The power of passionate people keeping Scotland beautiful

Communities across Scotland are taking positive action every day for our environment and as part of our showcase contribution to Scotland’s Climate Week our Senior Community Initiatives Officer Juliette Camburn focuses on how members of our Climate and Nature Friendly Communities Network are already ‘climate ready together’. 

In this short blog she explores how volunteers across Scotland are positively contributing to a cleaner and greener country as she celebrates the achievements and progress of two very different entrants – our capital and a coastal community in Angus – both with the same motivator. A healthier, more beautiful, resilient, sustainable and connected community.

Through our Climate and Nature Friendly Communities Network we connect people and provide free mentoring, inspiring those who are as passionate as us to improve the places we all love.  But what drives individuals and community groups to dedicate hundreds of thousands of volunteer hours each year to improve their own neighbourhoods?

Well, for some it is that they want to live and work in more beautiful places - public polling that we are soon to publish has found that 66% of people are embarrassed by levels of litter in their neighbourhood.

For some they want to inject nature into barren concrete jungles, and for others, it is about connecting with people from all backgrounds in their community to bolster their own health and wellbeing.   For others, combating climate change motivates action. 

What I know from working with more than 200 groups from the Scottish Borders to the Western Highlands – all members of the Climate and Nature Friendly Communities Network – is that the brilliant work they do every day to make their cities, towns and villages clean, vibrant, appealing and nature friendly also makes them immensely proud of their spaces and places.

The unwavering commitment I see day in and day out of these people, and the 40 trained volunteers who visit each group and provide mentoring support, to improve their neighbourhoods is an inspiration to me, and many others.

Solutions to the big-ticket environmental crises come in different guises and I am constantly inspired by the stories I hear from the volunteers I work with across Scotland about what they are doing locally.

Sometimes the most effective ways of tackling major challenges start simply and then scales up.  But the long-term impacts can be immeasurable.

Take two of the 2025 Beautiful Scotland winners for example.  Our capital city – Edinburgh and a small coastal community, East Haven.  Both this year won Discretionary Awards for their commitment to conserving habitats, raising awareness of local biodiversity and encouraging sustainability.  Some of their actions are simple, others major collaborative achievements, but it just shows that climate action and nature restoration comes in all shapes and sizes.

East Haven Together  scooped the Jim Murdie Award for Sustainability - presented to the community entrant that demonstrates best practice in sustainability.  The members of the group, set up in 2014, started when the area was described as dirty and rundown.  They gathered to remove litter from the beach, started to upcycle into artwork to display around the village, and recorded data to help influence policy.  But their ambitions grew, and now the group have constructed a pillar entrance to the beachfront enabling access for all, have taken over the management of the toilets, emptying bins and maintaining street furniture.   Additionally, members have been monitoring of wildlife - recording more than 600 species in the area, have supported local high school pupils to carry out field surveys on the coast and measure the dunes.   The group use peat free compost in all their work and encourage local residents to do the same, they also use coffee grounds from the local Co-op, compost as much as possible and use water butts to harvest rainwater from the toilet block roof amounting to approximately 19,000 litres being collected and reused per year. 

Edinburgh Inspiring Capital, a partnership between City of Edinburgh Council, The Royal Caledonian Horticultural Society and The Royal Botanic Gardens Edinburgh, won the Garden for Life Biodiversity Award at the 2025 Beautiful Scotland Awards.

The Garden for Life Biodiversity Award was won on the back of a dedicated commitment to conserving and raising awareness of local biodiversity. The partnership demonstrated a strong commitment to supporting and enhancing biodiversity around the city, working successfully with a wide range of partner organisations and voluntary groups to achieve this. 

The ranger service in Holyrood Park has focused on conserving species such as Maiden Pink and Sticky Catchfly where the volcanic basalt rock provides an excellent habitat. While, working in partnership with ‘friends’ of’ groups and Bug Life, the rangers have also created ‘stepping stones’ across the city for the naturally rare Northern Brown Argus butterfly, by planting up its main nectar source, Common Rock Rose, in pockets in different sites.

I also loved hearing about the hugely significant impact that a more relaxed mowing programme at sport pitches and recreations spaces has had on biodiversity in the city - pollinator corridors have now shown a significantly increased nectar load for pollinators, with an increase from 1,700 flowers to 8,000 in survey areas across the city.

There are significant differences being made daily by councils and communities which contribute to our ambition of becoming a net zero nation and a nature positive country. 

Each and every one of the volunteers I get to work with is planting for biodiversity, recycling, upcycling, growing fruit and vegetables to share and in so doing reducing greenhouse gas emissions, food miles, water and energy consumption – and crucially bringing climate and the environment closer to many more people.

While every day is a chance for us to celebrate action and meaningful change Scotland’s Climate Week is a great opportunity to give people a pat on the back, and recognise the role they play locally while supporting a global mission.

Since I joined Keep Scotland Beautiful in 2008, I’ve seen the Climate and Nature Friendly Communities Network flourish, not just in numbers but seeing members building a quiet confidence in what they are doing and the value they are adding.

Although all groups are acting locally and often driven by a real basic desire to improve their own neighbourhoods, I also see that for many of the network members being part of something bigger is a real driver for those volunteering their time.

I know that without the wonderful people I get to work with across Scotland our neighbourhoods, wildlife and our planet would suffer far more.

Let’s all keep doing our bit as best we can.

If you’re inspired to join the Climate and Nature Friendly Communities Network next year, we’d love to welcome you.  We can provide you with access to knowledge sharing events and resources to support your community to thrive.

Check out the blog written last year about East Haven’s work to protect its natural heritage by creating climate resilience.  East Haven Together protect the natural heritage by creating climate resilience | Keep Scotland Beautiful

You can read more about the work of Edinburgh Inspiring Capital here in this Scottish Pollinators blog.