Introducing 'Making Change': Stories, Learning, and Action from Dundee's Changemakers
- 1 day ago
- 3 min read
Across Dundee people are working every day to make their communities stronger, fairer, and more sustainable. From community growing projects and food initiatives to environmental campaigns and neighbourhood action groups, there is no shortage of people who care deeply about the places they live and the future they want to create.
Yet many community groups and individuals also share a common frustration. Decisions about our urban environment can often feel distant and difficult to influence. Whether it's access to green spaces, waste management, food systems, local development, or environmental policy, many people feel excluded from the processes that shape their lives and neighbourhoods.
Making Change is a project that seeks to address this challenge by bringing together a diverse and intersectional group of Dundonians to explore how change happens, who holds power, and how communities can work together to influence environmental practice and policy.
Through research, discussion, and collective action, participants are drawing on their own lived experiences and local knowledge to better understand their environmental rights and develop practical ways to influence the systems around them.
At the heart of the project are some important questions:
What makes a successful environmental campaign at the local level?
How can communities engage and organise effectively?
How can residents make their voices heard by decision-makers?
What support do people need when taking part in consultations, petitions, or campaigns?
How can public spaces be used to strengthen communities and create positive change?
Through Making Change, participants are exploring questions about food security, nutrition, sustainability, waste reduction, and community-led solutions. They are also engaging directly with organisations, practitioners and decision-makers to better understand both the opportunities and barriers to change.
Along the way, the group will be asking:
How is meaningful change created?
What motivates people to become changemakers?
What are the biggest challenges facing our food and waste systems?
What helps communities succeed?
What would a thriving, sustainable food system for Tayside look like?
What role can local communities play in making that vision a reality?
How can education support greater participation and understanding?
The project is about asking questions, sharing learning, celebrating local action, and building confidence for future changemaking as a community.
That's why we're delighted to launch the new Making Change page on our website.
This new area of the website will showcase the people, projects and ideas that are helping to shape positive change across Dundee. Over the coming months, we'll be sharing articles, reflections and short video interviews with changemakers from different backgrounds, communities, and neighbourhoods. Together these stories will highlight the diversity and geographical spread of changemaking activity across the city while offering inspiration, practical insights and lessons for others who want to get involved.
We will also be creating a series of accessible guides and events that draw on the experiences and learning from the project. These resources will offer practical advice on community participation, campaigning, collaboration and influencing change, helping more people to take action on the issues that matter to them.
Communities already hold valuable knowledge, experience, and ideas. By creating spaces to learn from one another, ask challenging questions and build connections, we can strengthen our collective ability to shape a more sustainable and equitable future for Dundee.
We hope you'll explore the stories, watch the interviews, come to the events, and join the conversation as the project continues to grow. Together, we can learn more about how change happens and how we can all play a part in making it.
