International action on climate change

Scotland is committed to playing its full part in the global response to climate change and biodiversity loss. Our international work is guided by our values of justice, fairness and solidarity.

We work with partners across the world to support a fair transition to a net-zero future — one that works for people as well as the planet.

Why international action matters

Climate change is a global problem that needs global solutions. Scotland cannot tackle it alone.

We believe that countries like ours must take responsibility for our share of the problem. We share what we have learned, learn from others, and work together — with governments, businesses, universities, communities and individuals worldwide.

We also advocate for faster global action on cutting emissions and building climate resilience. We champion the need for increased community-led finance for the Global South — the countries least responsible for the climate crisis, but most affected by it.

Our commitment to climate justice

Scotland was among the first countries to put climate justice at the heart of its international climate work.

We recognise that communities in the Global South — including young people and people with disabilities — face the greatest impacts of climate change despite contributing least to the problem.

We established our Climate Justice Fund (CJF) in 2012. We have tripled its funding to £36 million during this parliamentary term.

The fund supports community-led climate action in some of the world's most vulnerable countries.

Find out more about the Climate Justice Fund.

Subnational leadership

Scotland has a vital role to play at a regional level. Up to 80% of the action needed to cut emissions and adapt to climate change happens at state, regional and devolved government level.

Through our leadership of two major international networks — the Regions4 Network and the Under2 Coalition — we are building lasting partnerships and driving climate ambition worldwide.

The Under2 Coalition

The Under2 Coalition is the world's largest network of states, regions and devolved governments committed to cutting emissions in line with the Paris Agreement (PDF). It has 260 member governments, representing 1.75 billion people and more than 50% of the global economy.

Scotland is European co-chair of the Coalition, currently (2026) serving our third term. Our priorities for this term are to:

move from climate ambition to concrete action
ensure that action is fair and just
support members to deliver their climate targets through the Net Zero Futures Policy Forum
increase knowledge sharing through the Just Transition Taskforce and the Next Generation Budgets project

Regions4 Sustainable Development Network

Regions4 is the global network of regional governments for sustainable development. It was founded in 2002 and now represents over 50 regional governments from 25 countries across four continents, covering more than 215 million people.

Scotland has been a member of the Regions4 Steering Committee since June 2022 and became President of the network in June 2024. Our presidential term runs until 2026.

As President, Scotland is leading efforts to:

drive stronger action on climate adaptation and biodiversity
build capacity and share knowledge across member governments
strengthen the voice of regional governments in international climate decisions

Regions4 is particularly valued for its strong representation of regions from the Global South.

Our international commitments

Scotland's international climate work supports and complements our domestic action, including our Climate Change Plan 2026–2040 (November 2025), our Scottish National Adaptation Plan (September 2024), and our Transport Just Transition Plan (February 2025).

Scotland is involved in the following international programmes and organisations:

We use these partnerships to share knowledge on key climate policy issues, including through the Net Zero Futures Policy Forum and Regions4 Communities of Practice.

Information