Many of these opportunities will be in Scotland’s rural areas providing a generational opportunity for new high-paid jobs, investment and infrastructure that will yield benefits for generations to come.

However, both the Climate Change Committee and the Scottish Fiscal Commission highlight complex interdependencies at the heart of this investment proposition – from the balance between public and private investment, the need for innovative new funding mechanisms and investment portfolios, and the interactions between UK, Scottish, regional and local policy responsibilities.

Navigating through these challenges to unlock this opportunity requires collaboration between those with an interest in the success of rural economies from businesses, landowners, and investors through to skills-providers, enterprise agencies and government.

This event will bring together those who have a key part to play in Scotland’s journey to net zero as we work collaboratively to identify solutions to some of the main challenges and how we can maximise the opportunities.

Graeme Roy is Chair of the Scottish Fiscal Commission – Scotland’s official, independent economic and fiscal forecaster. Graeme is also Professor of Economics and Assistant Vice Principal at the University of Glasgow. He is a former Senior Civil Servant in the Scottish Government, where he was head of the First Minister’s Policy Unit. He is a past Director of the Fraser of Allander Institute and Head of the Department of Economics at the University of Strathclyde. He is an elected Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh.