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A series of live online Facebook events will be held this summer to promote the Gaelic language in ����ֱ�� and Bute and provide opportunities for communities to come together. The events will take place on the ����ֱ�� and Bute Gaelic Forum’s Facebook page and each one will feature a well-known, popular musician or songwriter. The first event will be held at 8pm on Thursday 27 May and will star Ian Smith from Trail West.

Supporting local businesses is more important than ever as ����ֱ�� and Bute starts to recover from the impact of the pandemic.   ����ֱ�� is encouraging people to support towns and high streets by shopping local. To help local businesses, the council is delivering a number of initiatives designed to enhance both the online and physical presence of town centre businesses. They include:  

Getting tested is a key step in keeping each other safe and stopping the spread of covid-19, whether or not you have symptoms. I don’t have any symptoms – do I need a test?People can be infectious and spread the infection to others without realising. Identifying and supporting infectious people before they develop symptoms will help reduce the spread of coronavirus.

����ֱ�� has taken an innovative approach to ensure that young people feel safe, secure and resilient as they settle back into school-life after lockdown. With pupils having spent a lot of time away from friends in recent months, and many no doubt feeling anxious, the council teamed up with Scout Adventures Lochgoilhead and Ardroy and Benmore Outdoor Education Centres, to develop an itinerary of outdoor learning activities for children and young people across ����ֱ�� and Bute, focussing on positive health and wellbeing.

The pandemic has required every aspect of our working lives to adapt to more challenging circumstances and regional improvement collaboratives set up to support education and children’s services teams across Scotland are no exception.

����ֱ�� has reduced its carbon emissions by 27% over the past five years. Its carbon report 2019/20 shows that its emissions have dropped for the third year in a row, thanks to a wide range of actions. The council will invest more than £1.2 million in action to save energy and deliver progress in becoming a net zero carbon emissions organisation by 2045.

Talented pupils from Islay High School narrowly missed out on winning this year’s FilmG Gaelic Learners Award after beating off stiff competition and being shortlisted for the final. FilmG is an annual competition organised by MG ALBA, which celebrates Gaelic screen talent and attracts hundreds of applications each year.

����ֱ�� has reduced its carbon emissions by 27% over the past five years.  Its carbon report 2019/20 shows that its emissions have dropped for the third year in a row, thanks to a wide range of actions.  These include buildings being made more energy and heat efficient, traditional lightbulbs being replaced with LED, and a move to electric or hybrid vehicles. 

����ֱ�� has agreed local actions to support the aims of the global climate change conference planned in Glasgow later this year. Several hundred thousand delegates are expected to attend the Conference of the Parties (COP26) in Glasgow’s Scottish Exhibition Centre (SEC) from 1st-12th November 2021. Around 120 world leaders, potentially including US President Biden, China’s President Xi Jinping and His Holiness Pope Francis, are expected to come together to discuss global concerns about climate change.

����ֱ�� will invest more than £1.2 million in action to save energy and deliver progress in becoming a net zero carbon emissions organisation by 2045.  The steps planned are also expected to deliver financial savings that will cover the cost of the investment in ten years.  The council’s estate and buildings account for over 20% of its overall carbon footprint, through use of electricity, gas, heating oil and water in premises.