2nd Natural Climate Buffers Study Tour to Scotland
Scottish Natural Heritage, PeatlandACTION and Eurosite are pleased to host a “climate buffers” study tour for site managers, project managers, nature conservation ecologists and policy makers, as well as government officials and landscape engineers. The study tour is an initiative of the Eurosite Wetlands and Climate Change working group and will be looking at nature-based solutions to climate change adaptation that are taking place in Scotland. A new leaflet on Natural Climate Buffers will also be disseminated for the first time during the study tour.
The tour includes visits to locations across Scotland where objectives for climate adaptation, nature conservation, water resource management and sustainable development are being jointly realised. Participants will learn about the practical techniques that have been deployed in a variety of locations including the coast, urban, freshwater, peatland and wetland environments. The tour will include demonstration and discussion of practical techniques, the journey of projects from an idea to practical realisation and the integration of individual projects into wider habitat networks.
The tour will concentrate on the central lowlands of Scotland – from the famous coastal links golf course of St Andrews, to the low-lying peatlands and wetlands of the Forth valley, including Flanders Moss which is the largest raised bog in the UK, and central Glasgow.
The event is open to members and non-members. Please find the terms and conditions for participation here.
A variety of projects and initiatives in Scotland, including PeatlandACTION, Dynamic Coast, EcoCo LIFE and Green Infrastructure have already implemented several natural climate buffer projects with tangible results. These will all be demonstrated and discussed during the study tour.
The study tour will be an opportunity to exchange experiences across a range of different sites and the challenges that have been experienced. There will be an opportunity to learn how Scottish nature conservation organisations have approached the challenges of managing and using wetlands in a changing climate and to help achieve multiple outcomes. The study tour will show projects that are using techniques and sites to ‘mainstream’ the integration of nature-based solutions into wider land use and urban planning/development. By doing so we can help meet climate change challenges, and at the same time deliver significant improvements for biodiversity and help connect local communities to nature. Participants will get a broader understanding of the projects that are underway in Scotland, the approaches that have been taken, how project implementation and funding has been managed, and how we are sustaining the benefits of our approach.
During the trip participants will have the opportunity to:
- Exchange their own knowledge and experiences with colleagues,
- provide feedback and ideas on how climate buffers are being implemented in Scotland,
- make recommendations on how to prioritise ideas into practical actions and,
- take part in a concluding workshop to develop and draft a joint proposal for further work on Natural Climate Buffers.
In a concluding workshop the possibilities for European funding and twinning-like collaboration and transnational projects will be discussed.