Last week, over hundred people from Tayport and further afield enjoyed a premiere of 2040, an exciting new movie to get a glimpse of what zero carbon Scotland and Tayport could look like in just 20 years.
As we all feel the shock and uncertainty presented by COVID-19, there’s a growing sense that this moment holds the potential for a huge change. There’s a lot of talk about possible futures and how we can build back better. Climate Change Commission, scientific advisory panel for UK governments on climate policy, has urged UK governments to craft climate-resilient COVID-19 recovery plans. Two thirds of citizens around the world agree that climate change is as serious a crisis as COVID-19, and support prioritising investment in low carbon future as a strategy for economic recovery.
2040 movie has allowed us to imagine what such a resilient, fair and climate friendly future may look like and to start conversations about how we may be able to bring it about here in Tayport, while recovering from the shock of the pandemic. The screening was followed by a panel and participant discussion (you can watch the full recording here).
We started off with a panel Q&A with:
- Anna Moss. Anna’s climate change research background stretches from the micro level of soil invertebrate ecology, to the global impacts on international NGOs and corporations. But for the last 8 years she has provided research-led advice to Scottish Government on adapting to climate change- to enable us to understand what actions should be taken; monitor what is being done; and evaluate whether this is ensuring the resilience of Scotland’s environment, communities, infrastructure and economy. She is a Tayport resident, a mum and is involved running Tayport Top Park Group.
- Rhona McCallum. Rhona has lived in Tayport since 1993, and retired from a career in the NHS and Social work in 2011. Being retired has given her the opportunity to become more involved with the Community and she is currently Chair of the Dolphin Centre and Tayport Amateur Dramatic and Musical Society. A keen gardener, Rhona is interested to know how Tayport can contribute to adapting to climate change. Rhona lives with her Westie, Mamie.
- Andrew Allan. Andrew is an Interim director of the UNESCO Centre for Water Law, Policy and Science at the University of Dundee. His areas of expertise include: National legal frameworks for water resources management; climate change adaptation; flooding; irrigation; and stakeholder engagement. He is a dad of three and lives in Tayport with his family.
After the panel Q&A, we split into small groups to discuss which ideas from the movie we would like to adopt in our communities. Here are some of them:
- More food growing and sharing in our community, using public spaces, including allotments/public growing places for people who don’t have their own gardens. It will make local, healthy and fresh food more accessible to those in need and bring us all closer nature. Many people also wanted to see wilder and more biodiverse public spaces (vs manicured lawns). Setting up a local market where local produce can be bought/sold/and excess from local growers shared/swapped. The new Larick centre may be a good place for this.
- Community energy/microgrid scheme where we can store energy generated by solar panels/wind and share it with our neighbours in need. The sharing would be even more important while many people are affected by economic downturn due to COVID-19 lockdown. This may be complicated by the way energy networks are set up in the UK but there is some movement towards community renewable schemes, e.g. a scheme being developed on the James Hutton Institute land in Dundee.
- Slowing down the pace of life and taking time to garden, walk and explore locally. The importance and pleasure of a slower-paced and quieter life has been highlighted by experiences of many of us under lockdown, and there is a worry it may be lost as we emerge into the new normal. Keeping cars off the roads would be helpful here.
- A community dashboard displaying our impact on the environment – it would be an important tool for the school and community organisations to engage around climate change and action.
- Enable children to lead our action for a better future now, and allow them to learn closer to nature and in a more hands on way (learning to grow food, learning outdoors)
- There might have been a couple of mentions of seaweed or even mussel and seaweed farms too – we do live on the coast after all!
There are lots of online 2040 screenings taking place in the UK now and you can join one of them if you missed out on watching the movie with us. We hope it will provide you with great inspiration to step into a better future!
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