Analysis: Scotland must lead by example on the planet’s problems

What is lacking is the mainstream political ambition to bring them about, and this depends on people coming together to keep up the pressure for a greener and fairer society.

We must lead by example in Scotland and tackle the root causes of our planet’s problems. To bring down carbon emissions we must decide that fossil fuels are more valuable left in the ground, rather than extracting them and trying to burn them at a slightly lower rate. Renewables must replace and not just complement fossil fuels. Achieving this would be far easier if we made a much greater effort on energy efficiency and reduced our energy demand overall, with warmer homes and lower fuel bills as a result.

We must redesign our economy so that success isn’t attached to consuming ever more of our limited resources and is instead measured on what really matters to people. We should be paying far more attention to reducing waste.

Ultimately it is inequality within and between countries that is driving global overconsumption. Tackling poverty must be our very top priority, at the heart of action by all levels of government and by local communities.

We must keep up the momentum and translate our ambitions into the new jobs and opportunities we need to make Scotland a leader in planet-saving industries.

• Alison Johnstone is Lothian Green MSP