have seen her don waders to film in a pond and borrow an infrared camera to map the heat emitted from a magnificent Amorphophallus titanum.
“Many of her lessons encourage young people to think about what actions they could take to conserve biodiversity – from looking after the natural spaces around their home, school, or local area, to lobbying adults to take action.”
As well as professional recognition, Eve receives £1,000 in prize money.
She said: “I am very fortunate to be in the position of working with children and young people right around the country. They are the future guardians of our planet and the starting point for them should be about having fun, learning about the vast number of positive experiences they can have by engaging with plants.
“We need their enthusiasm. At a time when 40 per cent of all known species are in danger of extinction, the determination of the next generation can make massive changes for the better in combating the impact of the biodiversity crisis and climate emergency. To inspire a sense of wonder in the natural world turns out to be fun and inspiring for me as well as them.”
Ahead of Open Farm Sunday’s 20 anniversary, new research by organisers, LEAF (Linking Environment And Farming), reveals deep-rooted public support for farmers who produce food while protecting nature.
Families across the country have the chance to visit one of over 250 farms taking part in Open Farm Sunday on 7 June, to discover the world of farming, make new connections and explore the vital links between food production, farming and nature.
The survey of more than 2,000 people found that 93% believe it is important for the UK to maintain a strong level of food production capacity in an increasingly uncertain world.
At the same time, 89% agreed that protecting nature on farms, including healthy soils, flood defences and biodiversity, is essential for long-term food production, while 71% said farmers should focus on producing food while also protecting nature.
The findings highlight the importance of helping people see, first-hand, what sustainable farming looks like beyond the supermarket shelf. On Open Farm Sunday, farms of different sizes and sectors open their gates, giving visitors the chance to ask questions and discover how wildlife, soils, water, technology and food production are all connected.
Annabel Shackleton, Open Farm Sunday Event Manager, said: “Open Farm Sunday is a wonderful day of discovery. Families can immerse themselves in a world they don’t usually see.
“It’s an opportunity to see sustainable farming in action, not as an idea on a label, but as something real, practical and happening every day. This research shows people care deeply about food security and about nature, and farmers are working hard to deliver both.
“For 20 years, Open Farm Sunday has helped build trust and connection between the public and farming. This anniversary year is a wonderful opportunity for children and adults alike to engage with farming in an interactive, fun and inspiring way while seeing how their everyday food choices can help support a more sustainable future.”
Open Farm Sunday is one of the farming industry’s leading public engagement programmes. It offers a unique opportunity for visitors to meet farmers face-to-face, get up close to machinery, livestock and crops, and learn how farmers care for the land, take pride in their work, and use bright ideas to grow good food.
This year’s campaign encourages people to turn food labels into lived experiences by visiting a farm, meeting farming champions and discovering how nature and innovation work together.
A day after World No Tobacco Day, and a full year after the ban on selling single-use vapes in Scotland came into force, environmental and health organisations and campaigners are calling for further action to protect people and our environment.
While a positive decrease in littered vapes has been recorded in Scotland, alongside a 9% decrease across the UK, there is little data available to identify whether the ban has helped reduce youth vaping. And, the ongoing challenges of disposing of vapes safely, capturing precious resources via recycling, alongside tackling the ever present and harmful issue of smoking-related litter remains.
Climate Action Secretary Gillian Martin said: “Before taking action on disposable vapes, it was estimated that over half of disposable vapes were incorrectly disposed of each year in Scotland – creating a fire risk and littering our beautiful environment.
“These findings are a welcome demonstration of the success the single-use vape ban has had in its first year in tackling the threat they pose to our environment as well as to our public health.”
Alongside the Marine Conservation Society, health charity ASH Scotland and environmental scientist, campaigner and ambassador to our charity Laura Anderson (Young), we first liaised with Scottish Ministers to call for a ban on the sale of single-use vapes in 2022 after highlighting how vapes undermine the principles of a circular economy, cause harm to Scotland’s environment and damage people’s health.
Now a year-on from the ban the coalition is calling for further action, to build on the momentum and take further steps to address smoking-related litter and health impacts in children and young people – you can read the letter we sent to Scottish Ministers – calling for more action – below.
The coalition will continue to work collaboratively to tackle vapes and smoking related litter and build on its commitment to a cleaner, healthier Scotland.
THE LETTER READS:
Cabinet Secretary for Climate Action and Rural Affairs Minister for Mental Wellbeing, Public Health, Sport, Alcohol and Drugs Scottish Government St Andrew’s House Edinburgh EH1 3DG 21st May 2026
Dear Ministers,
We would like to take this opportunity to congratulate you on your appointments as Cabinet Secretary for Climate Action and Rural Affairs, and Minister for Mental Wellbeing, Public Health, Sport, Alcohol and Drugs. As a coalition of organisations and individuals working to protect and improve Scotland’s environmental and public health, we look forward to working with you on tobacco and nicotine related litter.
