The Scottish Government initiated the Climate Conversations project to encourage discussion about climate change with the Scottish public.  To support this conversation ClimateXChange was asked to develop a framework,  including process design and methodology, for holding conversation on how Scotland can become a low carbon country, as well as highlighting the action people can take now to make this vision a reality.

Together the outputs answer three main questions:

• What is the most appropriate design for a replicable series of public conversations around climate change in Scotland?
• What methodologies and materials should be used during the conversations to ensure objectives are achieved?
• What are the key findings from pilot conversations with the public regarding: public knowledge of, attitudes towards and engagement with climate change; policies to address climate change; and the future transition to a sustainable low carbon society?

The project found that:

• There is very little scepticism about climate change
• People knew enough about climate change to be able to talk about different societal responses
• You don’t need to be a climate expert to have a conversation about climate change
• People really enjoyed taking part in the conversations

Scottish Government have further to the research project designed the ‘How to’ Guide’ as an accessible tool available to all groups, organisations and individuals to use in holding their own conversations.

The findings and guide to holding conversations, including how to record the findings, are presented in four publications:

The research was conducted by Climate Outreach, working with consultants from the Surefoot Effect. Read more about Climate Outreach’s work on their website.

Flooding represents one of the key threats facing Scotland’s natural and built environment, communities and economic activity. The planning system has a crucial role to play in ensuring that people, property, infrastructure, and sensitive environmental assets are free from current and future flood risks.

This project assessed how Scottish local planning authorities are implementing national land use planning policies on flood risk. It focused on the two stages of land-use policy: development planning and development management. 16 Local Development Plans (LDPs) were assessed to determine how local authorities have considered flood risk in developing their local plans. Sample case studies from the same local authorities were assessed to determine how planning policies were applied in practice in relation to planning applications.

The study found that the LDP process is effective in applying national land use planning policies on flooding. However, there are opportunities to improve the efficiency of the process. For example, early consultation with SEPA and applying flood risk assessment methods consistently to inform how land is allocated for development could reduce administrative burden in developing LDPs.

While all of the LDPs examined were consistent with Scottish Planning Policy, the study found that local flooding polices are not consistently being applied through the management of development applications. This has resulted in developments in areas at potentially significant risk of flooding.

The report provides recommendations focused on improving the assessment of flood risk, including the impacts of climate change, as well as prioritising to avoid flood risk when allocating land and managing local developments.

The Climate Change (Scotland) Act 2009 sets a target to reduce Scotland’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 80 per cent by 2050. In addition, the Scottish Government has set a target for 100% of Scotland’s demand for electricity to be met from renewable sources by 2020.

Scottish Government commissioned ClimateXChange to assess the effectiveness of greenhouse gas emission reduction policies in Local Development Plans (LDPs) in promoting the uptake of Low and Zero-Carbon Generating Technologies (LZCGT).

14 Local Authorities have adopted specific Section 3F policies in their Local Development Plans since 2012. Five of these authorities implemented the policies early enough to be in a position to provide sufficient data sets for the analysis in this study.

The Aberdeen region is host to a diverse population of community-based initiatives active in the energy, transport, food, and waste domains.

In 2014, 65 community groups across the City of Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire (the Aberdeen region) in Scotland were surveyed as part of the EU funded TESS project . This report provides a synthesis of that unique dataset. Insights will be relevant for those who are designing or administering funding and support programmes for community-based initiatives, particularly those with an environmental focus.

Extreme weather events can result in significant costs across a range of local authority services. Research indicates that extreme events will increase both in frequency and intensity with a changing climate, so it is critical to explore the cost and benefit of different adaptation responses. This will help decision makers draw the impact of climate change into planning and management processes.

This project is focused on understanding the costs of risk management, and how capturing current costs is a key element in making decisions for the future, e.g. risk management based on climate projections (2040s or 2050s).

First we explored the evidence for weather-related expenditure by Aberdeenshire Council over the past five years. We found that there were financial impacts but that the available data can provide a very limited indication of the true costs. 
Read the report Weather related costs to Aberdeenshire Council

A second phase concentrated on what lessons we could learn from the flood ‘event’ during the winter of 2015/2016. The project explored the costs of dealing with the impact of the flooding, and suggested possible tools to support better informed decision-making. 
Read the report Counting the costs of extreme events – an Aberdeenshire case study

The Climate Change (Scotland) Act 2009 places a duty on all public bodies in Scotland to contribute to climate change mitigation and adaptation when carrying out their functions. This research will inform best practice across local authorities and the broader public sector in Scotland.

Reducing the amount of energy used in Scottish homes is an important part of transitioning to a low carbon economy. It also provides valuable opportunities to reduce household energy bills, improve indoor comfort and increase the security of Scotland’s energy supply.

In the recent Heat Policy Statement (HPS) the Scottish Government announced that it is designating energy efficiency as a National Infrastructure Priority. The cornerstone of this will be Scotland’s Energy Efficiency Programme (SEEP) which will offer support to all buildings in Scotland – domestic and non-domestic – to improve their energy efficiency rating.

This review of energy efficiency interventions includes energy efficiency regulations, schemes, support programmes, incentives and fiscal levers in other European countries, top performing American states and selected countries with relevant experience. The focus of the study is on refurbishment and new-build Building Regulations were therefore excluded.

