Community groups from across Fife were thrilled to receive an early Christmas present this year as over £25,000 was distributed across the region for climate action projects and events.

Community Climate Grants are a collaboration of two funds being offered by Fife Climate Hub and Climate Action Fife. A total of £27,500 was made available. £7,500 from the Small Grants Fund and £20,000 from the Seed and Development Grants. A total of 31 projects can now be delivered by 25 community groups as a result of the funding which launched in September.

“We were thrilled to receive applications from so many and such a variety of community groups from across Fife. It means a lot to us that people can feel empowered to take action on the climate crisis in ways that meets the needs of their communities and is within their reach.”

“It’s also great that we are now able to see the Fife Climate Festival coming together with the number of groups that applied to hold events during the festivals debut from February 25 to March 3 2024,” said Fife Climate Hub Manager Craig Leitch.

Two distinct grants were available. The Small Grants Fund of up to £500 for climate-related events in the community and the Seed and Development Grant offered up to £1,000 for climate-related activities and projects. Together they made up the Community Climate Grants, which went on offer in October 2023.

The resulting funds which were put into the community groups bank accounts this month means groups such as the Bats Wood Project in Levenmouth can forge ahead with plans to create living willow sculptures of wolves and an associated video called “Becoming Wolves in Bat’s Wood”. The sculptures will be a habitat for wildlife and will allow the Levenmouth Academy project to manage deer without the use of plastic.

Pauline Latto and Donald Grieve from Fife Curnie Clubs, a Fife Alcohol and Support Service (FASS) project are over the moon that they will be able to support people who are socially isolated. They plan to bring people together in their community growing veg and plants at the garden at Bennochy Community Hub in Kirkcaldy.

Upon receiving their grant Mr Grieve said: “You have made an old man very happy. My staff have been talking about saving the planet a little at a time. Thank you for this.”

“Pauline Latto is the member of staff who will be working on this for us, she is presently doing cartwheels down Leven High Street! Pauline is our biggest eco warrior. She has been responsible for our shift to sustainable futures for us all. It also fits with our core activities and will enhance them. This is a small grant but that can go a long way, we are all really interested in the outcomes from this and of course having a hand in making it work.” he added.

Gail Miller at Friends of Pittencrieff Park, Dunfermline said: “Thanks for the good news, it was a good start to my day. I’m looking forward to acting on the project.” The Friends have two projects which will benefit from the funds: A book box, or free library box, in the park for everyone to use and recycle books keeping them out landfill. They hope this will promote discussion on re-using existing books and the climate. And the activity is raising plants in their greenhouse to distribute to the local foodbank to promote wellbeing and clean air.

Burntisland Community Development Trust received money to pilot upcycling and upskilling workshops. The series of six workshops led by local people sharing their skills in sewing and repairing clothes, making jewellery, reusing fabric to make things like rag rugs and bags, propagating plants and even electrical repairs and PAT testing.

Applicants for the Small Grants funding were encouraged to hold events during next year’s Fife Climate Festival which will run in communities across the Fife from 24th February to 3rd March 2024. Forgan Arts Centre, a member of Fife Climate Hub’s network, FCCAN, will use their funding to hold Climate Action Workshops and Climate Conversations during the festival.

Funded groups

Here is a list of all the groups that received a Community Climate Grant:

All of the projects will be delivered by 3rd March 2024. Find out more about Community Climate Grants.

Climate FRESK is a participatory and creative workshop that aims to raise awareness and understanding about climate change.

Based on the IPCC report, it explains the climate functioning and the consequences of its disruption. It gives the opportunity to learn a lot in a very short period of time and is for both novices and experts.

How the workshop works:

The workshop is based on a 42-card game. Each card represents a cause or a consequence of climate change.

As a team, guided by your facilitator, you are to find the cause-effect relationship between the different components of climate change. Collective intelligence will get you from one deck of card to the next!

This step-by-step reconstruction provides keys to understand the complexity and develop an overview of climate change.

The workshop is organised by Bat’s Wood, Growing Space & Bike Track (SCIO) Bat’s Wood is dedicated to the sustainable, environmental improvement of 5 acres of land behind Levenmouth Academy. They have planted many trees there already with the land owner’s permission and intend to plant more this year.

Join us for a fun, free and informative workshop that will help you understand climate change.

You will work as a team to find relationships between 42 climate cards. Each card represents a cause or effect of climate change. Together you will link the cards to build a collage that explains climate change. Collective intelligence and collaboration will get you to a solution!

This step-by-step, cooperative activity will help you work through the complexity of climate change. You will also get to be creating by decorating and naming your finished collage.

Climate Fresk is perfect for those who know that climate change is important, but feel that they would like to understand it more. There is no need for any previous climate knowledge; the workshop is a learning experience.

Climate Fresk is a French-based NGO with the aim to make climate science more accessible. More than 350,000 people have played worldwide.

You can read about a previous Climate Fresk workshop we delivered here.

Booking information

This workshop is free to attend, but spaces are limited so booking is required.

If you have any problems booking or any questions, please phone 01592 858458 or email info@greenerkirkcaldy.org.uk

Accessibility

There are accessible parking bays available outside 8 East Fergus Place. We have a ramp into the building and level access throughout. There is also an accessible toilet.

This event is planned to take place in a room that is situated up a flight of stairs with no lift access. We can arrange to move the event to a more accessible location if required. Please do not hesitate to book on and state that you need level access to attend the event when you get to the special requirements section of the booking form.

