GROW DUNDEE (Dundee Network of Community Growers) and the BIG GROW projects want to continue to make food growing (and cooking!) more accessible to everyone in Dundee, multiplying the opportunities for people in every neighbourhood. 

See our network and events on growdundee.blog and more info about the Maxwell Centre work and the Big Grow on maxdundee.org.uk

We are asking for funding to cover one annual salary so our team can continue to support learning and sharing opportunities across these 2 new and very successful community initiatives to address local climate justice through growing and cooking food, supporting biodiversity and climate-friendly gardens and green spaces across our city.

Each of the 30+ community food growing space in our city as well as 100+ family, community or school growing spaces will benefit from all the garden and wildlife resources, partnerships, training, events, joined fundraising and more. The project officer will organise or deliver:

• Community growers networking gatherings every two months at different community gardens across the city
• A programme of workshops and events to learn and make our work more visible for more engagement at each neighbourhood – keep community growers updated with good practice and opportunities for sustainable gardening and support to keep their community groups running.
• Updates of the GROW DUNDEE website so Dundonians know where all community gardens are, how to join to volunteer or for activities as well as tips and advice on sustainable suppliers etc. a live chat, phone and in person advice.
• Facilitation of partnership projects with over 15 environmental and community partners to enable access of community gardens to resources, support and funding (for example free fruit tree or bushes, help with composting, building ponds, etc.)
• Expansion of the network to include schools that are growing food
• Establishment of biodiversity hubs in neighbourhoods through community growing spaces and regular Bio blitzes

DUNDEE THE BIG GROW would also be supported by our staff for the next growing season, signing up 100 families, community groups or schools. Some new to growing, some having started recently to learn, grow, cook and share in their community. They will benefit from a community learning programme that includes training in growing, cooking and biodiversity through workshops, newsletters, videos, events, tool borrowing, free seeds and seedlings as well as one-to-one tailored advice for their growing space. 

For over 40 years, actors appearing at Dundee Rep have prepared for their stage roles in one of our eight dressing rooms and have chilled out pre and post-performance in our Green Room, whilst colleagues in our programming and planning department work tirelessly to schedule an exciting programme of events for you our audiences, whilst box office staff sell tickets to each show. For over 40 years, all these professionals have shivered in the winter, as the draughty, single-glazed windows in each area leach warmth out of the rooms and let the chills in!

As an A-Listed building, we are limited in changes and modifications we are allowed to make both externally and internally. Our windows are 42-year-old, single-gazed originals; some are very unique: triangular in shape reflecting the stylised motif based on our stage which occurs throughout the building. Some also feature a louvre-design of slatted glass opening for ventilation and due to the listing they can’t be replaced. However they are hugely draughty and it is very difficult to keep above 21oC, the ideal office temperature.  Our recent annual Energy Report by Creative Carbon Scotland estimated we have been losing around 60% of heat generated through our gas central heating system through these windows!

Having seen the positive impact installing secondary glazing in other parts of the building has made to reducing our heating bills, we now want to complete the rest of the building, installing recyclable, polycarbonate glazing to the remaining areas.  We estimate it will save around 25% of our gas usage, will stop staff use of portable, electric heaters- an inefficient, health and safety risk- and will help towards making the building air tight, so allowing the possibility installing an air source heat pump in future. This installation will contribute towards our target of a reduction of 109 tonnes of CO2 by 2028.

We were recently voted Dundee Chamber of Commerce Champions 2024, in part due to our work in climate adaptation and mitigation working towards Net Zero, some of which is highlighted in the video on this page.

Thank you for your support.

Forthill Community Sports Club is committed to sustainability and enhancing its facilities to better serve the community. Our proposed solar panel installation, (£22,505 cost), will significantly lower energy costs, allowing us to reinvest savings into sporting programs, outreach, and development. By reducing our carbon footprint, we create a more sustainable future for our members and inspire young athletes to take part in an environmentally conscious sports culture. This initiative strengthens our role as a community hub, promoting both physical well-being and environmental responsibility.

Forthill Community Sports Club is a local hub dedicated to promoting sports and physical activity in the community. Based in Broughty Ferry, Dundee, the club provides facilities for a variety of sports, including cricket, tennis, hockey, squash, rugby and table tennis. It serves a wide range of age groups and skill levels, from beginners to seasoned athletes, and is focused on fostering both sporting excellence and community engagement. In addition to hosting matches and events, Forthill also plays a key role in sports development and outreach, offering programs that encourage active participation, teamwork, and personal growth. The club's inclusive and welcoming environment makes it a vital part of the local sports culture. Our facilities are used by a variety of community groups who are not directly linked to Forthill, and we hope that the financial savings throught this solar project will allow us to open our doors to more groups.

