Published on: 30th January 2026
by THE FUTURE WE WANT.
Today’s contribution to THE FUTURE WE WANT series is by Professor Mette High, Director of the Centre for Energy Ethics and Professor in Social Anthropology, University of St Andrews, and Claire Haigh, Founder & CEO Greener Vision and Creator of The Tabula Project.
We are at a critical point in our struggle to tackle the climate and nature crises. All of the 10 hottest years in measured history have been in the last decade[i]. Seven out of nine planetary boundaries have been breached[ii]. The window to avoid irreversible climate impacts and biodiversity loss is rapidly closing.
At the same time, the growth in renewables has repeatedly surpassed expectations, often by record-breaking margins in terms of capacity and speed[iii]. The green economy is the fastest growing sector globally behind only the tech sector[iv]. We have all the solutions we need to tackle the climate crisis[v]. Moreover, the renewable energy transition has the potential to bring many wide-ranging social, economic and environmental benefits.[vi]
What future are we facing? The way ahead ought to be clear. However, the world needs to deliver drastic greenhouse gas emissions reductions in the context of a growing populist backlash against climate policies. Net zero has become highly politicised with division stoked by misinformation. [vii] And climate change has become a battle to win heart and minds.
We urgently need a better informed, evidence-based and balanced public debate on tackling climate change.
There is a gulf between the rhetoric of some of the world’s politicians and reality of the world economy. Despite the US climate rollbacks, renewable energy receives twice as much investment as fossil fuels[viii]. The World Economic Forum and Boston Consulting Group project that the value of the green economy will exceed $7 trillion a year by 2030 (its current value is $5 trillion)[ix].
The greater risk for nations and for businesses is one of falling behind on net zero. Net zero signifies a race to secure future markets, investments, and jobs. In the race to win the new green industries, China dominates the global manufacturing of crucial renewable technologies. It produces over 90% of all solar panels, more than 70% of all lithium batteries, and 65% of all wind turbines.[x]
The UK has a strong track record on climate leadership. UK emissions have halved since 1990 whilst the economy grew by 80%[xi]. But progress has been largely due to decarbonising the power sector. As attention turns to the hard-to-abate sectors, and where progress will increasingly require people to make changes in their own lives, the once strong cross-party political consensus on net zero is fracturing.
Last year, the Climate and Nature Crisis Caucus launched in the UK Parliament with the specific goal of rebuilding the cross-party consensus on net zero and climate action.[xii] To support the strengthening the UK consensus, the business community, academia, and key stakeholders also need to play their part in ensuring that the rationale for policies is well-informed and communicated clearly.
This is why Greener Vision and the Centre for Energy Ethics (University of St Andrews) are convening a new Council for the Future as an independent high-level forum to explore new approaches to tackling anthropogenic climate change. The aim is to provide a neutral non-partisan space to discuss some of the tough political choices in relation to implementing climate policies and the difficult trade-off .
The Council for the Future builds on our work together last year, including a roundtable discussion series which highlighted a range of governance and institutional issues, policy priorities and tactics for engaging with the public on tackling climate change. Public concern about climate change is consistently high[xiii] but analysis shows that the British media is increasingly divorcing net zero from climate change.[xiv] The Council’s focus in 2026 will include putting a spotlight on the debate surrounding net zero.
We are delighted to confirm that the Council for the Future is to be chaired by The Rt Hon Lord Deben, former UK Environment Secretary and Chair of the Climate Change Committee (2012-2023). Membership of the Council will comprise leading figures from the world of politics, business and academia. A formal announcement will be made following the elections in May across England, Scotland and Wales.
So, are we facing a future of climate, biodiversity, and economic catastrophe or will we be able to work together to build a cleaner, fairer, safer future for us all?
The answer, we believe, is that we must take the future in our hands.
[i] https://www.climate.gov/news-features/understanding-climate/climate-change-global-temperature
[ii] https://www.stockholmresilience.org/news–events/general-news/2025-09-24-seven-of-nine-planetary-boundaries-now-breached.html
[iii] Renewables in 2024: 5 Key Facts Behind a Record-Breaking Year
[iv] https://www.esgtoday.com/green-economy-outperforms-global-market-over-past-10-years-second-only-to-tech-lseg/
[v] https://www.ipcc.ch/2023/03/20/press-release-ar6-synthesis-report/
[vi] Sudmant, A., Boyle, D., Higgins‑Lavery, R., Gouldson, A., Boyle, A., Fulker, J., & Brogan, J. (2024). Climate policy as social policy? A comprehensive assessment of the economic impact of climate action in the UK. Journal of Environmental Studies and Sciences.
https://doi.org/10.1007/s13412-024-00955-9
[vii] https://www.ipie.info/news/press-release-climate-misinformation-threatens-global-action-says-ipie-assessment
[viii] https://www.iea.org/news/global-energy-investment-set-to-rise-to-33-trillion-in-2025-amid-economic-uncertainty-and-energy-security-concerns
[ix] https://www.weforum.org/press/2025/12/the-multi-trillion-dollar-growth-opportunity-new-report-shows-green-economy-expected-to-surpass-7-trillion-in-annual-value-by-2030/
[x] https://www.inet.ox.ac.uk/publications/china-leads-the-net-zero-transition-heres-what-we-can-learn-from-its-progress-in-beijing-and-hong-kong
[xi] https://www.gov.uk/government/news/uk-half-way-to-net-zero
[xiii] https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/desnz-public-attitudes-tracker-winter-2024/desnz-public-attitudes-tracker-net-zero-and-climate-change-winter-2024-uk
[xiv] https://eciu.net/media/press-releases/british-media-divorcing-net-zero-from-climate-change-analysis
About the Author
This post was written by THE FUTURE WE WANT. Policymakers, business leaders, academics, stakeholders and politicians from all political parties exploring: How will we live together in the future? How will we care for each other and the environment on which we depend? How can we overcome the obstacles and challenges we face in the present to build a fairer, cleaner, safer future for us all?
