FOR all the criticisms, it has been very exciting to watch the world come to Glasgow this week to discuss the most pressing issue we face. Despite the best efforts of the UK Government, Scotland has not been sidelined. The First Minister has succeeded in attracting the attention of the world’s media and grassroots initiatives from Scots have flourished on the fringes of COP26. It has been a reminder that Scotland has the potential to take our rightful place on the world stage, if only we think big and expand our horizons with confidence.

Attempts to cause mischief by accusing the Scottish Government of hijacking the event to spread the independence message were as predictable as they were pathetic, particularly after an interview given by the FM to Channel 4 News in which she emphasised that her focus at COP would be climate change, attracting ire from some sections of the Yes movement.

A former SNP leader once advised me that a nationalist parliamentarian should never make a speech without mentioning independence. That is, after all, our raison d’etre. Certainly, when engaged in international diplomacy, I think people would expect us to take any opportunity to impart our message even when the focus of discussions is elsewhere. So I am sure the FM will have taken the opportunity to press home her case in her one-to-one meetings with various heads of state. That is what diplomacy is about.

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A couple of weeks ago, I attended a conference in Brussels organised by the Friends of Europe to look at the major issues facing Europe today. Climate change was top of the list and Glasgow City Council leader Susan Aitken joined us by live link to talk about the imminent COP. I was the only Scottish delegate physically present at the event and I can tell you that delegates from other countries were keen to know what is happening with our independence campaign. It’s not exactly a surprise to them that this is our mission. They are engaged and more positive than ever before.

Efforts and initiatives in international diplomacy by our SNP Scottish Government and our SNP parliamentarians are vital to further the cause of independence. As I have previously argued, one aspect of this should be moving the narrative away from the so-called gold standard of a process laid down by a devolution statue barely 20 years old towards reminders of Scotland’s nationhood and previous statehood between 1320 and 1707. While we may be “a nation in waiting” for our independence, we must remind other nation states that Scotland is already a nation which was once a state and never merely a region.

As always, it is deeds, not words, that count and a good example of the sort of outreach we need will be seen today on the fringes of the COP with events marking the culmination of an important series of initiatives in the Arctic and Nordic sphere by an SNP parliamentarian and his team.

In collaboration with the New York Times Climate Hub, a new Scottish start-up will be holding two sessions today with a focus on young voices. Renew the World aims is to change the way the world talks about and acts upon climate and is eager to help develop the ideas that will come out of COP this week.

Their first session will bring four young Scottish delegates together with educators, thinkers and Arctic representatives to discuss transnational co-operation between Scottish and Arctic youth in order to renew trust and leadership for the polar region.

The Arctic has warmed three times as fast as the global average. Arctic sea ice acts as a huge white reflector at the top of the planet, bouncing some of the sun’s rays back into space, helping keep the Earth at an even temperature.

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As the sea ice melts, there is less to reflect the rays, and more heat is absorbed by the ocean, magnifying the warming effect. Sea ice extent has declined 43% between 1979 and 2019. The Arctic also helps circulate the world’s ocean currents, moving cold and warm water around the globe. As it melts, sea temperatures around the world change, affecting marine ecosystems and communities that rely on them.

Data from space is vital in monitoring the decline of sea ice and the European Space Agency’s Climate Change Initiative monitors space data on the Arctic from multiple satellite missions. I am proud that a number of organisations based in my constituency and across Edinburgh are involved in this work.

Alpha Data, for example, creates technology for Earth Observation and works with a range of space sector partners including Nasa. Another constituent, Daniel Smith, co-chairs Space Scotland’s environmental taskforce. Its initiatives include creating an accessible digital library of space data to help communities around the world plan climate action.

Edinburgh-based companies Ecometrica and Space Intelligence also use satellite data to create world-leading forest protection and restoration programmes. The Scottish Government has set out a policy framework for Scotland’s co-operation and partnership with the Arctic which includes a section on climate change: “Arctic Connections: Scotland’s Arctic Policy Framework”.

It promotes Scotland as the European gateway to the Arctic and was well received by our High North neighbours and hailed as a shining example for development of a policy framework in this field by the Polar Research and Policy Initiative think tank.

Douglas Chapman MP has said the UK (and an independent Scotland) should have an Arctic ambassador to cover environment, energy and economic issues in that important region. This week, Douglas

has been in attendance at the Nordic Council in Copenhagen, furthering Scotland’s interests with some of our closest neighbours and in all things Nordic.

Could Scotland become a member of the Nordic Council? There is a clear message here that while the UK pursues an insular post-Brexit policy Scotland is looking to forge alliances. Scotland wants to be a good global citizen and a co-operative and collaborative partner … so we certainly fit the model of a Nordic state in that respect.

And, as we have seen from Lesley Riddoch’s excellent work with Nordic Horizons and her fantastic series of films about Iceland, the Faroes and Norway, there is much else to interest Scotland in the north as we move towards independence. This includes the rather different relationships Norway and Iceland have with the EU through membership of Efta and the EEA.

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Back at the COP, the second event organised by Renew the World will centre round four young female delegates, one from each of the four constituent parts of the UK. They will discuss how to unlock the potential of young women to contribute to a just transition and examine the issues around gender equality and climate change.

Their aim will be to find out how we can facilitate more women in leadership roles across all sectors from STEM to the creative arts and journalism, as part of a more equitable and speedier journey to net zero. They will be joined by scientists, businesswomen and Scottish Finance Secretary Kate Forbes as well as young women working in clean energy from across the globe and a number of MPs, including myself.

These events truly will be “The People’s COP” we were promised. It is fantastic that they have sprung from here in Scotland and it’s more of this sort of action, and the diplomacy which can follow, that we need in our journey towards independence.

While the focus of these events is climate change, I would expect any SNP parliamentarian present to use appropriate opportunities to advance the cause of independence and to state clearly our mission to international partners.