Dundee Science Centre (DSC) is a lifelong learning resource committed to engaging and empowering our community with science whilst developing their skills. We will deliver a brand-new community engagement programme shining a light on climate change, through play and hands-on learning, to inspire action.  

Discover: We are experiencing a climate emergency. Our planet’s temperature is rising, biodiversity is decreasing and the change in our climate is having a devastating effect on life across the globe. Across Tayside, we have experienced record-breaking heatwaves and extreme flooding - putting our health and homes at risk. It’s important that we come together as a community to support each other and to protect our planet, now and for the future. Participants will discover how this has happened and the impact it will have on life on Earth through engaging demonstrations and hands-on learning.  

Explore: Dundee is at the forefront of climate action and adaption. Guided by the Sustainable Development Goals, we will explore ways in which our city and the surrounding areas can take action to build resilience to climate change and continue to grow in a climate positive way. 

Play: We will bring fun, engaging workshops and play-based activities into community centres and hubs across Dundee, alongside our community partners which include Dundee Bairns, Dundee Stroke and Exercise Group and Abertay Enviromental Science team including Dr Rebecca Wade. Our mission is to facilitate positive experiences with science, empower our community and to encourage them to connect with the natural world, embracing and protecting it for the future. 

Whilst the majority of the project delivery will take the form of in-person workshops throughout the community, we will also upskill community leaders and educators to ensure our work has a lasting legacy and provide resources for community centres to continue building their skills for years to come. Our programme development team utilise research informed learning practises and work closely with the Association of Science and Discovery Centres and the National Environment Reseach Council to bring the latest scientific developments to our audiences in exciting and meaningful ways. 

DSC will participate in community festivals, offering engaging and interactive experiences connected to our Climate Champions initiative. We will also host visits to our centre, where the public can explore sustainability through our award-winning exhibitions, guided by our expert science communicators. 

The environmental benefits of the project will include: 

Awareness Raising: Our team will provide a wide range of examples to establish a deep understanding of the global to local impacts of climate change.  

Community Engagement: We will work closely with a wide range of audiences to develop engaging and impactful workshops that allow them to take ownership over their own learning and apply their skills to help solve issues within their communities.  

Skills Development: Our team will raise the science capital and STEM skillset of participants as well as providing opportunities to improve critical thinking, literacy, numeracy and teamwork in informal settings. These transferrable skills will be beneficial in taking climate action but also in the personal and professional lives of the those involved.  

Climate Action & Adaption: The intended outcome of our work is to have our participants go out and take action in their local area that positively benefits the both the environment and their community.  

No action is too small or insignificant when it comes to creating a better world. Join us as we create Climate Champions across Tayside and play our part in driving meaningful climate action.    

The Dundee and Angus college project, EcoEats, aims to tackle food waste by delivering engaging and educational cookery classes that utilise ingredients commonly found at food banks and community fridges. By transforming surplus food into delicious and nutritious meals, we will not only reduce food waste but also empower participants with valuable cooking skills and knowledge, as well as utilising local ingredients.

Our primary objective is to rescue food that would otherwise go to waste. By sourcing ingredients from local food banks, community fridges, and community growing groups we will ensure that surplus food is put to good use. Our target audience will be those using food banks, D&A college learners and their families, Dundee residents and hospitality business owners.

We will offer hands-on cookery classes where participants learn to create a variety of meals using rescued ingredients. These classes will be accessible to all, fostering a sense of community and inclusivity.

Alongside the classes, we will develop and distribute recipe cards that highlight creative ways to use common surplus ingredients. These cards will serve as a lasting resource for participants, encouraging them to continue reducing food waste at home.

By rescuing and utilising surplus food, our project will significantly reduce the amount of food waste that ends up in landfills. This not only conserves resources but also reduces greenhouse gas emissions associated with food decomposition.

Utilising food that would otherwise be discarded helps conserve the resources used in food production, such as water, energy, and land. This contributes to a more sustainable food system.

Our project will also raise awareness about the environmental impact of food waste and promote sustainable practices within the community. Participants will learn the importance of reducing food waste and how they can make a positive impact on the environment through their daily choices.

