National Lottery funding for community environment project in Berwickshire
Berwickshire Marine Reserve is launching a new project thanks to funding received from The National Lottery Community Fund.
The one-year initiative will empower local people to take action in response to growing concerns around climate change, tourism pressures and pollution affecting the region’s blue spaces.
The project, ‘Under Pressure: Connecting Coastal Communities’, builds on two years of conservation work and community consultation, using local data and citizen science to drive meaningful environmental action.
The project focuses on three key areas: strengthening community volunteering, expanding environmental education, and directly addressing local environmental concerns.
Through an expanded volunteer network, the initiative will continue to increase the number and diversity of community members involved in conservation activities such as beach cleans, biodiversity and cetacean surveys, and removal of non-native invasive species.
Volunteers will receive training and support to lead their own activities, ensuring long-term sustainability and community ownership.
The project also aims to establish a permanent, year-round education centre as a shared space for learning and inspiration.
The initiative has been shaped directly by community input. To date, 216 people have contributed to environmental consultations through surveys, interviews, voting boards and suggestion boxes.
Sally Walsh, chair of the organisation, said: “This funding is a significant boost for our coastal community. Thanks to National Lottery players, we can continue building a resilient, skilled and united community that is equipped to protect and sustain the Berwickshire coast for future generations.
"The strength of this project lies in community voices - local people identifying local challenges and working together to solve them.”