Scotland

Carbon Literacy in Scotland

Scotland has set a target of net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2045. To achieve this target, communities, businesses and organisations across all sectors will need to play a significant part in the transition to a low carbon Scotland.

Carbon Literacy provides knowledge and skills around the climate crisis, and what they can do about it, helping individuals and organisations to play their part in Scotland’s drive for net-zero.

Keep Scotland Beautiful

Keep Scotland Beautiful is The Carbon Literacy Project’s official partner in Scotland and has been delivering certified Carbon Literacy training since 2016. To date, it has supported over 700 people to become certified as Carbon Literate. The University of Edinburgh, the Development Trusts Association Scotland, Edinburgh Zoo and Regional Equality Councils are just some of the organisations that have benefited from their training.

Keep Scotland Beautiful provides environmental campaigns, services and practical initiatives that help Scotland with its environmental ambitions and problems. Their activities focus on Climate Change, Sustainable Development Education, Local Environmental Quality, Sustainability and Environmental Services.

For further information or to enquire about Carbon Literacy training through Keep Scotland Beautiful, contact aoife.hutton@keepscotlandbeautiful.org

Projects

Climate Ready Classrooms

Climate Ready Classrooms supports young peoples’ call for climate action and works in partnership with their schools and communities to act on climate change.

As part of the Scottish Government’s commitment to reduce Scotland’s emissions, they have invested £300,000 to expand the Climate Ready Classrooms initiative. This scheme, delivered by Keep Scotland Beautiful and accredited by The Carbon Literacy Project, provides a one-day Carbon Literacy training course tailored specifically towards young people (as well as their teachers, headteachers, CLD practitioners and youth and children’s workers), enabling them to develop their knowledge of climate change, its causes and effects, and live more sustainably both at home, at school and within their local area. Thanks in part to this funding, it’s hoped that the programme will be rolled out to over 5,000 young people in Scotland, and approximately half of all Scottish secondary schools, across the next two years.

‘This brilliant experience has inspired me to change/alter my action to lower my carbon footprint and to spread awareness among my peers to hopefully inspire them to take action just like me. I highly recommend anyone who is given the opportunity to take part in Climate Ready Classrooms to do so, so you can be inspired just like I have.’ – Brandon Lei (S6), Lornshill Academy, Clackmannanshire

Engaging with the Climate Ready Classrooms Initiative supports schools to lower their carbon footprint, which can save both money and resources. The Project also instils a school-wide climate action framework, generating practical hands-on learning experiences to young people and facilitating the development of STEM and workforce employability skills. Participating schools receive an accredited certificate of Carbon Literacy, which can be used to support applications for an Eco-Schools Scotland Green Flag. Learn more about the Climate Ready Classroom programme for secondary schools.

Climate Challenge Fund

The Climate Challenge Fund (CCF) (managed by Keep Scotland Beautiful), is the Scottish Government fund aimed at supporting low-carbon projects in communities across Scotland. The CCF supports community-led organisations to tackle climate change by running projects that reduce local carbon emissions. Previously funded projects have helped communities to reduce their reliance on car travel, cut waste, grow local food and lower energy use in homes and community buildings.

To support this programme, Keep Scotland Beautiful developed a Carbon Literacy for Communities course to be made available to all fund recipients. We were delighted when Carbon Literacy was made a main aim and a requirement for all future funded CCF projects in order to maximise the chances of informed and effective community projects and maximise the impact and effectiveness of the Fund.

“Carbon Literacy gives people the knowledge to speak with confidence about climate change to their peers, friends and neighbours, which is so important in shifting attitudes and raising awareness. It also allows participants to develop a broad, instinctive understanding of where carbon emissions come from, and know what steps they and others can take to reduce them. We have delivered training with communities from inner-city Glasgow to the Western Isles and the strength of the Carbon Literacy approach is that it allows participants to identify the challenges and opportunities for low carbon living that are most appropriate for where they live.

“Through the CCF, Keep Scotland Beautiful has been supporting community-led climate action since 2008, and an important part of this has been helping people make the connections between the positive local projects they are involved in and action on climate change. We wanted to make sure that those leading community projects have the confidence to talk about climate change, and have a good understanding of the ways that everyday choices can have a positive impact on carbon emissions – Carbon Literacy ensures this.” – Claire Gibson, Capacity Building Officer, Keep Scotland Beautiful.

Learn more about the Climate Challenge Fund.

Training for Organisations

Bespoke training for organisations

To help organisations, businesses and individuals to start their journey into the low-carbon world, Keep Scotland Beautiful offers bespoke Carbon Literacy training. Keep Scotland Beautiful can assist organisations and businesses to develop comprehensive staff training using a Carbon Literacy model. The programme will be designed to raise awareness of the core elements of Carbon Literacy, as well as engage staff in relation to the organisation’s emission reduction aims and the low carbon behaviours and actions required to achieve these changes across the business. Following successful completion of the course requirements, learners will be eligible for a certificate of Carbon Literacy.

Learn more about how being a Carbon Literate Organisation and having a Carbon Literate workforce can benefit your business.

Carbon Literacy for Interested Organisations

Keep Scotland Beautiful runs regular Carbon Literacy for Interested Organisations courses at their offices in Stirling. These courses are designed to provide learners with the opportunity to become certified as Carbon Literate and to see first hand the benefits that a Carbon Literate workforce could bring to your organisation.

Training dates can be viewed here.