Conservation in Action at the National Museum Scotland
On Saturday 17 January, we teamed up with Edinburgh Conservation Film Festival and the National Museum of Scotland to host Conservation in Action - and the afternoon was completely packed out.
The screening brought together over 200 people and was filled with brilliant conversation, thoughtful questions and a real sense of shared curiosity about what climate action looks like in practice. It was especially great to see so many ECCAN members in the room, alongside new faces connecting with the network for the first time.
The film programme brought together a mix of short films exploring conservation from different angles - from large-scale rewilding and marine restoration to grassroots action and care for local places. Highlights included The Man Who Grew a Forest and Urban Rewilding by Simon Dures, alongside films by Saskia Sicherman, Tiziana Tedoldi, Ikram Ahmed, Om-Kalthoom and Max Romney. Together, the films offered a grounded and hopeful look at conservation rooted in people, place and practical action.
After the films, we were joined by several of our member groups and filmmakers for a lively climate fair. Groups shared their work, chatted with attendees and answered questions and many people stayed on well beyond the screening to keep conversations going. The space buzzed with energy, ideas and new connections forming. Thank you to the member groups who joined us to share their projects, ideas and opportunities with the crowd.
Alongside this, the ECCAN stall was set up as a mini-museum, sharing objects and stories from member groups who couldn’t join us on the day. This included ice-cream makers from the Edinburgh Tool Library, handmade crafts and dolls from Edinburgh & Lothians Regional Equality Council, seeds from Grow2Eat, and beautiful handmade toys from Bridgend Farm. A big thank you to everyone who shared items with us. We’re hoping to run this again, so if you’d like to exhibit objects connected to your group, members or volunteer sessions, please get in touch.
A particular highlight for us was screening the deeply touching story of The Man Who Grew a Forest and having the chance to meet Alan Watson Featherstone in person. Alan is the founder of Trees for Life and has spent decades restoring native woodland in the Scottish Highlands, helping to re-establish ecosystems at a truly landscape scale. Alan will soon be leading a rewilding workshop for those who are genuinely interested in learning more and getting involved. Places are limited - you can find out more and apply here.
If you enjoyed this event, becoming an ECCAN member is the best way to stay connected - from future screenings and workshops to ongoing conversations at Climate Bites. We’re hoping to run Conservation in Action again next year, so keep an eye out for what’s coming next.
