Orkney’s First Islands Forum will assist island communities advance and collaborate on common possibilities and concerns.
Attending will be representatives of the devolved governments as well as island communities from England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland.
The first meeting’s main emphasis is on the opportunities around net zero. The inaugural Islands Forum will be held in Orkney on September 28, 2022, under the direction of Nadhim Zahawi, Minister for Intergovernmental Relations and Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster.
The Forum, which will be held at the Orkney Research & Innovation Campus, will make sure that island communities can explore solutions to shared problems, with a strong emphasis on potential around net zero for the inaugural gathering.
Ministers from the Scottish and Welsh governments, chief executives from all qualifying island communities around the UK, and representatives from Northern Ireland will also participate.
The regulator, Ofgem, will also be a part of the initiative. Representatives from the islands will be able to discuss the regulatory obstacles to their goals of achieving net zero and consider the best course of action to overcome them.
The Orkney Islands Council and European Marine Energy Centre are hosting a tour of Orkney that will concentrate on renewable energy for participants.
The Rt Hon Nadhim Zahawi MP, Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, stated:
I am honoured to preside over the first Islands Forum in Orkney next week as the new minister for intergovernmental relations with the aim of giving our islands a greater voice.
People are supposed to create a place, and this is undoubtedly true of the island communities in the UK, which make significant contributions to our nation but often confront similar difficulties.
In order to fulfil our commitment to deliver for the whole United Kingdom, I look forward to hearing directly from island communities and collaborating closely with the devolved administrations on the issues that matter most to local residents.