Marking progress: disposable vapes ban anniversary
As we approach the anniversary of Scotland’s ban on single-use disposable vapes, we wanted to recognise the brilliant cross government working that led to the legislation coming into force, and the role Scotland played in pioneering the introduction of the ban
Laura Anderson (nee Young), also known as Less Waste Laura, is an environmental campaigner and a signatory to this letter. She catapulted the issue of littered single-use vapes to the forefront of public awareness in 2022. Since then, she has inspired politicians, charities and councils to take action to tackle Scotland’s fastest growing litter item.
The Marine Conservation Society, Keep Scotland Beautiful and ASH Scotland worked closely with Laura and others to raise awareness of this issue and call for the ban on both environmental and public health grounds which came into force on the 1st June 2025.
The ban has been an important step in raising awareness of, and tackling litter that pollutes our landscapes, communities and marine environment. Early indications in litter data from Keep Scotland Beautiful and the Marine Conservation Society show a decline in littered single-use vapes.
Initial Source to Sea litter data from the Marine Conservation Society demonstrates a 9% decrease in the presence of vapes across the UK.
Keep Scotland Beautiful has seen a decrease in the percentage of sites recording a presence of littered vapes – with vapes found on just 5% of Scottish sites.
As there has been no robust data about children’s use of vapes since the 2021/22 Health and Wellbeing Census, it is currently not possible to identify whether the ban on single-use vapes has been impactful in tackling youth vaping.
The ongoing challenge of smoking-related litter
Smoking-related litter — particularly cigarette butts — continues to be one of the most commonly discarded items in Scotland’s streets, green spaces and coastlines. Keep Scotland Beautiful auditors counted almost 20,000 cigarette butts nationally in 2025/2026.
Marine Conservation Society Beachwatch data from 2025 highlighted over 2000 smoking related litter items were found on Scottish beaches and Keep Scotland Beautiful found 60% of sites nationally were polluted by cigarette butts. These contain plastics and harmful chemicals that persist in the environment, pollute waterways and pose risks to wildlife.
Cigarette filters do not reduce health harm but mislead people who smoke into perceiving cigarettes to be safer and discourage attempts to quit smoking.
In the recent passing of the Tobacco and Vapes Act, which had a four nations approach, and the associated Legislative Consent Motions, we were pleased to see the extension of provisions to ban some or all cigarette filters in the future. Local authorities, communities and volunteers bear a significant burden in clearing this waste, yet prevention remains the most effective and sustainable solution.
Opportunities for further action
We believe there is a clear opportunity to build on the momentum of the single use vape ban and take further steps to address smoking-related litter.
We believe the following steps would help to achieve this:
1. Introduce an Extended Producer Responsibility scheme (EPR) for tobacco and nicotine waste not covered by market restrictions. 2. Increase awareness and tighten up the enforcement of existing Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) and the Waste Batteries Regulations for producers, distributors and retailers of vapes including disposal and recycling. 3. Ban the sale and manufacture of single-use cigarette filters which offer no health benefits and exacerbate environmental damage. 4. Require businesses to report on the number of vapes (as a percentage sold) that are returned for recycling under WEEE. 5. Routinely publish robust data on children in Scotland’s use of tobacco and nicotine products.
Taking forward these measures would deliver clear environmental, social and economic benefits—supporting cleaner communities, healthier ecosystems, and reduced clean-up costs.
A shared ambition
Our organisations share a commitment to a cleaner, healthier Scotland. We would welcome the opportunity to meet with you and your officials to discuss how we can work collaboratively to tackle vapes and smoking-related litter and build on Scotland’s leadership in this area.
We are planning on issuing a press release on Wednesday 27th May focusing on this statistical information and our collaborative asks, under embargo for 1st June. We invite comments from both of you to include to highlight the successes and further opportunities.
We wish you every success, and look forward to engaging with you in the months ahead.
Yours sincerely,
Less Waste Laura Marine Conservation Society Keep Scotland Beautiful ASH Scotland
Edinburgh-based community research projects receive up to £5000 funding
Projects based at Lauriston Farm Cooperative and the Scottish Youth Parliament
Part of Healthy Planet, Healthy People awards administered by Royal Society of Edinburgh and Williamson Trust
Community groups in Edinburgh have received a share of over £339K as part of the Healthy Planet, Healthy People project run by the Royal Society of Edinburgh and the Williamson Trust.
These community research funding awards enable and encourage knowledge exchange and collaborative research practices amongst and between local communities. The resulting findings and outputs are often scalable, producing valuable insights that can be used by similar groups working in other areas of the country and beyond.
The Scottish Youth Parliament (SYP) has been awarded almost £5000 to run a youth-led research programme into young people of colour’s safe access to green spaces. Through this project, theSYP aims to challenge the structural barriers faced by young people of colour when accessing natural spaces and provide evidence and tangible actions to decision-makers on what needs to change.
