Colette Martin and Jen Wales (@nerdfornature), two of the Trust’s volunteer Young Leaders, reflect on the 2022 Sea Scotland Conference held in June.

Scotland’s seventh edition of the Sea Scotland Conference was held in Glasgow. The Scottish Wildlife Trust’s Living Seas team are proud members of the Sea Scotland Conference steering group, bringing together the marine community in order to facilitate debate on critical issues facing the marine environment. Off the back of Climate Change COP26 the theme was “Scotland’s Place in the Global Ocean”, where we explored ideas on Scotland’s role in comparison to other maritime countries across the world.

Scotland’s seas cover almost two thirds of the total UK sea area and 13% of all European seas, giving a tangible resonance to Scotland’s place in the global marine landscape.

With many stakeholders due to attend, the Young Leaders of the Scottish Wildlife Trust who are still in the early stages of their career were delighted to get an invite! Also, after two years of COVID, we were both excited by the opportunity to attend the conference in person to meet with delegates and hold in-person discussions. Our understanding of marine conservation was fairly limited to the work of the Scottish Wildlife Trust. Therefore, we were eager to learn more about wider marine conservation in Scotland.

We were delighted to hear two young speakers – Mhairi McCann and Caitlin Turner. Mhairi McCann cleverly discussed the importance of including young people in decision-making by describing what she has coined the ‘cupcake analogy’. She explained that young people are treated as the sprinkles in decision-making, and our thoughts and opinions are merely an afterthought in an already-baked cake. However, young people must be treated as the flour as our opinions are an essential ingredient in making decisions that will impact our own future. This reminded us of COP26, where it was clear that youth voices were not valued in the decision-making amongst world leaders. Greta Thunberg went as far as calling COP26 a ‘failure’, explaining that world leaders are not doing enough to reduce the impacts of climate change.

In the run up to the Sea Scotland 2022 Conference, it was clear that there were steps taken to ensure that young people were involved. Young people were on the conference steering committee and surveys were carried out to get the views of young people on ocean health and recovery. Upon entering the conference, we were then both surprised (and slightly disappointed) by the small percentage of young people in attendance. As young people at a conference full of successful stakeholders, we felt welcomed and included and everyone was eager to learn about our future goals. Everyone at our table was interested in hearing our opinions on the topics being discussed, and we were inspired to see one of our previous Young Leaders (Alistair Lemon) facilitate one of the discussions. Hopefully during the next Sea Scotland conference, we will see a more significant number of Young Leaders and young activists attending and presenting at the conference.

Despite the small proportion of youth in attendance, we were excited to meet with those representing organisations such as Marine Conservation Society, NatureScot, and ScotGov. It was interesting to listen to their discussions about nature-based solutions – how different sectors and segments can help restore our oceans. Considering that each of the delegates in attendance represented a diverse range of sectors, it was interesting to hear the different opinions on how different sectors and segments can help restore our oceans (and what is already being done). Sectors included tourism and recreation; food production; renewables; community-led organisations; maritime transport and coastal development; and education and research.

We were also introduced to a term we were both unfamiliar with before attending this conference – the ‘blue economy’ which, according to the World Bank, is the “sustainable use of ocean resources for economic growth, improved livelihoods, and jobs while preserving the health of ocean ecosystem”. We listened to step-by-step plans that would ensure ocean resources are utilised sustainability for socioeconomic growth whilst allowing marine ecosystems to recover. Overall, it provided us with a sense of hope.

After learning about these plans, we feel that the Scottish Government has listened to science-based evidence that explains how critical it is that we conserve oceans for the benefit marine life and future generations. However, even though we have been filled with hope after learning about the recent publication of the aims and goals, it is now essential to ensure that the actions are taken to ensure these goals are met. We are hesitant to place too much trust in the government to meet these goals because the Scottish Government is already falling behind on their goal to cut down greenhouse gas emissions to net zero by 2045. Therefore, it will be interesting to see whether these goals are met with action over the next couple of decades.

We would like to end this blog on a poem written by Sea Scotland 2022 keynote speaker Caitlin Turner that we think sums up the views of young people on the Global Climate Crisis.

Our Lives on this Planet

A piece written at the time of release and inspired by Sir David Attenborough’s documentary ‘A Life on our Planet’ and the information provided throughout the film regarding the biodiversity and climate crisis, and its forecasted consequences in the absence of meaningful and effective action.

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I am 20
And the world is dying
And by the time my children are born
The amazon will be gone
And our coastal shores will
Become reefs of open graves
Exposed skeletons of corals we did not save

I am 20
And the world is dying
and by the time my grandchildren are born
the world will be 2 degrees too warm
and our oceans will be fished dry
with countless species long since died
off, we’re over the edge of the cliff
there is no going back

I am 20
And the world is dying
And we watch as the politicians scream
From their benches protecting the millionaire’s dream
‘the economy!’ they argue for unsustainable expansion
While the children cry out over the planet’s destruction
A broken world now inherited by a future generation

I am 20
And the world is dying
And so what, pray tell, is the point in trying?
But we are the last hope of our Mother Earth
And we take to the streets in respect of her
Because who else? But us, her last frontier children
Can cause change in her desperate situation

I am 20
And the world is dying
And despite it all I have hope
And I must because in this world that is broke
We stand firm and we hold fast to the rope
That binds us all; the land, the ocean, all nature
We are the hope for this planet’s future.

– Caitlin Turner

To connect with this coalition of Scottish organisations dedicated to protecting, connecting and recovering Scotland’s seas, follow us on Facebook (@SaveScottishSeas) and Twitter (@SaveScotsSeas). To engage with the marine conservation work of the Scottish Wildlife Trust, you can also follow our Living Seas project on Facebook (@LivingSeasScotland), Twitter (@ScottishSeas) or find out more on our website here.