Unlocking a better future: a framework for systemic change to deliver a just transition in Scotland

The document outlines the application of the Unlocking a Better Future (UBF) framework to Scotland's policy landscape to support a "net-zero, nature-positive" future. It details a methodology involving the mapping of existing policies against three transformative shifts—redefining the human-nature relationship, ensuring lasting prosperity, and investing in a sustainable future—to identify systemic gaps. Key recommendations include integrating nature-based education, exploring the 'Rights of Nature', and adopting wellbeing-based economic metrics. The framework emphasizes the use of the SDG Synergies tool to manage policy trade-offs and suggests tracking progress through values-based indicators, such as those from the World Values Survey, to monitor deep structural and cultural shifts.

• The Unlocking a Better Future (UBF) framework was used to map policy levers and identify systemic gaps in Scotland, resulting in a roadmap for transformation based on three shifts: redefining the relationship with nature, ensuring lasting prosperity for all, and investing in a sustainable future.
• A mapping of Scottish Government policies revealed a lack of systematic approaches to nature-based education and the 'Rights of Nature', leading to recommendations for integrating nature-based learning across all education levels and exploring legal frameworks that recognize nature as a rights-bearing entity.
• To better align economic decision-making with environmental and wellbeing outcomes, the research recommends using wider wellbeing measures in Scotland’s Wellbeing Economy Monitor and applying a sustainability filter to procurement and innovation policies.
• The methodology emphasized the need for institutionalized, long-term public engagement mechanisms, such as deliberative processes, rather than relying on ad hoc consultations to increase policy legitimacy and public trust.
• The use of the SDG Synergies tool during consultations allowed for the early identification of interactions between policy recommendations to maximize co-benefits and minimize unintended consequences.
• Monitoring transformative change requires moving beyond traditional outcome indicators to track signals of systemic and cultural shifts, such as using World Values Survey data to see if there is less societal emphasis on money and material possessions.

APA

Lambe, F., Weitz, N., Hilgert, A., & Kemp-Benedict, E. (2025). Unlocking a better future: a framework for systemic change to deliver a just transition in Scotland. Stockholm Environment Institute. https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/pdfs/195821/unlocking-better-future-framework-just-transition-scotland.pdf

Chicago

Lambe, Fiona, Nina Weitz, Annika Hilgert, and Eric Kemp-Benedict. Unlocking a better future: a framework for systemic change to deliver a just transition in Scotland. Stockholm Environment Institute, 2025. https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/pdfs/195821/unlocking-better-future-framework-just-transition-scotland.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Lambe |first1=Fiona |last2=Weitz |first2=Nina |last3=Hilgert |first3=Annika |last4=Kemp-Benedict |first4=Eric |title=Unlocking a better future: a framework for systemic change to deliver a just transition in Scotland |publisher=Stockholm Environment Institute |date=June 2025 |url=https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/pdfs/195821/unlocking-better-future-framework-just-transition-scotland.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{lambe2025unlocking, author = {Lambe, Fiona and Weitz, Nina and Hilgert, Annika and Kemp-Benedict, Eric}, title = {{Unlocking a better future: a framework for systemic change to deliver a just transition in Scotland}}, institution = {Stockholm Environment Institute}, year = {2025}, month = jun, url = {https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/pdfs/195821/unlocking-better-future-framework-just-transition-scotland.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }