Our Scotland, Our Future: Public Engagement Strategy for Climate and Nature - FSD

Summary of assessment findings

As a result of the assessment, no fundamental changes will be made to the refreshed Strategy. It is already centred in communicating to all people in Scotland so that they understand the impacts of climate change, encouraging and normalising action across all communities, and giving people a voice in shaping the policies that will affect them. These pillars of the strategy are deemed sufficient to ensure equality of opportunity across Scotland’s diverse population groups.

Care will be taken, however, to ensure that the refreshed PES reflects the varying levels of climate knowledge and understanding (and the widespread low level of understanding of the biodiversity crisis) across Scotland’s population groups and the varying access to opportunities to participate and engage in climate and nature positive action.

It will, for example, acknowledge the barriers that people on low incomes experience in regard to taking action, and the need not just to reach those ‘least engaged’ but to do so in a way that is clear and easy for people to understand.

The Public Engagement Strategy will emphasise the importance of a just and fair transition to net zero and a nature positive future, where all people across Scotland are supported, particularly those with the potential to be negatively impacted by the transition.