Climate Emergency
Current climate projections pose serious threats to both our coastal communities and coastal and marine biodiversity – with physical and chemical changes already taking place such as sea-levels rising, sea temperatures increasing, and oceans becoming more acidic. Many of CCN’s local groups are active in campaigns, and coordinated policy-asks, linked to the Scottish Government’s role in mitigating climate change.
In April 2019, the Scottish Government declared a climate emergency and stated that we have the responsibility as a Nation to tackle this current crisis. This call has been picked up across the world, with Governments, activists, communities and young people joining together to demand real action for change.
CCN support the Communities Call for Climate Action and we believe that community groups across Scotland, whether living inland or along the coast, have a key role to play in tackling the climate crisis. The call for action asks the Scottish Government to harness the potential of our communities to respond to this emergency, to lead and to enable others to take action.
In early 2020, CCN and other members of the Scottish Community Alliance co-produced a letter to the Cabinet Secretary for Environment, Climate Change and Land Reform, expressing concerns from within our respective memberships about the Scottish Government’s current approach towards the community sector’s specific contribution in the fight against the climate emergency. We expect to attend a follow up meeting when possible.
CCN are a member of Scottish Communities Climate Action Network, which acts to “inspire and promote, connect and support community-led action in Scotland to address the Climate Emergency”.
Through their participation in various fora, it is hoped that CCN members can add weight to key asks and messages, as well as share their unique perspective on coastal and marine environmental issues as related to climate change.
The next UN Climate Change Conference (COP 26) is to take place in Scotland, with a rescheduled 2021 date, following postponement due to the global pandemic. CCN hope that this will be an opportunity to put in place some strong and effective action to address the global climate emergency.
