Almost half of Scotland’s species have decreased in number since the 1970s, and one in nine is at risk of extinction here.
We also know that nature, just like people, can recover. Together, we can help Scotland’s amazing wildlife and nature-rich places to thrive.
We want to live in a Scotland where our seas and rivers are teeming with life, our native woodlands are regenerating and our fields are buzzing with pollinators – and much, much more. To reverse the decline of Scotland’s nature and to help it recover on a big scale, we need action across society.
The Scotland Loves Nature campaign calls on the Scottish government to:
Help make this happen by joining the campaign.
Scotland’s nature gives us so much, from our stunning beaches, glens and lochs to our love for the local parks, hills, woods or waterways nearest to where we live. It’s part of our identity.
Nature is central to our health and wellbeing, enabling us to produce food and providing us with clean air and water as well as enjoyment and relaxation.
It’s also vital to tackling climate change. Healthy ecosystems give us greater resilience, including by storing carbon and protecting us from flooding.
Scotland’s nature is in trouble. But it has an amazing capacity for recovery. Across Scotland, people are working together to restore our fantastic wildlife and habitats – for example, creating new native woodlands, restoring degraded peatlands, planting seagrass and reintroducing native oysters.
Each small story of recovery shows us what people and nature can achieve together. Let’s help Scotland’s nature win big!
Three quarters of Scotland’s people believe there should be legal targets for nature recovery.
In September 2024, the Scottish government announced that it will set legally binding targets through a Natural Environment Bill to be introduced by June 2025. This is a huge step forward.
With Scotland’s amazing nature under increasing threat, there can be no delay. We need strong and effective targets to help struggling wildlife, deliver healthy habitats like our iconic peatlands and native woodlands, and end the threat of extinctions.
And we need the funding in place to ensure these targets are met.
Together, we can set Scotland’s nature on the path to recovery, so that healthy, thriving ecosystems can support and sustain Scotland’s people for generations to come.
Where are all the bees?
3 October 2024
Earlier this summer I found myself repeatedly asking an uncomfortable question: where are all the bees? It turned out I was not alone in being disturbed by the silence in my garden – which, the Bumblebee Conservation Trust explained, was caused by a longer than usual gap between the emergence of queen and worker bees. This gap […]
Campaigners welcome pledge to introduce new nature law
4 September 2024
Commenting on the Programme for Government, Deborah Long, Chief Officer at Scottish Environment LINK, said: “The First Minister’s commitment to introduce a Natural Environment Bill is great news for everyone who cares about Scotland’s environment. “Through the Scotland Loves Nature campaign, more than 40 organisations had called on the Scottish Government to bring forward this […]
Cuts to Scotland’s nature restoration fund a misguided step
3 September 2024
This article first appeared in The Scotsman. Scotland’s response to lockdown was to fall in love with nature. The more we were limited to our homes, the more we realised how much nature meant to us and how much it helped us feel better when the world felt bleak. Have we forgotten that? The natural […]
