Scottish Rural and Islands (Youth!) Parliament

At the beginning of November, Chair of NLP, Mike Pescod, Engagement Ranger, Ellie Moore, and Nevis Nature Youth Crew member, Alex, all attended the Scottish Rural and Islands Parliament which was held at the Nevis Centre here in Fort William.

The three-day event brought together around 300 delegates from community and government organisations to take part in workshops and discussions surrounding a wide variety of topics, from climate to childcare, enterprise to energy, culture, wellbeing, community spaces, the Rural Delivery Plan, and many, many more.

There were also 8 study visits that spanned the local area, focusing on different topics and systems, how they’re being managed in Lochaber, and how other rural communities across Scotland are making things work or improving life for their businesses and residents.

It was wonderful to see just how much is being achieved by small communities of people who come together, but also to understand how much we lean on the third sector. Volunteering in community groups is a great way to keep communities together but sometimes it seems like it is the only way to get things done.

Mike Pescod, NLP Chair

For Ellie and Alex, the highlight was the first Scottish Rural and Islands Youth Parliament, held in Coal Community Centre on the first day of the conference. Around 75 youth delegates attended a fantastic programme, put together and facilitated by other young people and teams of professionals from around Rural and Island Scotland.

The afternoon began with inspirational talks from Innes Morgan from Scottish Rural Action, and Emma Roddick, MSP for Highlands and Islands. After getting to know each other, everyone broke out into World Café sessions, where 10 different topics such as housing, transport, environment, and education were covered. The young people were given an opportunity to voice their opinions and call for change. Alex did a fantastic job of representing Nevis Nature; NLP’s newly formed youth action team.

But it didn’t stop there – of course everyone couldn’t just spend the afternoon complaining about things that didn’t work, so 10 solutions to these topics were produced. Each group created a statement, or demand, that was then presented by the young people to Mairi Gougeon, Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs, Land Reform, and Islands, who was in attendance to take the demands back to the Scottish Government.

On the final day of the week, Ellie was tasked with representing the Youth Parliament and delivering the statements on stage to the 300 delegates, the President of COSLA, and Shona Robison, Deputy First Minister for Scotland. 

It was brilliant to meet so many people from different organisations and learn so much from them. The Youth Parliament felt revolutionary; there was such a buzz of passion for action and change and we achieved a huge amount that will hopefully bring invaluable benefits to young people in Rural and Islands Scotland. It was great to hear our demands are going to a Parliamentary Debate in January next year!

Ellie Moore, NLP Engagement Ranger