The DunBear to light up green in celebration of COP26 summit

The DunBear will shine brightly in celebration of COP26.

The five-metre-high sculpture – within Dunbar’s DunBear Park in East Lothian – will be lit up green to mark the highly-anticipated climate change summit, which is taking place in Glasgow between October 31 and November 12.

Andy Scott’s steel brown bear was erected in 2019 and is a tribute to John Muir, the Dunbar-born naturalist and conservationist who emigrated to the USA with his family.

Muir travelled extensively throughout the country, later helping to form the Sierra Club which has gone on to be one of the largest environmental organisations in the world.

He also petitioned the president and congress to form national parks, and through this Yosemite and other notable nature spots were eventually established.

It is because of national parks that certain species, such as the brown bear, have survived and thrived.

The DunBear is a focal point for DunBear Park, a low carbon mixed-use development. The lights are powered by onsite solar panels.

It is lit-up at various points throughout the year, including the birthday of Muir in April (blue and white), Remembrance Day (when it is illuminated red) and St Andrew’s Day (blue and white).

Ken Ross, from Hallhill Developments Limited, said: “Being in such a prominent position at the gateway to Dunbar, the stunning DunBear sculpture provides the perfect opportunity to commemorate key events such as COP26, one of the most important global meetings ever to take place in the UK.

“It is also fitting that it should be part of our low carbon community of DunBear Park, which through significant investment will adopt the latest low carbon technology, with renewable heat and power generated onsite, delivering on our ambitious goal to be an exemplar low carbon development.

“The DunBear has become a much-loved piece of public art, well-visited by the local community and drawing visitors to the area and into Dunbar itself to find out more about John Muir, the pioneering naturalist and conservationist which it is a tribute to.

“It not only celebrates the work of one man but also reminds us that we can each make a positive contribution to climate change and reduce global warming for future generations.”