For the past few months the Government have been focussed on COVID19 related issues. However, as we emerge from lockdown and move towards the Scottish election next year, manifestos are being considered and represent a great opportunity to engage and influence politicians and key stakeholders. But how do you do this successfully?

The responsibility of a landscape architect extends beyond creating spaces for today’s group of young learners, it is about sustainable design that will meet the needs of future generations.

We need a workforce with an overarching aim to protect the global environment to deliver a green economy. The pace of change is fast and the opportunities for an interesting and rewarding career in the IB sector are wide and diverse.

There are most definitely bright spots – certainly with respect to the construction and development sector in Scotland, which is showing remarkable resilience – and I include Aberdeenshire in that analysis.

As the house building industry begins to return to work, sites re-open, and companies re-examine their business strategies and models, it will become even more important to embrace new technologies and processes to ensure the restart and future development of the sector is done in a way that it can thrive long term.

The idea of a net zero carbon emissions and zero waste economy isn’t as far-fetched as some may think. The key promise of a bio-based economy is that we can grow the sources of raw materials for every day products. Industrial Biotechnology (IB) is one of the many faces of innovation in the life sciences world. IB offers sustainable, scalable solutions to the current environmental challenges facing many industries.

Over the past four months, like many people, I have experienced some of the most challenging times in my career. But while this has been devastating in so many ways for so many people, it has also created a unique opportunity to prove that rough sleeping can be ended in our cities and it is possible to create and support positive change in the lives of the people we support.

“These are two significant pieces of business, especially given lockdown, and demonstrate how Perceptive can add value for clients under challenging circumstances.”

From an early age, I was always interested in the world of property and construction. I loved playing with Meccano and initially thought I would follow a career in architecture. As I moved through secondary school and studied more business-related subjects like economics, I began to envisage how my interest might take a turn into the development and property investment side.

“With so many people making the transition to working from home, there is a school of thought that the coronavirus pandemic might signal the end of office life as we know it. In reality, it’s likely to fast-forward its rebirth.”

I run marathons in my leisure time and understand the hard work and resilience I need to achieve my goal. This is nothing compared to the long and arduous journey from testing a process in a laboratory to bringing it to market.

As the construction industry begins its journey through the restart plan, we consider how lockdown has afforded us the opportunity to rebuild the future of this vital sector.

We are hearing all about a new normal with more meetings and communication being done virtually, but what does all of this mean for influencing politicians and key stakeholders?

Our latest webinar, run in conjunction with Homes for Scotland and Industrial Biotechnology Innovation Centre (IBioIC), focused on communicating effectively as we emerge from lockdown. Our guest panellists, who shared their learnings on communications during lockdown and as we emerge from lockdown.

What should we be considering to ensure that customers, employees and suppliers are as safe as possible and feel reassured about their return?

“The more questions you get, the less clear your instructions are.”

Who could ever have imagined -  pre-lockdown -  that buyers would be - virtually - queuing up to buy a new property, without having set foot inside?

In our recent webinar we discussed how social media including LinkedIn can be used to communicate, network and build relationships productively in lockdown and beyond. Here’s a rundown of the top five takeaways.