1000 Better Stories

Seeding New Climate Hubs - SCCAN Regional Networking Project

In today’s episode you will hear Kaska Hempel’s interview with Gill Davies, a Manager of SCCAN’s Investing in Regional Networks Programme, which has been funded by the Scottish Government.
For about a year now, she’s been recruiting and supporting regional network coordinators, working to strengthen relationships among community organisations within Scottish regions. This work will feed into the roll out of Scottish Government Regional Climate Action Hubs over the next year. You can listen to our last episode to find out more about the two hub pilots which are already in place.
You will also hear brief introductions from five regional network coordinators:
Julian Holbrook from Midlothian, Gordie Campbell from Scottish Borders, Steven Clark from Dumfries and Galloway, Marie Stonehouse from Argyle and Bute and Alison Stockwell from Western Isles.
Production and edit: Kaska Hempel with help from regional coordinators.
Resources:
New SCCAN website: https://sccan.scot/
SCCAN’s Investing in Regional Networks Programme – coordinators and contact details:
https://sccan.scot/network-building/
Community groups mentioned by regional coordinators
Argyle and Bute: Grow Food Grow Dunoon on Facebook https://m.facebook.com/Grow-Food-Grow-Dunoon-107142828547484/, Dunoon Area Alliance https://www.dunoonareaalliance.org/
Scottish Borders: The Hornshole Greenway Project in Hawick https://www.hornsholegreenway.com/
Western Isles: Uist and Barra Foodbank on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/groups/Uistandbarrafoodbank
Dumfries and Galloway: Galloway Glens Landscape Partnership https://gallowayglens.org/
Mid-Lothian: Penicuick Community Development Trust https://penicuikcdt.co.uk/  

Climate Action Hubs pilots - connecting local communities for change

In today’s episode SCCAN Story Weaver, Kaska Hempel, talks to managers of Climate Action Hub pilots funded by the Scottish Government. Alison Stuart is the manager of North East Scotland Climate Action Network (NESCAN) and Joan Lawrie, the Project Manager for North Highlands and Island Climate Hub and the development manager in Thurso Community Trust. The hub pilots have been in place for around 2 years now and they represent a new way the government plans to support community climate action across Scotland.
Tune in to the next episode for an update on how SCCAN is helping grow regional networks in preparation for the next phase of Climate Hub devlopment.
Production and edit: Kaska Hempel
Resources
NESCAN hub website https://www.nescan.org/
Northern Highlands and Islands Hub https://www.nhclimatehub.co.uk/
Transition Fund and Green Participatory Budgeting via NESCAN https://www.nescan.org/pb
Climate week North East festival (Next edition 24 March-2April 2023) https://climateweeknortheast.org/
Highland Climate Festival https://www.nhclimatehub.co.uk/highlandclimatefestival
Orkney Climate Festival  https://www.nhclimatehub.co.uk/orkney-climate-festival
Carbon Neutral Islands Project
https://www.gov.scot/news/zero-carbon-islands/
https://www.insider.co.uk/news/six-scottish-islands-announced-carbon-26994830
Regional land use partnership NorthWest2045 https://www.northwest2045.scot/nw2045-land-use-partnership
Climate Action Towns (see our previous podcast interview for update on year 1) https://www.podbean.com/ew/pb-3jfiv-12c216e
Golspie and green growth accelerator funding nature-based solution to flooding https://www.gov.scot/news/accelerating-green-growth/
https://www.northern-times.co.uk/news/climate-action-group-to-hold-public-sessions-in-golspie-281046/
Scottish Government Investing in Communities Fund https://www.gov.scot/publications/investing-in-communities-fund-round-two-draft-guidance-note/

The power of traditional storytelling to shift our community narratives

In today’s episode Kaska Hempel, SCCAN Story Weaver, speaks to Alette Willis, one of the researchers involved in the Shifting The Narrative project funded by the British Academy, and carried out by researchers at the University of Edinburgh, with SCCAN as a partner. The project investigated how traditional storytelling can help communities achieve place-based climate action.
Alette shares her wider experience around using narrative work to drive change in communities along with the key findings from this recent project, ahead of the publication of the official report in October.
Credits
Production and edit: Kaska Hempel
Project collaborators:
Alette Willis https://www.ed.ac.uk/profile/alette-willis
Jule Hildmann https://www.ed.ac.uk/profile/jule-hildmann
Arno Verhoeven https://www.eca.ed.ac.uk/profile/dr-arno-verhoeven
Ramsey Affifi https://www.ed.ac.uk/profile/ramsey-affifi
Additional information/workshops:
List of story recommendations will be posted on Alette’s Restorying the Earth website along with BA project report and ongoing updates: https://restoryingtheearth.com/
Global Lab: Shifting the Narrative: Story Work and Nature Crises. Workshop at the International Storytelling Festival, 25 Oct, 2pm online Registration: https://sisf.online.red61.co.uk/event/913:4444/913:18197/
SCCAN Stories for Change workshop: Place-based storytelling using izi.travel app audio tours online, 9:30am-12:30pm, 13th and 27th of October https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/407887411227  
Dancing with Trees Eco-tales from the British Isles by Allison Galbraith and Allete J Willis: https://restoryingtheearth.com/about/
 

