Scotland’s Biodiversity Strategy, “it’s In Your Hands” (2004), sets out a 25-year vision and framework for action. The aim of the strategy is “to conserve biodiversity for the health, enjoyment and well being of the people of Scotland now and in the future”. The Strategy provides a foundation for Scotland’s contribution to the United Kingdom’s obligations under the international Convention on Biological diversity (CBD), Scotland’s commitment to sustainable development, and the statutory duty on public bodies in Scotland to conserve biodiversity under the Nature Conservation (Scotland) Act 2004.

Following a review and public consultation in May 2004, the Indicators Working Group of the Scottish Biodiversity Forum proposed a suite of 22 biodiversity indicators for Scotland’s Biodiversity Strategy. First published by the Scottish Government in November 2007, they are now maintained and updated by Scottish Natural Heritage.

Candidate biodiversity indicators were put forward by the Scottish Biodiversity Forum Action Plan & Science Group as part of draft proposals for a Biodiversity Strategy for Scotland published in February 2003. They were chosen on the basis that they would fulfil established criteria, that data were available or deliverable for reporting within the required timescale, and they reflected the wider state of the ecosystems of which they are part. The indicators were developed following peer review and public consultation.

An indicator report was published in 2007, which was made available both as a hard copy and online. Developments with the indicators are communicated regularly through web based updates.

The target audience is an informed, non-specialist public, including: public sector policy makers; environmental consultant and voluntary sectors;  secondary and tertiary education sectors; interested public.

a) Updating
The indicators are updated as frequently as survey time frames permit. Following analysis and quality assurance they are published electronically.
b) Utilisation
Components of the indicator suite have been adapted for use within Scotland’s National Performance Framework (terrestrial birds, site condition, visits to the outdoors) and Rural Development Programme (farmland birds).
c) Evidence Base
Indicators are used routinely as evidence for policy and in reporting.
d) Next steps
The electronic presentation of information is being updated.
The potential for more comprehensive reporting, in conjunction with partner government agencies is being explored.
Indicators continue to be developed for related policy purposes (such as SRDP) with new work on combined spatial analysis across environmental and biological datasets.

Scotland's Biodiversity Indicators