By minimising food waste, we reduce the carbon footprint associated with food production, transportation, and disposal. This contributes to mitigating climate change and promoting environmental sustainability.

Through this project, we aim to create a ripple effect of positive change, inspiring individuals and communities to adopt more sustainable practices and make the most of the food resources available to them. Together, we can make a significant impact on reducing food waste and protecting our environment. The EcoEats project will contribute the Dundee Climate Fund priorities of waste, resilience and community engagement.

How daunting and frustrating it must feel to be a young person now - as climate change gathers pace - more uncertain than previous generations about what the future holds. Furthermore, many feel failed by governments and older generations, and powerless to influence the direction of travel. Although schools are tasked with preparing children for the future and providing the skills and knowledge for the climate transition, teachers often feel similarly ill-equipped to fulfil this role.

So, how can this stalemate situation be overcome? Is there a way that young people can be given agency over their future careers and livelihoods? These are the questions that led researchers at The James Hutton Institute, in collaboration with teachers in secondary schools and career-advisors at Skills Development Scotland, to develop a novel multi-actor, multi-generational model to engage young people in the discussion and co-design of pathways for climate transition.

The Dundee Climate Fund 3.0 would allow us to develop and run a ‘COP’ style event bringing young people in Dundee together with potential future employers in the co-design of pathways for climate transition. The workshops will empower young people to work with scientists and industry experts to discuss collective actions, skills, careers and individual behavioural changes underpinning this transformation.

We propose a one-day event involving between 5 and 10 students (S5/S6 – age:15 - 18) from each Dundee secondary school, in the novel workshop model previously piloted in a successful event in Perth.  Selected academic and industry speakers will present challenges and visions for the climate transition in major socio-economic sectors (chosen in collaboration with local educators) and open a collective discussion with the young people. After initial presentations, young people will be divided in discussion teams where they will perform a SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats) and STEEP (Social, Technology, Environmental, Economic and Political drivers of change) analysis of climate transition in each of the different socio-economic sectors, with the support of academic and industry experts. Following this analysis, young people will design a route map and recommendations to reach the desired future.

Young people, supported by academics and potential future employers, will learn about the climate transition and gain confidence in their own potential contributions and agency. This will create socio-ecological benefits for Dundee communities and environment by empowering the next generation of adults to make meaningful changes in our future society. After the workshop, students will receive a certificate of attendance from The James Hutton Institute, and their recommendations will be disseminated to target audiences in education, policy, business, and research through the project team’s communication pathways.

[the word cloud summarises the young people’s recommendations for policy during the pilot workshop in Perth]

Campy Growers is the largest community growing space in Dundee. With passionate volunteers we grow and distribute hundreds of kilos of ethically grown food to various project across the city. We run workshops about gardening, biodiversity, cooking, harvest and wider events open to all, to raise awareness about climate change and food growing.  

What's missing is a location to run all our projects and activities: a living roof green gazebo. A place to gather, to share ideas and knowledge, to enjoy the sun whilst protected from the Scottish weather. A place with a positive climate impact. A place that will make the difference. 

Picture a L-shaped wooden gazebo, south facing and made from larch sourced from a local sawmill. Can you see it? It will have a guttering system to collect water so we can wash the produce and water our plants. But most of off all, it will have a sedum (green) roof which will capture CO2 emissions and support wildlife, improve air purification, increase biodiversity, and more.   

It will become a social space for the Collective and a central point for learning:  

•  We will run more workshops and events in relation to gardening, cooking, biodiversity and resilience. Although we ran several workshops last year, we were quite limited in terms of space, so we want to expand and make people feel welcome! Here is a wee taster of what we are planning for 2025: start your garden, botany, Harvest session, mushroom growing, cooking with seasonal veg, fermentation, learn about moths and bat, movie screening, open days and more.   
• Start a Climate Café style conversation: Every month we will run climate café style conversation giving the opportunity to everybody to share their thoughts about climate change. Campy Growers is an example of a proactive project which counter-act climate change. Being surrounded by food and green space changes the dynamic and impact of such conversations can have.    
• We will offer a space for our volunteers and visitors:  With our volunteers and visitors we talk about gardening for sure, but we also create connections, share aspirations and ideas. A dedicated area to relax, think, gather and enjoy homemade food together is the key of our Collective   
• We will use it as a packhouse for our weekly veg stalls and distribution, an open space visible to all visitors who want to get some vegetables or learn about community market gardening techniques. It is a self-sufficient space with its guttering system too. 

