While there were many important pledges and promises made by multiple nations worldwide implying that a global effort would be made to reduce emissions in various ways, in order to ‘keep 1.5 alive’ the main driver of these changes lie with the general population, not just industries and companies.
As millions of people tuned in to the briefings at COP26, a sense of helplessness is likely to has been instilled in many individuals as they may feel that positive change is beyond their control. However, it was highlighted throughout several discussions that consumers and the general public have a huge amount of untapped power and influence.
The demand of consumers drives the success of various industries and companies, the ability to avoid or boycott ones whose practices and values do not align with the standards expected by people will lead to their demise. President Obama highlighted in his address that young people have begun to seize this power and have already started to see positive change as a result. More and more clothing companies are using sustainable materials, recycling garments and providing fair wages and working conditions to staff when just a few years ago this issue was not at the fore. The influence of consumer change has also been seen in the food industry with many companies now moving towards vegan and vegetarian alternative products, eliminating single-use plastic packaging, promoting composting, recycling and other circular economy principles in order to reduce waste.
Unfortunately, the main issue attached to rallying the support of the general public is a lack of trust. This stems from a lack of transparency often seen within political campaigns, marketing and government spending. This is an issue across many areas of society, however is has become so apparent in relation to climate action campaigns that it has been given the title ‘greenwashing’.
Again, in president Obamas address he highlighted that the desire of many members of the public to make climate conscious choices and to support environmentally friendly initiatives are often exploited. Obama raised a very interesting point in which he questioned how genuine the promises being made are and that ‘climate change cannot be seen as an opportunity to score political points’. Are targets set far in the future seen as an easy way to gain immediate support and soon forgotten about?
However, there are two sides to this argument as consumers often fail to take responsibility for their own carbon footprint. It is often expected that industries or companies must make the most sustainable choice on behalf of the consumer e.g., providing compostable packing, thereby taking away the individual responsibility of the consumer e.g., to bring reusable bags/cups. There must be a united effort.
Sustainable choices are often not within the means of many individuals as electric cars, clean energy and ethical clothing are often marketed at a much higher price than the emission producing counterparts. Accessibility must be at the fore of such campaigns in order to prevent certain members of society feeling excluded. Accessibility also stems to education and science communication; people must understand why they are making the choices they’re making and what impacts they have. This inclusivity further emphasizes the need for a collaborative effort, much of the climate information seems to be circulated amongst an elitist group of experts and is not often effectively communicated to the general public creating a feeling of exclusion and disconnect. It was pointed out at COP26 that it is not additional effort from already engaged individuals that is required but rather any initial changes from those who are not already contributing.
Ciara Brennan, MsCCAFS NUIG – The Ryan Institute