Measuring the impact of climate change engagement in Scotland

Scotland’s Public Engagement Strategy for Climate Change (PES) brings together a range of programmes and initiatives designed to support public understanding, participation and action on climate change. As the strategy approaches its first full-term evaluation, this research explores how the Scottish Government can strengthen the monitoring, evaluation and communication of its impact.

The study reviews international best practice in evaluating complex public engagement strategies, assesses how monitoring and evaluation currently operates across the PES, and provides practical recommendations for developing a robust, proportionate and evidence-based approach to strategy-level evaluation.

Key findings

• Scotland’s Public Engagement Strategy is at the forefront of international practice, combining locally embedded climate engagement programmes with national policy objectives and a Just Transition approach.
• Evaluating the strategy is challenging due to its scale and complexity, with multiple programmes, audiences and outcomes operating across different sectors and geographies.
• A hybrid evaluation approach is most appropriate, combining participatory, adaptive and theory-based methods to capture the contribution of different activities and programmes.
• Existing programmes are already collecting valuable evidence, but more consistent and structured data collection could strengthen strategy-level evaluation and learning.
• Evaluation should focus on demonstrating contribution rather than proving direct attribution, recognising the limits of establishing causality in complex public engagement systems.

Recommendations

• Expand the Public Engagement Strategy’s Theory of Change to provide a stronger foundation for monitoring, evaluation and learning.
• Work collaboratively with delivery partners to develop a shared understanding of how different programmes contribute to strategic outcomes and to strengthen evaluation practice across the strategy.
• Use contribution analysis as a core evaluation approach, providing a structured way to assess how PES activities contribute to intended outcomes.
• Establish a small number of SMART targets to support monitoring, evaluation and reporting against strategic objectives.
• Continue to encourage innovation at programme level, while capturing evidence, learning and examples of effective engagement approaches across different communities and contexts.

The report concludes that a more integrated evaluation framework, built around a strengthened Theory of Change and contribution analysis, would help create a clearer, more consistent and more credible account of how public engagement supports Scotland’s transition to a net zero and climate-resilient future.

For further information, please read the full report.

If you require the report in an alternative format, such as a Word document, please contact info@climatexchange.org.uk or 0131 651 4783.