Join the creative conversation about climate change

PEOPLE in Dumfries and Galloway are being urged to lend their voices to a national conversation about climate change led by the University of Glasgow.

Researchers from the University’s School of Geographical & Earth Sciences are launching an appeal to gather short pieces of creative writing from the public reflecting their thoughts and feelings about Scotland and climate change.

Submissions for stories of up to 1000 words are open until February 28. They can be fiction or nonfiction, and contributors are encouraged to write freely, whether drawing from personal experience or inventing characters and scenarios.

Some of the stories collected will be published as an anthology, as well as shared in academic publications, public reports and exhibitions.

PhD student Rhiannon Bull is leading the project and said: “We’re seeking to understand how climate change affects mental health and emotional wellbeing – and what stories people tell when given space to reflect, imagine, and express themselves.

“Ultimately, we’d like to use these stories to help climate organisations in Scotland understand how people think and feel about the country’s changing climate, and assist them in making decisions informed by those insights.”

To learn more, visit the Climate Stories website.