Local Action for a Sustainable Scotland - Sustainable Scotland Network

Stewart Stevenson is MSP for Banffshire and the Buchan Coast. Born in 1946 and brought up in Cupar, Fife, Mr Stevenson studied Mathematics at the University of Aberdeen, graduating in 1969.

Three decades later he retired from Bank of Scotland as a Technology Director and was first elected to the Scottish Parliament in 2001 having joined the SNP in 1961.

He was Transport Minister for part of the 2007-2011 administration and was appointed to his current post after being re-elected at the May 5, 2011, election.

Councillor Alison Hay is COSLA's Regeneration and Sustainable Development Spokesperson. Formerly a civil servant, her public service began in Argyll and Bute in 1988. She is a member of the Scottish Liberal Democrat Group on Argyll and Bute Council and sits on the Executive Committee. She is Depute Spokesperson for Environment and also a member of the Environment Policy and Performance Group which looks at all the green, sustainable issues of the council.

In addition to her work in Scotland, Alison has been an active member of the Council of European Municipalities and Regions (CEMR) in her capacity as COSLA Spokesperson. She now Chairs the CEMR Environment Working Group.

She is a member of the Agency Board of SEPA and Chairs the Boards of Auchindrain and Kilmartin Museums. Other local interests include being a founding member and Chair of GRAB (Group of Recycling in Argyll and Bute) and Convener of Kilmartin Glen Steering Group.

Sue Bruce took up the post of Chief Executive of the City of Edinburgh Council in January 2011 having previously been Chief Executive at Aberdeen City Council and East Dunbartonshire Council.

Sue began her local government career with Strathclyde Regional Council in 1976 spending the early part of her career in social and economic regeneration and then in the wider education field.

Sue has held a number of senior positions, serving in the Strathclyde Regional Education Directorate until local government re-organisation in 1996 after which she held the post of Depute Director of Education with East Ayrshire Council. In 2000 she joined East Dunbartonshire Council initially as Strategic Director responsible for Education, Housing, Social Work and Cultural Services and had a corporate lead role in social inclusion and equalities.

In May 2010 Sue received the Prince's Business Ambassador award for 2010 from HRH The Prince of Wales and in October 2010 was recognised as the Scottish Public Sector Leader of the Year Award at the Scottish Leadership Awards.

Andy was appointed Director of the Edinburgh Centre for Low Carbon Innovation and Skills www.climatechangecentre.org.uk, a low carbon innovation and skills centre, in 2010. He is also the Policy Director of the Scottish Centre of Expertise in Climate Change.

Previously Andy was a Director at E3 International, working with companies to develop strategic and practical management responses to emerging market opportunities in international carbon and biofuel markets.

His public policy work has focused on supporting the development of effective national policy frameworks that reduce dependence on fossil fuels and lower greenhouse gas emissions.

Recent projects include the Royal Society of Edinburgh's Inquiry Report: “Facing up to Climate Change: Breaking the barriers to a low carbon Scotland” and the Scottish Government's "Climate Change Delivery Plan".

Andy also co-authors the book: "Climate Change & Emissions Trading: What Every Business Needs to Know". Andy has a doctorate in glaciology from the University of Edinburgh.

David Wilson is Director of Energy in the Scottish Government, with responsibility for energy, climate change and the water industry. Before that he was Director of the Business Enterprise and Energy Directorate, and has held a series of policy respnsibilities across Government. Outwith the Scottish Government, he was Deputy Director General of Electricity Supply for the UK-wide electricity regulator/watchdog, Ofgem. David is an economist by training.

Tim Birley is a former senior civil servant, now a freelance adviser and facilitator on sustainable development. He trained as a civil engineer, surveyor and town planner, and worked in local government and as a lecturer at Edinburgh University before becoming an Inquiry Reporter. Within the civil service, he was promoted to be a Deputy Director within the Scottish Development Department, then Head of Rural Affairs and Natural Heritage Division. Responsibilities included work on the Cairngorms and Loch Lomond and Trossachs areas, and sponsorship of SNH. He was responsible for the Rural Framework document which set out a holistic perspective on rural policy in Scotland - credited as being the first policy document in Scotland to be based on sustainable development as an explicit core principle.

Since then he has advised a wide range of bodies in Scotland and further afield on many aspects of sustainable development and public policy. This includes working with government departments and agencies, local authorities, private companies, NGOs and community organisations. He was retained consultant to the Secretary of State's Advisory Group on Sustainable Development (AGSD), and has served on and with many bodies including the Lord Provost's Commission on Sustainable Development, the Wise Group, Forward Scotland, APRS, and the Millennium Forest for Scotland. He is author or co-author of numerous reports and publications including Reality Check, 2001/2 (for WWF); Mainstreaming sustainable development in regional regeneration, 2004 (for ESEP); Best Value and sustainable development toolkits for local government, 2006 (for SSN) and for the wider public services (for Scottish Executive); the Mourne National Park Working Party report, 2007; Towards a Step Change in Sustainable Development Education in Scottish Schools, 2011 (for WWF); and Single Outcome Agreements and Action for People, Places and Community, 2011 (for Scottish Environment LINK). Much of his work has been with local government in Scotland, and he has had a long link with SSN, going back to the days of LA21 and SLACN.