Stirling Council will become one of the first local authorities in Scotland to sign up to the Glasgow Food and Climate Declaration.
The Glasgow Food and Climate Declaration is an international commitment to tackle the climate emergency through integrated food policies and a call to national governments to act.
Members of the Council’s Community Planning and Regeneration Committee discussed how the ‘Declaration’ correlates with Stirling Council’s own goals and ambitions regarding both climate change and food policies.
Convener of the Community Planning and Regeneration Committee, Councillor Chris Kane said: “We are already members of the Sustainable Food Network across Scotland because of our work on the Stirling Food Framework and our commitment to becoming a sustainable food health partnership area.
“Stirling has the framework in place, the policies in place and the overall political commitment to recognise, understand and tackle this issue.
“By supporting this global movement we are reemphasising what we are already doing in this critical area of work, adding Stirling’s voice to the members of the international community who are also signing up to this declaration, particularly in advance of COP26.”
In recent years Stirling Council has launched a suite of strategies and initiatives for public consultation, aimed at tackling the climate emergency, including a new healthy eating initiative, the Stirling Food Framework, as part of its drive to tackle food poverty in the area.
Developed by the local authority and its community partners, including NHS Forth Valley, its priorities include improving access to good quality, healthy and sustainable food.
The Glasgow Food and Climate Declaration is a pledge and a call to action by sub-national, local and international governments from all over the world to accelerate the development of integrated food policies as a key tool in the fight against climate change.
Local authorities are being encouraged to support this significant international pledge by Nourish Scotland, which co-ordinates the Sustainable Food Places network, in the lead up to COP26, the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference being held this November in Glasgow.
Its co-benefits include biodiversity, ecosystem regeneration, circularity, access to sustainable and healthy diets for all, and the creation of resilient livelihoods for farm and food workers.
By signing the Declaration, Stirling Council will commit to:
– Developing and implementing integrated food policies and strategies.
– Reducing greenhouse gas emissions from urban and regional food systems.
– Calling on national governments to establish supportive and enabling policy frameworks and multi-level and multi-actor governance mechanisms.
Vice Convener, Councillor Scott Farmer, said: “The Council and its community partners have already shown understanding and commitment to ongoing work in this area. Our wide-ranging food framework has set us on a course to reduce health and income inequalities which is a key Council priority.
“The Declaration will also allow us to raise awareness by sharing information about the impact of food systems on climate change, while continuing our work across the region to ensure we make Stirling a Good Food City – a place where everyone can access healthy, affordable and sustainable food.”
The Glasgow Food and Climate Declaration can be viewed here: https://www.glasgowdeclaration.org/the-glasgow-declaration.
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