Climate Funding Milestone Reflects Growing Environmental Action
Foundation Scotland recently marked a meaningful milestone, surpassing £1 million in grants awarded to climate and environmental projects across Scotland.
This signals the convergence of more communities driving forward more projects in response to local climate and environmental challenges and more donors wanting to support their efforts. More broadly it demonstrates Foundation Scotland’s commitment to contribute to the charitable sector’s burgeoning efforts and investments aimed at tackling climate change through supporting community-led initiatives at different scales.
From the Scottish Borders to the Highlands, groups are implementing projects addressing the climate emergency.
Foundation Scotland’s grants over the past year alone have supported over 40 community endeavours pursuing environmental sustainability in the form of activity like renewable energy, climate advocacy, active travel or local food growing.
Communities are certainly responding to Scottish Government’s ambitious emissions reduction targets for net zero status by 2045, and recognise how Scotland’s wealth of natural resources also face growing threats in parallel to the climate emergency.
But while charitable climate funding has expanded worldwide, it still comprises a mere 2% of total foundation giving globally.1
Environmental advocates emphasize the urgent need to accelerate resources supporting climate action to meet pressures presented by the climate crisis.
As a leader in responsive community funding for nearly 25 years, Foundation Scotland recognises this impactful giving milestone, and which represents 2% of our distribution since 2021.
But we also recognise the vast work still ahead for ourselves, the third sector in Scotland and the wider UK.
Looking ahead, Foundation Scotland will also be more actively promoting flora and fauna projects under its climate initiative umbrella. From wildlife rewilding efforts and boosting plant pollination to peatland restoration, a wider range of funding programmes we run will now more actively support a community led projects that protect biodiversity and promote nature-based solutions to combat climate change across Scotland. This is a significant change for Foundation Scotland in response to the climate emergency and its own maturing as an organisation but which historically often excluded ‘fauna and flora’ projects from many of its funding programmes.
Now many of our funding programmes can offer crucial support for groups ready to take action in the area of environmental protection or enhancement. We aim to keep pace with Scotland’s net zero goals through supporting activity that prioritises locally-grown solutions that steward our valuable natural resources while stimulating green economic opportunities.
Ultimately, Scotland needs all hands-on deck to answer the climate call. From small volunteer projects to ambitious renewable infrastructure, dynamic ideas are sprouting in neighbourhoods across Scotland. We encourage any groups or enterprises pursuing environmental sustainability to learn more and discover our Projects for People and Planet resource. Because only by also nurturing and investing in Scotland’s natural capital will we be able to support Scotland’s communities to truly flourish.
Mercedes Jones and Rachel Searle