Our ten bold ideas for climate action in the 2020s

Earlier this summer, team Possible got together to imagine the world in 2050. Imagine we’d done it! Imagine we’d kept to 1.5 °C global warming, and built infrastructure to protect everyone from all the impacts those temperatures bring (because 1.5 °C is no fairytale even if it’s significantly better than 2°C).

We asked ourselves what would need to happen to get there? What projects, policies and cultural changes would we need? Many of our answers were things we were already very familiar with. There was the low-hanging fruit we and other members of the climate movement have been pushing for years, like lifting the ban on onshore wind or investment in energy efficiency. There were also the sort of policies bodies like the Committee on Climate Change have been arguing for in their advice on achieving net-zero; introducing a Frequent Flyer Levy, for example, planting at least 30,000 hectares of woodland a year, and cutting our consumption of lamb and beef.

But we knew we needed more than just what we had on the table. What’s more, if we were going to bring the UK public with us in the radical transformation, we needed ideas that weren’t just necessary, but inclusive, fair, fun and exciting. We need ideas that inspire a rapid change from business as usual and help build the rapid, zero carbon transition the climate crisis demands.

So we talked to our supporters and some of our cleverest friends in the movement, and sketched out ten bold ideas to boost climate action in the 2020s. Some of them are developments of projects we’re already working to make happen, some are a bit more speculative; they’re all projects we’d love to explore further. We hope we’ve got something for everyone, from introducing a National Climate Service to having a fixing factory on every high street. 

And maybe you have thoughts too? We’re keen to hear your bold ideas, and talk to people who want to work with us to make more bold ideas happen. If there’s something in here you’d like to talk more about - or you’ve got an idea of your own to pitch to us - do get in touch.