Local partnership working is key to accelerate decarbonisation 

COP28 is currently in session to identify global solutions for tackling the climate emergency and move to a fairer, more sustainable world.

Roddy Hamilton, our Head of Net Zero Programme Development, details how partnership working is at the centre of Changeworks’ strategy to help Scotland achieve its net zero goals.

The United Nations Climate Change Conference is the annual opportunity for the world to come together to address the climate emergency. This year’s COP 28, currently taking place in Dubai, is no different.  

The phrase “we must work together”, or a version of it, will be repeated throughout the conference. Sometimes we can be cynical of its intent when said. However, in the context of COP, climate change and achieving net zero emissions by 2050, these words have no choice but to mean something. Our future, and that of the world, depend on it. 

From working together across continents to partnership working at a local level, these relationships and how we act on them will be pivotal up to 2050 and beyond. 

Partnership working

At Changeworks, we know the value of working closely with others. We’ve spent over 35 years working collaboratively with partners and organisations across Scotland to improve the energy efficiency of homes and to tackle fuel poverty. 

The next few years are especially crucial for Scotland’s work towards net zero and to enable a just transition. There is a great opportunity to improve and scale up retrofit projects to reduce energy demand and improve the quality of Scotland’s housing. 

This includes continuing our work as the largest delivery agent of Area Based Schemes in Scotland, where we currently work with seven local authorities from the Borders to Moray to make homes more energy efficient. 

As well as this, our work alongside a number of authorities to develop their Local Heat and Energy Efficiency Strategies (LHEES) continues, and we’ve recently launched our new EcoCosi home retrofit service. 

Fuel poverty in Scotland

The Scottish Government is currently consulting on two strategies which will help us achieve our legally binding target of net zero by 2045. Both the Heat in Buildings Bill and the Social Housing Net Zero Standard in Scotland Bill will focus on improving the fabric of our homes and switching to non-polluting forms of heating. Scotland has some of the least energy efficient housing in Europe. 

And as the Scottish Government acknowledges, these strategies will also help Scotland to end fuel poverty. There are currently around 860,000 Scottish households who find themselves in fuel poverty. 

By continuing to focus on reducing energy demand, retrofitting homes and the electrification of heat, Scotland can reduce its carbon emissions and help to alleviate fuel poverty.  

Only by working together, sharing ideas and making them happen at pace can we make an impact now, and most importantly one that lasts.