STV has announced that Sustainable Scotland Week – the broadcaster’s annual seven-day, cross-platform mission to inspire viewers to live more sustainably – will return next week.
Starting on Monday, September 23, the sustainability takeover will see a series of special clips scattered throughout the channel’s schedule, offering practical and actionable tips to viewers to make small, green lifestyle changes.
STV’s channel idents will also look a little different next week, with each one showcasing green-themed activities and people doing their bit for the planet, in the hope that viewers will feel inspired to follow suit.
Sustainable Scotland Week is returning after a successful first year on STV in 2023, with research* showing that 73% of viewers who saw sustainability-themed activity across the equivalent week last year were more likely to make more environmentally conscious decisions going forward.
The same research also found that over half of Scots (58%) believe TV is the most effective medium for highlighting environmental issues, and 8 in 10 welcome practical and actionable tips that they can easily adopt to help reduce their carbon footprint.
STV staff, including weather presenters Sean Batty and Philip Petrie, take part in a litter-pick
Bobby Hain, Managing Director of Broadcast at STV, said: “The fact that so many viewers are making small, environmentally conscious tweaks to their lifestyles following last year’s Sustainable Scotland Week highlights the effectiveness of this campaign and was a clear indicator that we should revisit it this year.
“As a trusted public service broadcaster, we’re pleased to be able to convey accurate information to viewers in an accessible way and we hope this year’s sustainability takeover continues to inform and inspire our audience.”
Elsewhere in Sustainable Scotland Week, a dedicated ‘Green Hub’ will appear on streaming service STV Player, featuring a range of insightful, sustainability-focused programming produced by filmmakers from around the world. Leading the selection is two-parter, Jimmy’s Big Bee Rescue, which sees TV presenter and farmer Jimmy Doherty showing how we can all make a difference in reversing Britain’s rapidly declining bee population.
STV’s Sustainable Scotland Week runs as part of the broadcaster’s STV Zero sustainability strategy, launched in 2021 to encourage viewers, colleagues and partners to join in creating a more sustainable society. STV has itself committed to be a net-zero carbon business by 2030.
On 4 September, staff at the broadcaster’s Pacific Quay headquarters in Glasgow joined around 300 people from other businesses, schools and community groups in the local area to clean up nearby streets. More than 150 bags of litter have been picked up by STV volunteers since regular litter-picks were introduced two years ago.
Sustainable Scotland Week runs from Monday 23 – Monday 30 September across STV. STV is sponsored by SSE Energy Solutions during Sustainable Scotland Week.