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A bold goal, but an unclear path 

The new Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) from the UK government at the 29th United Nations Conference of the Parties (COP29) in Baku yesterday, upping our target from a 68% emissions cut by 2030 (compared to 1990 levels) to an 81% cut by 2035, is very welcome news. It’s as challenging as ever, but a clear signal of ambition and global leadership, especially in the face of some of the global political headwinds and significant challenges such as those represented by the serious conflicts at large across the world.

The Prime Minister, Keir Starmer, was interviewed by BBC News yesterday asking what the government will do to meet the new target. Few specific responses were offered, with the promise of detail in February. But, without prompt, the Prime Minister said that the government would not be “telling people how to live their lives” or “dictating to people what they do”.

More than a mandate

Dictating climate action from the top is a surefire recipe for mass dissent – ripe pickings for the populist right. At The Carbon Literacy Project, we feel strongly that acting on climate needs to bring everyone along with it – that such action has to be done with people, not to them. That’s part of the success of our methodology. We lay out the relevance and impact of the climate crisis to every cohort, using the adaptable framework of Carbon Literacy training for that purpose. At the end of that process, we ask people to apply their knowledge, position and location to do the best climate action that they can. This is not telling people what to do. It is telling people that there is a significant problem that impacts them, illustrating some of the things that people like them are doing to resolve it, and then asking them to apply their ability and motivation to that challenge.

The ideas and actions that come out of Carbon Literacy are created by the learners themselves. They feel they have a stake in them, they understand why they have to act and feel a sense of ownership of the actions that flow from the training. Carbon Literate people don’t have to be told what to do. They’re getting on with it already.

A method for mobilisation

Because of the increased ambition represented by the new NDC, and the Prime Minister’s stance on how to best mobilise climate action, we strongly believe that Carbon Literacy needs to be at the core of a national response. We have a proven, affordable, and scalable methodology to maximise the population’s contribution to the target. Indeed, without such mobilisation, the target won’t just be challenging, it’ll be impossible to attain.

We know full well that ‘climate awareness’ is insufficient to meet the challenge. We need a means by which large-scale climate action can be grown from the boardroom to the shop floor, and from the shop floor to the boardroom. It’s not just that Carbon Literacy increases the capacity for climate action, it embeds it into the core values and competencies of that workplace or community. It unlocks potential and gives people the role they all want in making the world a better place for the people and things they love.

Come and see for yourself!

This is happening en masse this week as learners all over the world take part in the fourth annual Carbon Literacy Action Day – the largest climate action training event of its kind. Coinciding with the COP, the Action Day shows that while leaders talk, people are prepared to act.

Join our World Tour Webinar at 5 pm GMT tomorrow as we virtually journey to training venues across the globe, where training providers will share their experiences and stories, as well as climate commitments made by learners from the catalytic training day. Register for free to witness it for yourself.

Inspired to start or advance your Carbon Literacy journey? Get in touch at info@carbonliteracy.com.