Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations

Anna Fowlie of SCVO wrote recently of the strange world we all now inhabit. She told of their sudden change of gear when coronavirus hit and particularly when Scotland went into lockdown, Everything had to change when Scottish Government asked them to be a ‘resilience hub’ for the third sector. The most visible output has been Coronavirus Hub, updated daily with information and resources on areas including funding, running third sector organisations, governance, fundraising, volunteering and much more.

Long active in building digital capacity across the voluntary sector SCVO found demand for this support  increased significantly prompting them to provide information, resources, webinars, 1-2-1 advice surgeries and learning opportunities. They are now working with Scottish Government to deliver Connecting Scotland which will bring devices, training and connectivity to 9,000 people across the country who are digitally excluded.

Uncertainty is all around us just now which is evident from the SCVO Goodmoves jobs portal. Available for any third sector organisation recruiting staff. Third Force News is now in e-reader format and the TFN archive in also available in the same format. TFN is one way in which SCVO will be covering a new piece of work, #NeverMoreNeeded, being produced in collaboration with similar organisations in the UK and Ireland. It will act as a piece of social history designed to generate debate on what comes next, where this takes us, what a new normal looks like.

Climate Change Campaigning

Late last year a group of campaignbers from A Greener Hawick and A Greener Melrose met our MP to persuade him of the urgent need for action to combat climate chhange. He posted the following on his own website and mention A Greener Hawick in one of his rare appearances in the House of Commons. Good for our image perhaps but does his interpretation of what is adequate action meet our aspitations? Do we need more economic development even if it ios sustainable or is it a differnt lid=festyle we need where we all consume fewer of the finite resources of the planet and share what we have more evenly.

Both the UK and Scottish Governments acknowledge that we are facing a global climate emergency and that significant and rapid action is needed to protect our planet for future generations. There is no doubt that climate change is one of the most profound global challenges we face. 

That is why the UK Government is taking major steps to reduce our contribution to climate change. We are the first major economy in the world to sign up to reducing our emissions to net zero by 2050, on the timescale recommended by the 2018 report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. We have also announced a phased roll out of fossil fueled cars, a target that 30% of our energy will come from offshore wind as well as a £2.5bn investment in low carbon technology in the next few years. 

It is important to note that tackling climate change does not mean abandoning economic growth or ending all investment in infrastructure. We can continue to do all those things which are necessary for jobs and the prosperity of our nation, but ensure that investment is as clean as possible offset by environmentally beneficial measures. I support these efforts and will continue to put pressure on the UK Government to take all the steps required to boost cleaner economic growth and to fulfill our pledge to reach net zero by 2050.

While there is a lot still to be done, the UK has led the global effort to tackle climate change. We were the first country to introduce legally binding long-term emissions targets under the landmark Climate Change Act in 2008. We were the first major economy to announce a new zero target and the UK has decarbonised and cut emissions by more than any other G7 nation. Importantly, we are also using our considerable diplomatic and worldwide standing to put pressure on other nations to follow suit, with a particular focus on the USA and China as well as through our international climate challenge fund (which has spent £5.8 billion to help developing countries to mitigate and adapt to climate change).  

Sustainable Building

Fife already has its Earthship, isn't it time we had one in Scottish Borders? It's great talking about reuse and sustainability but how can we find out what it means and how to do it. From walls built half with glass bottles through to rammed earth using plastic bottles to car tyres we can do so much with what we now throw away.

Reimagining Post-Covid Society

Amazon has profited handsomely from the pandemic as have entertainment streaming and video conferencing platforms like Netflix and Zoom. Major losers include the taxi apps like Uber because, of course, people are not taking taxis. Office sharing businesses seem to be struggling as people discover home working is preferable and accommodation booking companies like Airbnb and Oyo simply because people have been staying at home. What these companies have in common is that they rely on an app, they offer nothing new other than the technology.

Facebook, Amazon and Google differ by providing something which did not exist before. They also benefit from the network effect; the more of your friends who are on a social network the greater the likelihood you will choose it against others. Take the success of the ”new” Hawick Chat with around three and a half thousand followers in weeks and the relative popularity of Facebook against Twitter in the town.

The network effect is not so obvious in businesses offering office sharing or taxi style services because convenience matters above brand loyalty. Most taxi firms now have their own app and the Uber effect has largely ignored small marketplaces where volume is of less interest.

Hawick may be able to benefit from these lessons. As a landlocked island our local transport is mainly interested in an area within five miles of the town. If all forms of transport used a single app then capital costs for the community could be kept down which is a major contributor to journey cost. Innovative choices like calling an e-cargo bike to deliver your shopping while you walk home or shared taxis, common in rural parts of Africa could bring the cost of town trips down. Locally available e-bike hire could enhance leisure transport opportunities.

An app connected to national and international travel booking sites could reduce the cost of marketing for accommodation providers and present opportunities for more innovative offerings. This might include more heating and space efficient accommodation to be made available in redundant mill buildings, glamping and wild camping even the quirky, like the caravan up a tree on offer via Airbnb in The Highlands.

Rather than exporting money from Hawick to the owners of eat-out and eat-in ordering apps a reliable local facility could present new markets for innovative food offerings and lower cost for the restaurant or take-away with a more equal presence than might currently be possible against national chains. It might even be possible to share delivery facilities to enhance earning opportunities for delivery people, reduce the number of journeys and enable customers to order from more than one outlet at the same meal.

A Greener Hawick could be the organisation which develops such offerings as they all, in one way or another, decarbonise our society. They offer opportunity to build interest in non-hydrocarbon fuel driven vehicles; make home delivery of food more efficient and therefore less carbon-hungry; reduce the number of vehicles required to provide local transport; encourage visitors to the area to stay by offering a wider range of accommodation types and perhaps even educe a few by showing how the fuel efficiency has been achieved.