Daniela Onyewuenyi MSYP, board member of the Scottish Youth Parliament, said: “We are so lucky that in Scotland our natural landscape, no matter how big or small, is full of beauty.
“However, there are many barriers to access these spaces. This is why as a working group we decided to look at how young people of colour access those spaces or, on the contrary, why they feel they can’t.”
Rhyze Mushrooms, based at Lauriston, were awarded £5000 to test the performance of a variety of different composts that can be made using business waste, such as coffee chaff, agricultural waste and food scraps.
Working with local food businesses, the Rhyze Mushrooms team will explore how vermicomposting can prevent business waste from ending up in landfill by transforming it into high-quality soil improvers that enhance the health, yield, and nutrition of crops.
Vermicomposting is the process of using worms to consume organic waste and convert it into nutrient-rich compost.
Roxy Minter, member of the Rhyze cooperative, said: “Rhyze is a community-led, Edinburgh-based workers cooperative specialising in transforming waste into food and soil amendments.
“We are delighted to have been awarded this grant by the RSE and Williamson Trust. With this support, we will run a first-of-its-kind trial in our worm farm: to compare whether and how the castings produced by composting worms vary according to what they are fed. This will help us to understand whether some varieties of castings benefit particular crops over others.”
The Seeds of Change project will support the development of the Scottish Seed Hub; a co-operative of growers based at the Edinburgh Agroecology Co-operative CIC in Lauriston.
The group has been awarded £5000, and are aiming to increase the production and dissemination of locally-adapted, open-pollinated seeds grown using optimal agroecological practices.
By improving access to seeds suited to this country’s climate, the Hub hopes to enhance the biodiversity, and resilience of Scotland’s food system.
Lisa Houston of the Scottish Seed Hub said: “The Scottish Seed Hub has been created by a group of Scottish agroecological mixed vegetable farms to increase the growth, sharing and selling, of open pollinated bio-regionally adapted seeds.
“The founding growers are delighted to receive support through the Catalyst award to undertake a participatory action research project to help develop an organisational framework to guide the Scottish Seed Hub’s formalisation and growth to help us grow, and create lasting impact towards seed sovereignty in Scotland.”
A total of £5000 has been awarded to a Scotland-wide project “Conifers aren’t just for Christmas”, run by conifer expert Jennie Martin in collaboration with Scottish Forestry and the Royal Botanical Gardens in Edinburgh.
She will create a simple and accessible field guide to conifers in Scotland, hoping to kick-start a more conifer-literate society amongst forest school leaders, ecological surveyors, wilderness guides, and nature lovers alike.
Jennie Martin MSc FLS Ethnobotany, Conservation, Botanical Literacy, said: “Conifers are vital to our landscapes, ecosystems, and climate, yet they are often overlooked due to the challenge of identifying them.
“I am extremely grateful to The Royal Society of Edinburgh and The Williamson Trust for the Healthy Planet, Healthy People: Catalyst Award, which will enable the creation of an accessible field guide to common UK and Irish conifers.
“This grant will support people to become more conifer literate by recognising and understanding these remarkable trees more effectively.”
First initiated in 2023, Healthy Planet, Healthy People Awards are now offered under two strands – Catalyst Awards and Change Awards.
Catalyst Awards are designed to enable community-led research across any discipline that promotes the health of individuals by fostering healthy communities, environments, and food quality and supply. These awards offer up to £5000 to pilot a project. This year a total of £99,250 has been awarded to 20 projects across Scotland.
Change Awards are designed to support standout projects – that previously received Catalyst funding – with major funding to grow and scale their work. This year four projects in the Orkney islands, Isle of Lewis, Cupar and Kirkcaldy have been awarded a total of £240,217 between them.
Professor David Salt FRSE, Chair of the Williamson Trust, said: “As this community-led work continues to grow there can be no doubt communities across Scotland can build local solutions to ongoing challenges to our environment, our communities and our food.
This round we have projects spanning seed saving, community growing, fermentation and composting to coppicing, tree identification, accessing green space, transhumance and repair café. An amazing array of projects.
“The Trust hopes that with these new awards we continue to build a movement of committed people to find solutions to the challenges faced by local communities, and that these solutions can have wider impact.”
Royal Society of Edinburgh Vice President, Research, Professor Anne Anderson OBE FRSE added: “This marks the third successful round of Healthy Planet, Healthy People: Catalyst Awards, which were introduced to expand the type of research the RSE supports.
“We are also very pleased to announce the first recipients of the Healthy Planet, Healthy People: Change Awards; a new development of the Healthy Planet, Healthy People Programme, which extends the support offered to grassroots groups and demonstrates the Society’s commitment to empowering community-driven research focused on positively impacting sustainability, health, and community resilience.
“I congratulate all those awarded under both schemes, and I look forward to following their progress and achievements over the coming year.”
Come along to enjoy one of our many free performances, workshops, talks and art installations as well as the festival’s stalls and vibrant atmosphere!
