The Scotland Edition of Where The Green Grants Went 9 (WTGGW9) reveals that environmental giving in Scotland has never been higher – environmental grants from UK-based foundations increased by 52% in 2021/22 since our last report in 2018/19. Dig deeper, though and we see some worrying trends that threaten progress towards Scottish environmental goals. Current levels and approaches to funding show Scotland is lagging behind in comparison to funding trends seen in other geographies. Thinly spread funding leaves many issue areas underfunded and organisations unable to act effectively, rapidly and strategically. Read the full report here.
Key findings
In Where the Green Grants Went 9: Scotland Edition, we analysed 727 grants made by 55 philanthropic funders in 2021/22, comprising 52 foundations and three lottery sources. We were delighted to see a 39% increase in overall funding to Scottish environmental causes:
- £25.1 million in grants went to environmental work in Scotland in 2021/22 – breaking down to £10.6 million in foundation grants and £14.5 million in lottery grants.
- In our last report, £18.1 million in grants went to environmental work in Scotland in 2018/19 – breaking down to £7 million in foundation grants and £11.1 million in lottery sources.
Whilst this snapshot shows that environmental funding in Scotland is on the rise, we are concerned by how this compares to wider funding trends. In WTGGW9, we see UK foundation funding nearly triple (260%) across all countries in 2021/22. When focusing on grants in Scotland, we see only a 52% increase from UK foundations.
However, it’s not just the amount of funding that is concerning, funding is also spread wide and thin. The median grant size from foundations was £9,500 in Scotland. As noted in WTGGW9, surprisingly few organisations are able to attract substantial or regular support from diverse trust and foundation sources. For Scottish grant recipients, this pattern continues, and inevitably constricts the efficacy of Scottish environmental work.
Similar to our findings in WTGGW9, we find in Scotland that some thematic issues are woefully underfunded in comparison to others:
- Biodiversity & species preservation attracts the highest share of funding at 33% of foundation and lottery funding.
- Toxics and pollution and freshwater attract the lowest share of funding at 0.4% and 1.4% respectively.
Whilst we welcome increases in funding for some thematic issues, the uneven distribution of funding in Scotland remains emblematic of a wider funding landscape that neglects certain so-called ‘Cinderella’ issues.
It’s important to remember the Scottish context when considering these findings. Scotland can act as a testing ground for environmental innovation that can help change the world. Scottish environmental organisations are tackling complex environmental issues, such as rapid climate change, intensive farming, habitat loss, pollution and biodiversity loss. As a country, it’s small enough to get things done, yet big enough to demonstrate scale.
Historically it has been underfunded by private philanthropy, yet as one EFN member said, ‘Often the rest of the UK will follow once something has happened in Scotland – so in terms of seeing change happen at the large scale, Scotland is a great place to start.’ To see Scotland’s funding for environmental work lagging behind the global trend is concerning – especially as there are some huge environmental successes that have been catalysed by philanthropy.
A couple recent examples include the Scottish Wildlife Trust securing the purchase of its largest ever site (the 7,618-hectare Inverbroom Estate, near Ullapool) for £17.5m following a large private donation, and Scotland’s most comprehensive seagrass planting programme getting underway, thanks to a £2.4m partnership between the Scottish Marine Environmental Enhancement Fund (SMEEF) and SSEN Distribution.
Celebrating good practice funders
We are pleased to celebrate some exemplary grantmaking in Scotland. That’s why we shared two case studies from the William Grant Foundation and People’s Postcode Lottery. Fundraisers often tell us these funders showcase progressive and effective approaches to grantmaking and thus may offer a model for other funders to work towards.
The William Grant Foundation gives £4 million annually in grants towards supporting young people and families, health, culture, heritage, and the natural and built environment. Within their climate giving they support marine and freshwater projects, warm homes, environmental infrastructure and community assets. They approach funding as flexibly and long term as possible – grant processes are light touch, 40% of their current grant relationships extend beyond five years and makes its grants unrestricted whenever it can.
Similarly the People’s Postcode Lottery has a strong funding philosophy that prioritises trust-based giving. Their giving has supported conservation in Scotland since 2008 and support from their players for larger organisations has raised more than £12 million directly for Scotland-based environmental work. They provide long-term, flexible and unrestricted funding to allow grantholders the freedom to use these funds where they consider they will be most effective.
Both William Grant Foundation and the People’s Postcode Lottery are actively involved in multiple Scottish and UK-wide networks and champion collaborating with other funders across these complex, inter-sectional issues.
Next steps..
As with our wider Where the Green Grants Went research, our aim is to educate funders on the funding landscape, help them see funding gaps and identify opportunities for collaboration. We call on funders to adopt more flexible, trusting and collaborative funding models that are suited better to tackling the urgent and broad-ranging environmental challenges the sector faces in Scotland. This would not only help to address Scotland’s complex environmental challenges, but also offer important lessons for other geographies.
You can learn more about the advantages of such funding models and find detailed recommendations in our 2024 report, Increasing the effectiveness of environmental funder-fundraiser relationships. We also believe these recommendations outlined at the end of WTGGW9 are helpful for Scottish focused funders, including providing long term, flexible and unrestricted funding, investing in core infrastructure organisations, collaborating and coordinating with other funders, and being transparent with what you fund to avoid duplication.
We welcome your thoughts on how EFN might better support both funders and fundraisers as we continue to work towards our goals of increased and more effective environmental philanthropy. Please let us know your suggestions, and any other feedback on this report – email info@greenfunders.org.