Community lessons from Climate Action Towns project

Our Story Weaver, Kaska Hempel, talks to Karen Ridgewell about year one of Scottish Climate Action Town project, delivered by Architecture and Design Scotland (https://www.ads.org.uk/)  and funded by the Scottish Government.
Karen shares lessons and tools for empowering communities to plan for their own climate friendly and fair future.
Production and editing: Kaska Hempel
Resources
Climate Action Towns report on A&DS website (includes a list of community engagement and planning tools used by the project):
https://www.ads.org.uk/resource/climate-action-towns-year-one-lessons-report
Delivering place-based approaches in Scotland event, 27th of Sep, online: https://www.ads.org.uk/event/climate-week-2022-designing-changing-climate
Place standard tool (including place standard tool with a climate lens): https://www.ourplace.scot/About-Place-Standard
Place standard
https://www.ads.org.uk/resource/place-standard
SEPA Flood Risk Map https://map.sepa.org.uk/floodmaps
2050 Climate Map https://coastal.climatecentral.org/
Heat Resilience Map https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-62243280 (this was produced by 4 Earth Intelligence - they offer more detailed info but you would have to pay for the service).

Cloud walkers - how stories can tackle climate anxiety in children

In this episode we focus on helping children process their climate anxiety in a holistic approach using stories. One of our mini-grant recipients, Maria Barros, invites us on an immersive and interactive journey with Nefelibatas (Cloud Walkers), and SCCAN Story Weavers Kaska Hempel and Joana Avi-Lorie chat about Joana’s research and practice in using such stories to help children tackle anxiety.
Mini-grants of £250 are available to anyone wanting to contribute content to the 1000 Better stories podcast or blog so please get in touch with Kaska or Joana on stories@scottishcommunitiescan.org.uk.
For future developments of Nefelibatas projects check Instagram: Nefelibatas (@nefelibatastory)
Or contact: nefelibatasnasnuvens@gmail.com
Nefelibatas credits
Story and narration: Maria Barros
Sound production: Rui Morgado
Logo: Márcia Fernandes
Interview credits
Recording and editing: Kaska Hempel

Storylines - turning climate data into stories of place in the Outer Hebrides

Have you ever tried to get your head around climate models? And what they show may happen in the next 50 to 100 years to the places you where you live, places which you love and care about?
What would it really mean for you or your children?
Today we bring you a story behind an Outer Hebrides Storylines project aimed at exactly that. Combining creativity, oral history, and science to help local people and communities engage in adaptation planning in the way that’s meaningful to them.
The project got support from SCCAN’s Pockets and Prospects fund as well as NERC, Adaptation Scotland, and Làn Thìde Climate Beacon and involved several partners. 
The story was recorded and produced for us by Matthew Logan, Community Energy Scotland, and one of the leads on the project.
We also hear from Dr James Pope from the Met Office, Eleanor Pratt from Adaptation Scotland, and a Lewis-based artist, Sandra Kennedy, who carried out the commission.
Resources
Tuil is Geil Storylines on Soundcloud https://soundcloud.com/andraennedy
Dr Pope’s presentation about science climate change expected in Outer Hebrides: https://youtu.be/ot113okUgtg
Dr Pope’s blog about the project: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/musical-messages-creating-bespoke-climate-story-outer-james-pope/
Sandra Kennedy’s blog about the project: https://lanthide.org/blog-sandra-kennedy-crafting-tuil-is-geil-storylines/
Storyline Project info on Làn Thìde Climate Beacon website: https://lanthide.org/climate-storyline/
Community Energy Scotland https://communityenergyscotland.org.uk/
Adaptation Scotland https://www.adaptationscotland.org.uk/
Climate Beacons https://www.creativecarbonscotland.com/project/climate-beacons-for-cop26/

