Climate Change: IES Manifesto for Transformative Change

Joseph Lewis

24 November 2021

Climate Change: IES Manifesto for Transformative Change

Throughout the COP26 UN Climate Change Summit, the IES spent a dozen days fighting for transformative change. Since COP26, we have spent another dozen days spreading the knowledge gained at the summit and pushing for science-led solutions. Our ambitions for transformative change in response to the climate crisis are summarised in the Institution’s Manifesto for Transformative Change.

What happened at COP26?

For two weeks, COP26 brought together global leaders to address climate change and negotiate the new Glasgow Climate Pact. The primary objective of COP26 was to ratchet-up the Nationally-Determined Contributions (NDCs) of the party states, mobilising enough ambition and finance to maintain the viability of limiting temperature rises to 1.5°c. The conference produced mixed results, with big agreements on a number of key issues.

Examples of agreements on major issues include:

More than 100 countries agreed to end and reverse deforestation by 2030, supported by finance for partnerships in developing countries to tackle the root causes of deforestation.
The Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero (GFANZ) used finance day to highlight the alignment of $130trillion of finance towards addressing climate change, particularly in emerging and developing countries.
A Global Methane Pledge to cut methane emissions by 30% by 2030 was made by over 100 countries, driven by the US and the EU.
Increased recognition of the importance of adaptation, resilience, and loss & damage, with limited but significant funding.
Agreement by the US and China to cooperate to reach Net Zero.
Recognition of the need to phase-down coal, even though a commitment to phasing-out coal completely was not made in the Climate Pact.

However, all of this progress comes with significant caveats; change still needs to be accelerated, these commitments rely on effective delivery, and NDCs are not yet aligned with pathways which will achieve the goal of limiting global temperature rises to 1.5°c.

What still needs to happen?

Despite positive progress, more action is needed to create the transformative change necessary to address the climate crisis. As we continue working to drive ambition and science-led solutions, the IES has published its Manifesto for Transformative Change, setting out what still needs to happen.

Drawing on the insights of environmental scientists across sectors and perspectives, the Manifesto contains 54 recommendations which will be necessary to fight climate change. Incremental and atomistic approaches will not be sufficient to shift our systems of consumption and production which have become unsustainable. We require transformative change to create a better future for people, the planet, and nature.

To transition our systems of consumption and production away from climate pressures, a whole society approach will be necessary. To that end, these recommendations address both the need for specific sectors to transition, as well as the requirement for a joined-up approach which utilises systems thinking and considerable interdisciplinary experience.

You can read a sample of the recommendations in the boxes below:

What leadership do we need on climate change?

Our goal must be transformative change of the systems of consumption and production which embed unsustainable consequences for our climate, society, and natural world.
Systems thinking must be a core part of our approach to addressing all social and natural challenges at every level. Barriers should be broken down between disciplines and government departments to reorient decision making towards functionality and systems thinking.
Wherever possible, we should seek multiple benefits or functions from our solutions to climate change, even where it costs more in the short-term to avoid increased costs in the long-term.
Policy should be science-led wherever possible, with stronger collaboration between science and decision makers across disciplines and policy areas.
Where appropriate, climate solutions should be co-created with stakeholders who are needed for implementation and communities who must live with the consequences of those decisions.

What can we do to empower communities to respond to climate change?

Action on climate change must account for environmental justice and climate justice, and we should seek to create a ‘just transition’ which fairly distributes the costs and benefits of the transition.
Governments should facilitate greater integration of science and society, where all science disciplines can play a role in explaining the risks and opportunities of different pathways and help communities to visualise different options for the future.
Governments should seek to make climate literacy, carbon literacy, environmental science, and systems thinking part of all curricula and education, encouraging lifelong learning to upskill, reskill, and embed ‘net zero’ skills across the workforce.
Governments, international organisations, and all scales of climate action must increase capacity-building, empowerment, and participation of all groups which are under-represented in climate action, with an emphasis on monitoring progress.
Governments should integrate gender equality and empowerment into their approaches to climate change, as well as broader Equality, Diversity, & Inclusion (ED&I) principles.
Citizens should make use of existing tools of empowerment, including elected representatives, to share their perspectives on the likely effects of climate change and climate action. This should not be a substitute for increased democratisation and co-production of responses to climate change.

How can we push for science-led solutions?

Decisions by governments, international organisations, and communities should be made with reference to the best-available science, based on systematic reviews where possible. Science should be provided with appropriate timescales to produce rigorous and comprehensive expertise.
Governments should fund research to fill gaps in evidence where there is not sufficient information or where greater certainty would support effective decision making.
Governments and communities must recognise the levels of certainty underpinning scientific conclusions, taking appropriate measures to account for degrees of risk and using smaller-scale pilots to reduce binary decision making.
Governments must provide appropriate regulations and policies to support private innovation by providing ‘level-playing-fields’ to drive uptake of existing technologies and assure the private sector of the ‘return on investment’ associated with competitive research and innovation.

Read the full list of recommendations.

What happens next?

Questions remain about how effective COP26 has been at adjusting the trajectory of climate change. What remains uncontroversial is the need for action, and for acceleration towards transformative change. Environmental science gives us the knowledge and tools we need to support that process of change; here are some next steps:

Read the Manifesto for Transformative Change and share it on social media with the hashtag #TransformativeChange.
Join our COP26 community to support our wider work on climate change.
Consider professional registration (for example, as a Chartered Environmentalist) to demonstrate your knowledge, experience and commitment to best practice on sustainability issues, including climate change.

The IES will continue to push for transformative change, sharing the Manifesto and amplifying the voice of IES members to help stand up for science, scientists, and the natural world.

Analysis from the archive

Analysis: A technical perspective on Part 2A legislation

Analysis: COP26: Reflections from across the Sector