Rural and Island young people make their voice heard as part of the Scottish Rural Movement

Catriona Mallows, Campaigns and Communications Lead with Scottish Rural Action 

In January, thirty rural and island young people travelled from across a snowy Scotland to gather in Edinburgh for two days, networking with one another and meeting with representatives of the Scottish Government. Making journeys from the Western Isles, Caithness, Fort William, the Borders, and the Moray coast, to name but a few geographies, it was quite a feat getting there!

This group of young people formed following the inaugural Scottish Rural & Islands Youth Parliament, which took place on the 1st of November 2023 in Fort William as part of the wider Scottish Rural and Islands Parliament, a participative democratic grassroots assembly bringing together people who live and work in rural and island Scotland. 75 individuals aged 16 to 30 engaged in discussions, reflecting on their lived experiences to articulate what is most important to them. Joined by Highlands and Islands MSP, Emma Roddick, and Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs, Land Reform and Islands, Mairi Gougeon, the youth delegates worked together on 10 topics, from education, to food and agriculture, to arts and culture, to housing, and produced statements linked to these topics in a set of demands they want decision-makers to act on.

The youth delegates were in Edinburgh for two reasons: to meet again with one another and further refine these demands, but to also affect change within the Scottish Government and the Scottish Parliament, notably upon invitation by Ms Gougeon to meet with the Permanent Secretary, the First Minister and his cabinet, and to listen into a dedicated debate in the chamber on their asks.

On the first evening together, they met in the Scottish Storytelling Centre. Alan from the Cairngorms National Park Authority facilitated some ice-breaker sessions, whilst Anna from the Cairngorms Youth Action Team and Catriona from Scottish Rural Action organised a workshop revisiting their discussions across a range of topics. It was a brilliant space to take a deep dive into the very real and challenging issues they are grappling with, and to top it off they were served some rather excellent hearty chilli!

On Thursday morning, they gathered in the Edinburgh Training and Conference Centre for another series of workshops, this time exploring how they want to take forward this work as a group of rural and island young people. What resources did they need? How do they see themselves affecting change? How can they be representative, and which other organisations might they like to work with? They then had a short briefing reminding them of who they were about to meet in Holyrood, and their key lines, before making their way down to the Scottish Parliament.

Once there, they had the pleasure of meeting with the Permanent Secretary. He was very supportive of their work and outlined ways in which the civil service does, and can further, progress their demands. They then met with the First Minister, Humza Yousaf, and his whole Cabinet, which was quite an experience! The photo below summarises some of the energy in the room.

Upon delivering a speech about who they were, the group were split into 10 sub-groups, each focusing on a different theme with the relevant Cabinet Secretary. The room was lively with discussion and each Cabinet member stressed their dedication to improving the lives of rural youth, with many conversations continuing at present. They were also joined by the chair of the Scottish Youth Parliament, Mollie, and the Policy and Public Affairs Manager, Matt, which was brilliant to look at how to champion youth voices more broadly.

After lunch, the group then made their way into the chamber to watch the debate. Ms Gougeon provided an introduction, outlining each of the priorities to other MSPs. It was a lengthy debate, and despite some of the discussions becoming heated over the topics of budgets, housing and food security, it was unanimously agreed that the priorities of rural and island youth need addressed, and the Scottish Government is committed to improving their futures. Depute First Minister, Shona Robison, closed the debate and emphasised their commitments.

Many of the youth delegates expressed their thanks for being there and stressed the importance of meeting face-to-face with Cabinet Secretaries. They look forward to working closely with the Scottish Government, committee members, individual MSPs and other organisations involved in youth work on progressing their demands, particularly in light of the Rural Delivery Plan scheduled for 2026.

The success of their time in Edinburgh is very much down to the youth delegates for bringing such energy, enthusiasm and insight, to many organisations involved including Youth Local Action Groups, the Young Islanders Network, Young Farmers, Connecting Young Carers, Trees for Life Changemakers, Social Enterprise Academy, and InspirAlba to name a few. A huge thanks goes to Ms Gougeon and Ms Robison’s private office, to various teams within the Scottish Government, and to the Scottish Rural Network for funding this work.