At the forefront of climate fight
CLIMATE change and the fight for environmental justice has never been so pertinent, and scores of bold Scottish women are at the forefront of fighting this global issue.
From raising awareness of marine conservation to blocking oil and gas supplies and getting disposable vapes banned, Scots are keeping the climate crisis on the agenda.
As part of our International Women’s Day coverage, The National wants to shine a light on just a few of the many women and non-binary campaigners working in the sector or taking their activism to the streets.
THIS IS RIGGED
THE activist group is never far away from the headlines. The group was co-founded by two Scots who credit a “history of civil resistance in Scotland” as inspiration behind their direct action, and their work has been prolific. From repeated interruptions at FMQs, blocking oil supplies from leaving the Ineos refinery in Grangemouth, and stealing food from supermarkets to redistribute, the activists have kept many issues firmly on the agenda.
Co-founder Eilidh McFadden, 21, who is based in Lochaber, said they felt there was a “big gap” in the climate and social justice movement in Scotland that inspired them and others to form the group.
“There seems to be this complacency in Scotland where we think that these issues are all Westminster based and we can’t do anything about that, and it’s just not strictly true,” they said.
“The problems we have are so global and so connected for every single thing that we need change at every single level, and we need every single person who has even a little bit of power to stand up and take ownership over the responsibility we have.”
Fellow co-founder Hannah Bright, 22, who is from Glasgow, cited historic resistance campaigns such as the Red Clydeside, suffragettes and Highland Clearances as inspiration for their call to action.
“It’s less about convincing people that there is a problem and more about just countering these kind of narratives of disempowerment and the lack of ability to actually do anything,” she said.
“Just reminding people that we actually have always fought back, that we still can, and that it’s actually really crucial that we do right now.”
The campaigners are currently calling on the Scottish Government to introduce food hubs for every 500 people in an attempt to radically change how food systems work.
LAURA YOUNG
KNOWN as the “vape crusader”, 27-year-old Young has utilised social media to pursue environmental campaigning, while at the same time studying for a PhD in Dundee.
Young began by using Instagram to document her crusade to reduce plastic in 2018, before later finding her passion project would be to push for a ban on disposable vapes.
It took hold after seeing the impact they had on her local environment, and her posts charting the number of discarded devices she would find on short walks would quickly go viral.
Recently crowned Scottish Influencer of the Year for 2024, Young credits social media as being a key aspect of her campaigning “toolbox”, with some videos raking up millions of views.
“I feel quite proud knowing that I was the person who really was first to call for a ban and brought together these people, and I don’t think it’s showing off to admit that, I think it’s really positive to actually say that,” Young said.
“Also because we’ve managed to have an impact not just here in Scotland, but we managed to get it across the UK, we managed to get something with the four nations approach, and we managed to bring together environment and health, which was really, really key, because quite often we work in silos.”
Young admitted that if she realised how big the campaign would be in her life, she “might have taken a break from the PhD for a bit”.
TAHSEEN JAFRY, GLASGOW CALEDONIAN UNIVERSITY
DIRECTOR of the Centre for Climate Justice at GCU, 56-year-old Jafry is a vocal campaigner for climate justice and links her international work back to Scotland.
The brains behind the university’s Masters in Climate Justice, followed by the creation of a doctorate, the academic told The National she is keen to equip her students with the skills to have a practical influence on policy.
With more than a million people in Scotland living in poverty, Jafry believes climate inequality is having an impact on numerous minority groups across the country.
“There are still a level and a number of people that need to be supported from the impact of flooding,” she adds, arguing that many of the issues around climate injustice remain “hidden and undiagnosed”.
“For me as an academic looking at what’s missing in the landscape, and the current thinking is finding a platform on which we can really pioneer and look at climate justice, actually injustice, in Scotland.”
REBECCA WADE, ABERTAY UNIVERSITY, DUNDEE
THE senior lecturer in engineering was among those chosen to take part in the prestigious Homeward Bound project, where women working in science, technology, maths and engineering (STEM) embarked on a research trip to Antarctica.
After a tough application process, fundraising a lot of money for the trip and the Covid-19 pandemic putting a stop to the initial voyage in 2020, Wade eventually got to head to the southernmost part of the globe in November 2023.
Sailing from Tierra del Fuego, the very south of South America, she spent three weeks on a ship in Antarctic waters, bringing back a wealth of knowledge for her students.
“It was utterly thrilling to be there,” Wade said. “But it was absolutely devastating to have that understanding of the science of what we were actually bearing witness to.
“And then that challenge of well, how do we bring that learning from Antarctica back to Scotland?”
With a background in environmental science and geography, Wade works with civil engineering students and urges them to keep climate in mind as they progress in their careers.
She adds: “Ultimately, those are the individuals or professionals that design, build and operate the infrastructure that makes our economies work that makes our societies work.
“They have a huge role to play in how we do that more sustainably, how we make it easy for people to make choices like sustainable travel, active travel, rather than individual combustion engine cars.”
JESS PEPPER
CREATING an informal network that began in her home village of Dunkeld in Perthshire, but now running worldwide, 48-year-old Pepper is reluctant to take full credit for the “organic” creation of Climate Cafes.
As director of the network – having previously worked in advocacy and policy for groups such as Scottish Environment Link, WWF and the Stop Climate Chaos coalition – Pepper cites the informal nature of the project as key to its success.
“I was just very aware that we weren’t really talking about climate,” she explained, adding that the cafes are often held monthly and have no particular rules, but are a space for communities to discuss local and global issues.
“It became clear that there wasn’t that kind of space anywhere else, so the Climate Cafe was simply creating that space to drink, chat, and act together on climate,” Pepper said.
While every Climate Cafe is unique, Pepper adds that “the thing they have in common is that they’re welcoming, inclusive, accessible and safe spaces”.
CAITLIN TURNER
DESPITE growing up in “landlocked” East Ayrshire, 23-year-old Turner’s love of all things marine led her to putting on numerous hats in the sector.
Currently based in Coatbridge, and having studied marine biology at Stirling University, Turner is a policy officer at the Sustainable Inshore Fisheries Trust (SIFT).
But her proudest work comes as a voluntary trustee for Young Sea Changers Scotland (YSCS), who are trying to influence the Scottish Government’s approach to marine policy. She argues that the marine environment and conservation of it is “frustratingly not featured” at the centre of many discussions about climate.
She said: “Seeing how many young people are so passionate about making a stand for the environment and climate, who for the longest time had been striking from school, and trying to have their voices heard, but being met with a door shut in their face.
“To have them come to us rather than us banging on the door is a significant thing.”
YSCS currently has 15 young people taking part in a training to develop their policy and advocacy skills.