This newsletter has been developed with the aim of sharing practice in community empowerment and celebrating the success of communities across Scotland, in having more control over the decisions that affect their lives.
In this edition, we are showcasing the work of three community based organisations who are working to empower their local communities, in a range of ways.
We catch up with Community Links South Lanarkshire, who featured in the Community Empowerment Action Plan, to find out about what they have achieved in the year since the launch of the Action Plan, how they have used VOICE to assist with the planning and delivery of community engagement and how they are developing their strategy for the future.
We are celebrating the work of two community organisations who are working to tackle climate change - Sleat Community Trust in Skye and Greener Kirkcaldy in Fife. Both of these organisations received grants from the Scottish Government's Climate Challenge Fund. The Climate Challenge Fund is a grant scheme administered within the Sustainable Action Fund. The Climate Challenge Fund is all about supporting communities to tackle climate change by reducing their carbon emissions. Around 250 communities have been funded and are working hard now to deliver carbon emissions reductions. The Fund has a total available resource of £27.4 million over the three years 2008-11. The allocation, which was £8.8 million in 2008-09, is £9.3 million in 2009-10 and, subject to parliamentary approval, is £9.3 million in 2010-11. A community group must be the lead player in a project, and projects must include a measurable and significant reduction in carbon emissions, with a positive lasting legacy beyond the three years of the funding programme.
There are no further funding rounds scheduled under the 2008-11 Climate Challenge Fund and the final fund allocations are now complete.
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