If you have any other accessibility questions please phone 01592 858458 or email info@greenerkirkcaldy.org.uk.

Hello, my name is Louise Oliver. I’m the new Business Outreach Coordinator, working at Greener Kirkcaldy as part of the Climate Action Fife project.

I’ll be engaging with businesses across Fife to help them reduce their energy use and food waste. This will help them reduce their carbon footprint. Another part of my role will be to create a business accreditation or award scheme for all the businesses involved. This will allow them to gain recognition and increase awareness for climate savvy consumers.

About me

I have worked for many years as a pastry chef and more recently as a baker at a small high street café/bar. This has given me a good understanding of the hospitality business, especially regarding food waste – from using reusable takeaway Tupperware to using veg peel for stock, as well as being part of a ‘Too Good To Waste’ food app. I have also almost completed a masters in Gastronomy, which uses food as a lens to view the world. The subject has a large emphasis on sustainability and altering our current food system.

I have completed my CPD certified Green Champions Training with Business Energy Scotland. I have learned how to successfully improve the resource efficiency and environmental performance of organisations. I’ve also learned how to save businesses money over the long term.

Business support

My training allows me to help businesses in several areas:

Identifying cost savings and environmental improvement opportunities
Effectively collecting and analysing data
Using data to successfully bring about lasting change

Working alongside expert energy advisors at Cosy Kingdom, we can also provide invaluable advice to households. This advice is also pertinent for micro businesses and those working from home.

In collaboration with Zero Waste Scotland, we will use a food waste tracker to gather data on where exactly food is wasted. Businesses can then carry out appropriate responses to reduce waste. For example, if food is being wasted mostly on the plate by customers, offering them ‘good to go’ boxes will help to create a zero waste culture.

A Fifer at heart

I now live by the sea in Edinburgh, but was born and raised in Fife. As a young mum, I lived there for 10 years and regularly visit Fife to see my parents. I am always happy to spend a day at Pillars of Hercules, Bowhouse market or in some of the great high streets in Fife towns. I am passionate about the environment and helping people and businesses to be as kind to the planet as possible.

Please email me at louise@greenerkirkcaldy.org.uk if you are a local business person who would like to get involved.

Walking or cycling for short journeys can be a good way to commute or popping to the shops. A lot of people see cycling as a leisure activity – something fun to do in the park at the weekend. Cycling is great for this – getting some fresh air and exercise, or having some fun with the kids. But it can also be a good way to get from A to B.

Trying to fit in some exercise can feel like a challenge when you’re trying to juggle lots of different things. Work, shopping, school runs, seeing friends and family, etc. can feel like it gets in the way. By walking or cycling for shorter journeys, you can fit exercise into your daily life.

How do I do it?

Cycling is a realistic option for many shorter journeys. As you don’t need to find a parking space, it can often be as quick as driving. On top of that, in leaving your car at home, you can bask in the warm glow of knowing that you are helping to tackle the climate emergency.

If you’re thinking of commuting by bike, it is worth bearing in mind that you may not need a shower when you get there. You can avoid this by cycling slower, and wearing layers so that you can take some off if you start to feel too warm. E-bikes help with this too, as they don’t need as much effort.

If you want to cycle to the shops, you can take a rucksack or panniers. A larger shop may mean you would need a trailer or a cargo bike. But, a regular bike is fine for smaller shops, when you’re only picking up a few things.

I find it a convenient way to get around, and the fresh air and exercise help to wake me up and make me feel invigorated. Not only is cycling good exercise, but it can also help improve your mood.

If you’re feeling a bit nervous, or want someone to show you local routes, there are many local organisations across Fife who can help. Here are some examples:

Feeling inspired to get more active as the weather improves? Dust off your bike and use it for some local journeys. You can also pledge to cycle for one local journey a week in the #BigFiveForFife.

Coming soon! As part of our new #ClimateActionFife project, CLEAR is excited to be planning some online cooking demonstrations on creating delicious meals from leftovers and using local, seasonal food.

Scottish households throw away 600,000 tonnes of food waste every year with a value of up to £437 per year per household, not in our pockets! As well as being a waste of good food and money, it’s also a huge waste of all the resources that have gone into producing the food i.e. the fuel for the farm machinery, the farmer’s time and energy planting and harvesting, the water it took to grow the crops, the fuel used transporting the food to the food manufacturer, the materials used to package the food and much more, which all lead to the production of unnecessary greenhouse gas emissions. By reducing food waste, you can save money, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and help preserve resources for future generations.

So what can you do to help?

Don’t overbuy. Make meal plans and shopping lists (and stick to them!) to avoid buying too much food.
Check the use-by date on the food you buy. Those with the longest use-by dates are usually at the back of the shelves in shops. Be aware that “sell by” is used by manufacturers to ensure foods have a long shelf life after purchase. “Use by” is the last date recommended for use.
Love your freezer. Freeze anything you won’t use immediately that may go off if left in the fridge or batch cook and freeze it for later use.
Use your leftovers. Either re-heat or adapt to make another meal.
Buy local (seasonal) food. This will reduce greenhouse gas emissions from transport, storage and packaging and is usually fresher and tastes better!
Compost your waste food. Put it in your brown bin (not your blue landfill bin!) or make your own compost.

If you can’t wait for our workshops, have a look at these links and be inspired to make a change!

Climate Action Fife is a Fife-wide partnership project, bringing together individuals, communities, local government and businesses to tackle the climate emergency. It is funded by The National Lottery Community Fund’s Climate Action Fund. #ClimateActionFife