Scottish Parliament Approves 20-Minute Neighborhood Plan

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The establishment of "20-minute districts," where residents can reach jobs, housing, retail, health and education facilities, and food-producing gardens in a 20-minute walk or bike ride, was approved by the Scottish Parliament last week. The Scottish government is seeking to reduce emissions and build more "fair" and "sustainable" cities.

The 20-minute neighborhood plan in Scotland is a variation of the 15-minute city, which served as inspiration for the framework. In 2021, Professor Carlos Moreno became the third recipient of the OBEL AWARD for his 15-minute city concept.

According to Tom Arthur MSP, Minister for Public Finance, Planning and Community Wealth, "People living in Scotland have very different life chances, at least partly a result of the places where they live. Past industrial restructuring has had significant impacts in some places and communities. The disadvantage, child poverty and poor health outcomes are concentrated in parts of Scotland where life expectancy is significantly lower than in more advantaged areas. Access to the natural environment varies, and pollution and derelict land is concentrated in some places. Population change will bring further challenges in the future, particularly in rural parts of Scotland. Many people have limited access to opportunities because of the way our places have been designed in the past, and our city and town centres have experienced accelerating change in recent years."

The national framework serves as a guideline for local councils in charge of producing more precise plans of where new development is allowed.

Spatial Principles

The principals below will play a key role in delivering on the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as well as Scotland's national outcomes.

• Just Transition: Empowering people to shape their places and ensure the transition to net-zero is fair and inclusive.
• Conserving and Recycling Assets: Making productive use of existing buildings, places, infrastructure, and services, locking in carbon, minimizing waste, and building a circular economy.
• Local Living: Support local livability and improve community health and well-being by ensuring people can easily access services, greenspace, learning, work, and leisure locally.
• Compact Urban Growth: Limit urban expansion to optimize the use of land to provide services and resources, including carbon storage, flood risk management, blue and green infrastructure, and biodiversity.
• Rebalanced Development: Target development to create opportunities for communities and investment in areas of past decline, and manage development sustainably in areas of high demand.
• Rural Revitalisation: Encourage sustainable development in rural areas, recognizing the need to grow and support urban and rural communities together.

Application of the Principals

• Sustainable Places: Reduce emissions, restore and better connect biodiversity
• Liveable Places: Promoting better, healthier lives
• Productive Places: Establishing a greener, fairer, and more inclusive well-being economy.

The Future 

Scotland is proactively paving the way for a more secure, sustainable future with a goal to create net-zero, nature-positive places that emphasize lower emissions and protect the environment.

"Every decision on our future development must contribute to making Scotland a more sustainable place. We will encourage low and zero-carbon design and energy efficiency, development that is accessible by sustainable travel, and expansion of renewable energy generation. It is also crucial that we build resilience to the future impacts of climate change including water resources and assets and development on our coasts. Our places will also need to evolve to help us cope with changing temperatures." -Tom Arthur