Echoes of seven men of Knoydart

Join Luke Winter, one of our mini-grant recipents on his adventure to Knoydart. Stories of the land and how it has changed hands in recent history. 
Grants are available to anyone wanting to contribute content to the 1000 Better stories podcast or blog so please get in touch with Kaska or Joana on stories@scottishcommunitiescan.org.uk.
Producer: Loris S. Sarid (https://lorisssarid.bandcamp.com/ )
Writing/recording: Luke Winter (https://www.storiesforstrangers.com/)
 
Background information:
Knoydart Foundation: https://knoydart.org/about-the-knoydart-foundation/
History of Knoydart land ownership: https://www.oxforddnb.com/view/10.1093/ref:odnb/9780198614128.001.0001/odnb-9780198614128-e-75580
Seven Men of Knoydart song lyrics: http://mysongbook.de/msb/songs/m/menofkno.html 

Creative collaborations for climate justice: Wee Wardrobe

In this episode we continue a conversation about how community organisations involved in climate justice work can benefit from collaborating with creative practitioners.  We hear from another partnership within Creative Dundee’s CULTIVATE project - Joyce Reid from Transition Dundee and their creative partner - Jade Anderson. Their collaboration focused on a community wardrobe project and destigmatising the idea of second hand clothing.
Listen to the previous episode to find out more about CULTIVATE and the creative collaboration centred around Community First projects based in Forfar, Angus. 
Production and edit: Kaska Hempel. Illustrated with excerpts from Wee Wardrobe documentary with permission from Jade Andreson.
Resources
Transition Dundee: http://www.transitiondundee.com/ 
The Wardrobe: http://www.transitiondundee.com/thewardrobe
Wee Wardrobe event in February - programme and contributors https://creativedundee.com/2022/02/cultivate-wee-wardrobe/
Jade Andreson: https://www.jadeanderson.org/home 
Wee Wardrobe Documentary with voices from community groups: https://youtu.be/jImheKAwaxk
Oor Memories / Oor Stories compilations from:
Stand Easy Productions
the Boomerang Community Centre’s Reminiscence Group
Dundee Rep’s Engage group, Rep Juniors, for 11–13-year-olds.
Jade’s talk “Sustainable Choices and Social Stigmas for the Working Class”  for Zero Carbon Tour’s event in Dundee.

Creative collaborations for community climate justice

In this episode we start a conversation about how community organisations can benefit from collaborating with creative practitioners. We talk to Claire Durfour, Climate Creative Producer for Creative Dundee, about their CULTIVATE project which has been partnering creative practitioners with Tayside community organisations working in climate justice. We also chat to members of one of the partnerships, Pauline Lockhart and Carol Malone from Community First based in Forfar, Angus and their creative partners, Kirsty McKeown and Jenny Reid.
And to start us off you, will hear work by another one of SCCAN mini-grant recipients, Studio Youth Theatre in, Dumfries and Galloway. They show off a pilot episode of their brand new podcast, Blank Generation.
We will continue conversations about the value of creative collaborations in the next episode, due out in a couple of weeks.
Production and edit: Kaska Hempel
Resources:
Community First projects 
S-Mart (the good shop!) https://www.s-martscot.com/ 
BRAND Climate Conscious Clothing https://www.facebook.com/BRANDClimateConsciousClothing 
The Little Green Cafe https://www.facebook.com/thelittlegreencafeforfar/ 
Studio Theatre, Moffat  https://thestudiotheatre.co.uk/ 
Tayside Climate Beacon events in May and June: https://creativedundee.com/2022/05/2022-tayside-climate-beacon-event-series/
CULTIVATE https://creativedundee.com/cultivate/
Culture Collective https://www.culturecollective.scot/ 
 

Connecting to make a real difference now

Today’s storytellers, Mary Troup and Hazel Darwin-Clements, share personal reflections on how they were inspired to act on climate with their local communities. And on the often random, unplanned, messy and sometimes personally exhausting nature of what we all are trying to do. They both make a powerful case for working together with others so that we can spread our burdens, and so that we can keep ourselves motivated and sane in making a real difference.
We start with Mary’s brief piece, which she created during one of our Stories for Change workshops on finding and telling your climate action story. Through story and song she tells us about her involvement with COP26 and inspirations to set up a climate café.
Next, we hear from Hazel, one of the 8 recipients of our storyteller collective mini-grants. Her honest, first hand documentary about the first few months of setting up the Porty Community Fridge. What is a Community Fridge? How do we create projects that aren’t dependent on one person? Will coming face to face with food poverty divert a mission to reduce carbon consumption? 
The Porty Fridge has a Facebook page.  
You can connect with Hazel @HazelDarEd on Twitter or find her at www.hazeldarwinclements.co.uk.