Keep Scotland Beautiful hopes to help the sector improve its green credentials.
A Scottish environmental charity is offering free climate emergency training sessions for the country’s tourism sector to help tackle the ongoing ecological crisis.
In February and March Keep Scotland Beautiful is offering workers across Scotland the sessions as part of a suite of support provided with Skills Development Scotland and Green Tourism through the Scottish Government’s Tourism Recovery Fund.
The charity has developed the bespoke online training to help staff in Scotland’s tourism sector develop skills and knowledge to secure a green recovery from Covid-19 and become a successful part of a low-carbon Scotland.
Over two live sessions, participants will increase understanding of climate change science and how Scotland’s tourism sector can use its actions and influence to respond to the climate emergency by contributing to Scotland’s journey to net-zero.
Best practice examples will showcase innovation across the sector in responding to the new challenges as well as the opportunities created through responsible tourism.
The course is accredited by The Carbon Literacy Project and to become Carbon Literate participants will carry out an assessment in which they will be asked to select both an individual and a group action to reduce carbon emissions in their organisation, or Scotland’s wider tourism sector, demonstrating their learning and understanding of carbon emission sources and solutions.
Catherine Gee, deputy chief executive for Keep Scotland Beautiful, said: “Scotland’s tourism sector has faced huge challenges over the past two years.
“That’s why we are so delighted to offer this free Climate Emergency Training to help those working in the sector gain new skills and experience that will prove vital in securing a Green Recovery from Covid-19 and successfully navigating Scotland’s journey to net-zero.
“We look forward to working with staff involved in tourism and hospitality from across Scotland and helping them embed Climate Emergency Training in their operations.”
In May 2019, the Scottish Government declared a climate emergency and has pledged to drastically reduce emissions from Scotland.
This will mean new legislation and technology that will bring significant changes to the way that we do life and business in Scotland, including tourism.
To help ensure Scotland’s workforce has the skills needed for the transition to a net-zero economy, the Climate Emergency Skills Action Plan was published in December 2020, having been developed in partnership between the public, private and third sector.
To be eligible to register for the Climate Emergency Training participants must live in Scotland and work in any role within the Tourism and Hospitality sector. Both employees of an organisation or individuals working within the sector are eligible.
Andrea Nicholas, CEO Green Tourism, said: “The Tourism and Hospitality industry both contributes to and is impacted by the climate crisis and as such has a responsibility and opportunity to be part of transformative change as we work towards Net Zero.
"This will only be possible if tourism’s recovery from the impact of Covid-19 accelerates the adoption of sustainable behaviours.
"As an organisation we are looking forward to working with Keep Scotland Beautiful and Skills Development Scotland to provide carbon training to support tourism businesses to find new ways to reduce our industry’s carbon footprint.”
