The world is moving towards net zero emissions. In 2015, when 195 countries agreed to balance out sources and sinks of greenhouse gases by the middle of this century, only Bhutan and the Maldives had net zero targets. Fast-forward five years, and at the start of 2021, the UN Climate Ambition Alliance lists over 120 countries and 1300 companies which aspire to net zero emissions by 2050 or sooner. This list is growing longer all the time.
In the UK, delivering net zero emissions means swapping or stopping the following products:
- 40 million car engines
- 27 million domestic boilers (which can cost £10,000 to replace)
- 1.3 million motorcycle, moped and scooter engines
- 1,300+ ship engines
- 5,000+ plane engines
Plus creating:
- Factories to create sustainable fuels (like this one, producing up to 20 million gallons/year)
- Acres of farmland to meet sustainability criteria
- Reservoirs to capture and store carbon dioxide (like this one storing 10MT/year)
This will take a lot of work. To make it more tangible, replacing 27 million boilers in 30 years means an average of around 18,000 a week and over 100 a day. To deliver on these targets, the UK will need to make this change as easy as possible.
The UK government and climate activists need to focus on the customer journey to net zero.
Here is why.
In the short term, climate action will come at a cost. It will mean buying new equipment, hiring new people, measuring new activities, giving up useful routines or changing embedded systems and processes. These actions often need money, effort, time, or sacrifice.
Penalizing people into action is the most common response to overcome these costs. The Paris Accords use social pressure to push countries to set more ambitious targets. Regional carbon pricing schemes drive up the costs of high-carbon technology, making low-carbon investments more attractive. National and global reporting standards force companies to measure and analyse their environmental impact. Protestors shame slow-moving businesses, and disrupt public events to raise climate awareness. Symbols, like polar bears, are used to guilt people into lifestyle changes. The “costs of inaction” are being deliberately ramped up.
However, this approach does not make practical changes any easier, and it isn’t working. The latest UN Emissions Gap Report states that global emissions must drop from 59GT in 2019 to 44GT in 2030 – an average drop of 2% a year. The UK’s goal of a 68% cut in emissions by 2030 is not matched by the current pace of action. There is a need for a new approach.
There is a moral argument for changing tack too. If the key reason to deliver net zero emissions is to improve people’s lives, then we should aiming to make this transition as easy as possible. We should be looking for solutions which will help people and help the environment at once. We should be looking for win-wins.
Focussing on the customer journey to net zero will help climate practitioners to focus on win-wins. If customers benefit from this process, and understand those benefits, they are more likely to support it. Rather than placing a burden on consumers and “educating” them about the need for self-sacrifce, look for ways to make their lives easier and then craft a compelling sales pitch. This approach is far more empowering, because it retains an element of consumer choice.
This picture shows some high-level ways that people can be guided towards win-win actions.
..to be continued..thoughts welcome..
Getting wiser with win-wins 