Blogs

"The hope that all the direct engagement we see going on - no matter how big the tent - will strengthen people’s understanding of and commitment to protecting Scotland’s wild lands and wild places"

It’s been another busy summer in the Highlands. Recent drives through Glen Clunie and Glen Shee down to Perthshire have left me feeling conflicted. Glen Clunie in particular – with its easy road access and flat grassy patches next to the Clunie Water – has become a hotbed for wild camping, but in some cases not wild camping as I used to think of it. This is wild camping with a family size tent and accompanying barbecue gazebo, not sore feet, a tiny tent, a Trangia, and some Super Noodles.

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this blog post are the views of the author(s), and not an official position of the institute or funder.

Vicky Stonebridge is an artist & potter; this is her representation of the community relationship with the environment. (Image: Carla Barlagne)

By Carla Barlagne and Richard J. Hewitt

Social innovation is a phenomenon that manifests itself in new social relationships and collaborations. It seeks to promote the development and uptake of new services and new fields of activity, such as social entrepreneurship and social enterprises that improve the quality of life of individuals and communities, particularly in rural areas. Yet the evidence base of the impacts on the sustainable development of rural communities remains scarce.

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this blog post are the views of the author(s), and not an official position of the institute or funder.

'Paying attention' from Eabhal - Uibhist a Tuath by Scott Herrett

Deliberation is the long and careful consideration of a subject. - In this house nothing is there by chance: it is always the result of great deliberation. Collins Dictionary

Have you heard of the 'deliberative wave' sweeping around the globe? This describes the increase interest and practice in forms of deliberative democracy to tackle politically difficult issues, such as abortion and the climate and ecological crisis.

Scotland’s Climate Citizen Assembly has just concluded and I’ve been observing the assembly sessions where over a hundred members of the public have been meeting to hear evidence, deliberate and make recommendations in response to the question ‘how should Scotland change to tackle the climate emergency in an effective and fair way?’. This blog is about why I believe we need more deliberative forums at every level in society because the traditional ways of making decisions on a local, national or global scale are no longer fit for purpose.

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this blog post are the views of the author(s), and not an official position of the institute or funder.

Orla Shortall, Carla Barlagne, Scott Herrett

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this blog post are the views of the author(s), and not an official position of the institute or funder.

"As we develop ideas for new initiatives such as the Hutton’s Advanced Plant Growth Centre, we need to keep in mind the opportunity this brings for just such an interaction of disciplines, hopefully enabling us to develop some exciting new research flavour combinations."

I’ve always been something of a generalist, interested in topics including plant ecophysiology, landscape scale conservation management, and global biodiversity policy. What I enjoy is bringing some of these topics together to see whether this can spark new ideas. There is often something thought-provoking about a simple juxtaposition of concepts and approaches, much in the same way that odd food combinations can turn out to be delicious.

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this blog post are the views of the author(s), and not an official position of the institute or funder.

Quebec City

By Alice Hague, Christina Noble, Nazli Koseoglu, Kathryn Colley, Liz Dinnie, Tony Craig.

Academic conferences are an important part of an academic career, as key places for sharing ideas and engaging with others. With the global impacts of Covid-19 many conferences have been cancelled or moved online to become virtual conferences. But what is it like to attend a virtual conference? The authors of this blog, all social researchers at the James Hutton Institute, recently attended the International Association of People-Environment Studies (IAPS). The organisers took the bold decision to go entirely virtual with its 2020 meeting, held from 22-26 June. In just three months, what had been planned as an in-person conference hosted in Quebec City became an entirely online conference, streamed to hundreds of living rooms/spare bedrooms/garden sheds across the globe. Thanks to a superhuman effort from the organising team, conference rooms became virtual conference rooms, keynote addresses became livestreamed presentations, and panel discussions were facilitated across different time-zones.

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this blog post are the views of the author(s), and not an official position of the institute or funder.

Will flights remain empty as the lockdown eases? (Piqsels open use copyright)

Written by Dr Alice Hague

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this blog post are the views of the author(s), and not an official position of the institute or funder.