Following the net-zero advice from the UK’s climate advisers, the Committee on Climate Change, the Scottish Government announce they will support a target of net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2045 in the new climate law.

New advice from the UK’s climate advisers, the Committee on Climate Change,  says Scotland can and should commit to reaching net-zero emissions by 2045.

For the first time, MSPs have a full debate in the Scottish Parliament on the new Climate Change Bill.  Hundreds of people joined us outside before the debate to tell MSPs we’re running out of time.

YouGov polling, carried out for SCCS, shows people in Scotland are concerned about climate change and strongly support greater action across a range of sectors to tackle it.

The Environment Committee releases their report after several months of taking evidence from expert stakeholders. The report calls for “greater urgency and action across all parts of Government, across the wider public and private sectors and by individuals, to deliver the transformational change needed to reach our targets.”

On the 27th March MSPs debated a Scottish Greens motion for the Parliament to recognise we are entering a climate emergency, the importance of 1.5C and the need for Parliament to act in the interests of young people and future generations, as well as communities on the front line of climate breakdown around the world.

From January to March, constituents took their concerns and hopes on climate change to MSPs from every region and political party in the Scottish Parliament and urged them to support more climate action in Scotland. You can find out more from this campaign here.

Scottish Greens call for the Climate Bill to be designated a “Climate Emergency Bill” with higher emissions reduction targets and policies to tackle emissions now.

Scottish Liberal Democrats support an amendment in the Scottish Parliament which supports a net zero emissions target for Scotland for 2050 at the latest.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) published a special report on the impacts of global warming of 1.5 °C. The report lays bare the severe lack of action by the world community and the worrying rate at which our climate is changing.

Despite Storm Ali causing havoc, members of the public from every region of Scotland came together to talk to their MSPs about the need for more climate action at a Mass Climate Lobby of Holyrood. Find out more about what happened and check out the photos here.

Scottish Labour call Scotland to set a net zero emissions target by 2050 at the latest and 77% reduction in emissions by 2030 (compared to 1990 levels).

A new study by scientists from the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research at the University of Manchester and Uppsala University carried out the first detailed calculation of how Scotland needs to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to make a fair contribution to tackling climate change, as enshrined in the ‘Paris Agreement’ of 2015.

They concluded that Scotland needs to deliver much faster reductions than those proposed in the draft new Scottish Climate Bill, and that net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 at the latest is both possible and necessary.

Faith leaders from across Scotland’s religious traditions joined forces to urge the Scottish Parliament to strengthen its Climate Change Bill to help stem the tide of a growing climate crisis wreaking havoc on the world’s poorest countries. Read more on this web page (external website).

People from every inhabited continent in the world call for more climate ambition from Scotland. Read their stories and what they think Scotland needs to do to play its fair part in tackling climate change.

19,000 people from across Scotland responded to a Scottish Government consultation on the new climate law for Scotland. 99% of respondents to the consultation support more ambitious emissions targets and policy change to achieve this.

In her Programme for Government, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon commits to phasing out fossil fuel vehicles by 2032, ahead of the UK Government commitment to do this by 2040. SCCS welcomed this commitment from the Scottish Government.

The Scottish Green Party call for Scotland to set a net zero emissions target by 2040 at the latest.

Stop Climate Chaos Scotland launched our campaign Act for Our Future, to call for a new Scottish Climate Change Bill that creates both world-leading ambition and the policies required for delivery.

In 2015, every country on earth came together to agree a new UN global agreement on climate change, the Paris Agreement. This committed all nations to keep global temperature increases “well below” 2°C and “endeavour to limit” that temperature rise to 1.5°C.

The Paris Agreement also committed: to limit the amount of greenhouse gases emitted by human activity; that rich countries must help poorer nations to adapt to already-unavoidable climate impacts. The Agreement also included a requirement that each country’s contribution to cutting emissions is reviewed every five years.

In 2017, the US confirmed it will no longer participate in the Paris Agreement. In spite of this, all other nations remain committed to what was agreed in 2015.