We need your vote to create to social space which will support the biodiversity and will allow us to run more events and workshop creating resilience and awareness about climate change and food growing.   

Kanzen is a registered charitys committed to not only building better lives but also to making a positive impact on the environment. With our new initiative to introduce an electric vehicle, we aim to significantly reduce our carbon footprint and contribute to a greener, more sustainable future. This will help us cut harmful emissions, reduce reliance on fossil fuels, and set a strong example for other organisations in the community. It will also support us to remove barriers by providing accesible transport to those who need it. 

As well as reducing our carbon emmissions, an electric vehicle would also help us save money which we can then repurpose back into our charitable activities. 

Kanzen is an award winning charity and we are the current Dundee Social Enterprise of the Year, Dundee Sports Club of the Year and winners of The Courier Business Awards for Community Impact. 

We organised the first carbon neutral martial arts event in Europe and are proud to be an organisation rooted in the community. 

Enter 'The World is My...' an immersive and participatory dance-theatre show for the 10-12 years old on climate crisis, eco-anxiety, and how to transform from eco-worriers into eco-warriors! 

Follow the two characters as they dance their way through the recovered Lego washed-out pieces that continue to reach the Cornish shores from a 1997 drifting steel container on its way to New York, the Tokio Express. 

The project covers two weeks of rehearsals and two weeks of performance shows in Dundee (up to 20 shows, and 2,000 audiences). It is a development phase from a previous period supported by Aberdeen Creative Learning where the team became company in residence in two primary schools in Aberdeen. We learnt facts from great partners such as the James Hutton Institute in Aberdeen, a world-leading scientific research organisation; as well as from local partners like the amazing Transition Dundee. 

Following this learning, which included the children’s feedback, we will continue to develop the show and perform it, this time in Dundee, exploring the power of creativity in conveying transformational and long-lasting messages for radical environmental change. 

Your support will help both the dissemination of key learning for the young children of Dundee and the exposure to performing arts activities in schools, contributing to implement the Article 31 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, with relation to accessing play, cultural activities, and recreational activities. 

A multi-award-wining organisation with a 10-year long-standing partnership with NHS Tayside delivering the smoking awareness programme Well Good reaching 7,000 children per year (yep…70,000 so far!), we know how to provide engaging and inspiring learning, but we need your help. 

If you want to contribute to this project, becoming a community producer…Vote for us! 

Many thanks. 

Cake or Dice, partnered with NEoN Digital Arts, are looking to run Dundee's only Repair and Share cafe, as a current member  of Scotland's Share and Repair network. Repair Cafés are meeting places and they’re all about repairing things. In Cake or Dice, where the Repair Café will be located, you will find folk who can help, and tools and materials to help you make any repairs you need. We hope to be able to repair clothes, small tech, bicycles, jewellery, appliances, and toys! 

You’ll also find expert volunteers, with repair skills in all kinds of fields. We are lucky to have volunteers that are small tech specialists, crafters, jewellery makers, seamstresses, knitters, 3d printer technicians, and many more. We will alternate who will be available monthly, with information going out on socials and a newsletter. If you have nothing to repair, you can come in and have a blether, enjoy a cup of tea or coffee, or even a slice of cake. You can also get inspired at our lending library, where you can pick up books, zines or even board games! 

Our first pilot cafe will run on Saturday 19th October, and will be a partnership between Cake or Dice, NEoN and Dundee MakerSpace.  After the pilot, we would like to run a session monthly. 

We would therefore like to hire a part-time staff member to help deliver the following:

• • A repair and share cafe once a month

  • Admin and coordination of volunteers

  • A new weekly conversation space, 

  • Support and learning of MyTurn, creating a tools library between Cake or Dice, NEoN Digital Arts and other partnerships in the Creative hub, that Cake or dice have created. 

  • This funding will also support the tools library, plus initial material costs. 

Repairs cafes are good for the environment as they reduce waste, promote recycling and reduce carbon emissions. They also help reduce electronic waste, hopefully prolonging the life of technology. We hope that it will also save money, plus empower our community to be more confident in their own skills, and start on their own sustainable journey. 

We have been fortunate enough in to attend the Share and Repair gathering in February 2024, and have been supported so far in setting up our repair cafe infrastructure by members and other repair cafes. We are so excited to be able to bring this to Dundee, and hope you are able to join us on this journey!