May Updates: GreenLight Returns, Living Artworks & The People’s Emergency Briefing
8th May
There’s a real sense of activity building across Edinburgh this month, with community gardens filling up, outdoor gatherings returning and people continuing to organise, collaborate and take action in neighbourhoods across the city.
As always - this month’s newsletter brings together events, opportunities, funding and ways to get involved across the ECCAN network. Here are some highlights from this month’s update.
People’s Emergency Briefing & Climate Bites
This month we’ll be hosting two screenings (one afternoon, one evening) of the People’s Emergency Briefing film at Augustine United Church, followed by facilitated discussion exploring what meaningful local action could look like here in Edinburgh.
We’re also heading to Pianodrome for our next Climate Bites gathering, with live piano and storytelling from Will Pickvance alongside lunch, conversation and connection across the network.
GreenLight 2026–27
We’re excited to share that GreenLight returns this week, with £160,000 available to support community climate action projects across Edinburgh.
This year we’re particularly keen to hear from youth-led initiatives, work focused on climate adaptation and resilience, and projects that help widen access and participation in climate action. We’ll also be running online and in-person support surgeries from mid-May to help groups develop ideas and applications.
What’s happening across the network
There are lots of ways to get involved this month, from gardening sessions, climate cafés and repair workshops to creative activities, local consultations and nature-focused gatherings happening across the city.
We also highlighted opportunities to volunteer with organisations including Shrub Co-op, Hidden Door Festival and Edinburgh & Lothians Greenspace Trust, alongside ongoing opportunities to contribute to local place plans, creative projects and community research.
Looking back on April
Last month we gathered at North Edinburgh Arts for our Spring Assembly: Nature Where We Live, bringing together people from across Edinburgh to explore biodiversity, green space and community action through workshops, discussion and shared learning. Read all about the day and updates from across the network here.
We also held a sunny Climate Bites at Goodies Community Café, with delicious food from the Goodies team and thoughtful conversations around local projects and what’s been coming up across the network.
For full details on all of this and more, click below to read the May newsletter.