The study was carried out by consultants Ricardo AEA between January and September 2015.

Over the last 50 years Scotland has seen a significant change in climate – to warmer and wetter weather with more extreme weather events. This poses significant risks to our infrastructure. Yet, we do not have a clear strategy for how adapting our road, rail and energy networks, or our urban and rural built environments should be financed.

We can reduce future expenditure, disruption and damage by planning and implementing actions that increase current resilience and allow us to adapt in the future. But climate change adaptation projects, especially those focussing on longer term climate change, are particularly demanding from a financing point of view in terms of quantifying or monetising the benefits of addressing future climate change.

A new report from the University of Leeds looks at how to improve access to finance mechanisms and how to maximise the contribution of adaptation actions to the local economy. The report finds that the mechanisms currently available to finance projects adapting infrastructure to climate change, like government capital grants, user charges, the public works loan board (PWLB), and grant funding, are under pressure both from cuts to public finance and challenges of accessing traditional private finance.

The report also sets out areas that need further research and where government interventions could remove barriers to finance.

ClimateXChange were involved in initiating the research and organised an event for stakeholders to discuss the finding and challenges the report sets out. 

This paper examines the current position of urban tree management and the extent to which climate change resilience is being addressed.

It provides feedback from interviews with six of the seven Scottish city arboricultural and greenspace officers and their responsiveness to the need for climate change adaptation and resilience building.  It offers reflections on how policy support for the arboricultural and urban forestry sector can be more effective in future.

The main findings are:

• Ageing tree populations and the current and likely future impact of pests and diseases are currently changing attitudes and operations more than climate change
• Storms and recent case law involving human injury/death are increasing the adoption of risk management principles for city trees
• Availability of resources is currently limiting resilience-building strategies, though species diversification and establishment of novel species is taking place
• Scottish cities are showing significant interest in more efficient re-use and marketing of their arboricultural arisings, for timber, firewood, biomass and horticultural uses, though the primary motivation is financial
• There is a need to develop a better collective understanding of the value of trees across local authority departments

Dr Joanne Wade, Association for the Conservation of Energy

Presentation by Dr Joanne Wade, providing a summary of recent, peer reviewed evidence about the impacts of energy efficiency programmes on household energy use. Presented at the Edinburgh Centre for Carbon Innovation on the 19th of May 2015, this presentation offers recommendations for policy action and further research priorities. 

Download presentation 

How do people feel about wind farms when they are given an opportunity to learn more about the topic and consider and discuss it as part of a group?

This unique research project, the most comprehensive of its kind and a world first, asked three groups of people (citizens’ juries) to come up with criteria for decision making about onshore wind farms in Scotland. Despite the diversity of views in the groups, all three juries managed to develop and agree a list of principles, showing that people from very different backgrounds and with varying perspectives can work together through difficult issues and come up with solutions.

Between October 2013 and February 2014 three groups of 15-20 people spent two Saturdays together listening to speakers before being asked to discuss, as a group, the question:

“There are strong views on wind farms in Scotland, with some people being strongly opposed, others being strongly in favour and a range of opinions in between. What should be the key principles for deciding about wind farm development, and why?”

Scottish Planning Policy emphasises the importance of public engagement, requiring that it should be early, meaningful and proportionate. However, to date, deliberative engagement has not been actively used to inform planning policy or decisions in Scotland. This project focussed on onshore wind farm development, and was designed to offer insight into key dynamics in citizen participation and public deliberation – rather than to inform decision-making.

The project report provides the policy and practice community with practical advice about organising and facilitating deliberative public engagement in support of decision-making. It explores how citizens’ knowledge and perspectives evolve during the process. It presents a picture of what the jurors decided matters most to them about wind farm development. It analyses whether three juries, addressing the same topic under similar conditions, generate different outcomes. And it explores the potential role of citizens’ juries in decision-making.

From the start of the juries, through hearing from expert witnesses, and discussing within the groups, we saw how the juries became a school in democracy. The participants enjoyed learning about the issue and really appreciated being asked their opinion in an atmosphere of respect for different views.

The project was overseen by a Stewarding Board comprising representatives from organisations with a range of opinions about wind farm development in Scotland. This Board discussed the jury task, project design, choice of jury locations and choice of ‘expert witnesses’.

The three jury locations where chosen to be of similar size and rural characteristics but with different exposure to wind farm developments:

• One location close to an existing wind farm (Aberfeldy)
• One with a wind farm proposed nearby (Helensburgh)
• A third with no existing or proposed wind farms (Coldstream)

There were a total of 47 jurors: 15 in Coldstream, 14 in Helensburgh and 18 in Aberfeldy. Taken together, the three juries reflected the diverse views and demographics of the Scottish population – i.e. education, gender, age and income. This meant, for example, that the juries brought together three generations to discuss the topic.

Researchers from University of Edinburgh and University of Strathclyde led the project, in collaboration with colleagues at University of West of Scotland, Queen Margaret University, Robert Gordon University and Glasgow University.

Read the news release

Marco Biagi ClimateXChangeTT2 from Sniffer Vimeo on Vimeo.