Delivering the science

In November, delegates from around the world will gather in Sharm El-Sheikh for the United Nations Climate Change Conference also known as COP27. At last year’s Glasgow meeting, COP26, Nature reported that while there had been notable achievements (from commitments to report on emissions cuts every year, to pledges to double adaptation finance to help countries struggling to manage the effects of climate change), these achievements did not go far enough. We remain off track for realising the Paris Agreement goals.

We know science and research are crucial to identifying climate solutions. Last year’s COP president, Alok Sharma, called for academic evidence, research and rigour to make the case for climate action. Research publishers play a unique dual role, both as sources of peer-reviewed evidence and insights, and in disseminating and amplifying that research so that it can be used by critical decision makers, policy makers and civil society groups to accelerate the pace of progress.

The scientific community has been calling out the urgent need for climate action, and indeed a wide variety of potential technological solutions for many years—even decades. So as the next global meet on climate approaches, and the need for more urgent action on this evidence is ever more apparent, at Springer Nature we have been considering what more we can do.

It’s important that we equip the public with the information and motivation they need to make informed decisions.

Last year, we designed and launched Climate Research in Action: a campaign to put a focus on solutions-focused research, to ensure scientific evidence was front-of-mind for those attending the COP26 conference. It was welcomed by the then High Level Champion for COP26 Nigel Topping. Since its inception, we have updated the campaign to mark various climate events, including the publication of the latest report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, when the world turned to scientists for help when the sobering insights were released.

But the solutions to the climate emergency do not lie solely with exciting new technologies. Collective behaviour change, to reduce demand for energy and adopt new technologies or ways of thinking, will be essential if we’re to achieve the dramatic falls in carbon emissions required to bring temperature increases under the crucial 1.5°C threshold. It’s important that we equip the public with the information and motivation they need to make informed decisions. While COP is rightly focused on the decisions of world leaders, citizens can and must make individual choices that impact the climate too. We also know that for many, research can provide the evidence to support behavioural change and consequently climate action, as can educational content.

That’s why, for the latest updates to the Climate Research in Action campaign, timed to coincide with COP27, we’re focusing on behaviours, rather than technologies. A research collection and collaboration between Nature Human Behaviour and Nature Climate Change includes pieces on the impact of climate on inequalities around the world, and we will work to champion the collection as well as voices from the Global South in our COP27 campaign and beyond.

We know the importance of our content, but also the need to follow the evidence ourselves. That’s why we’re currently working towards science-based targets and an action plan to be net zero by 2040. We will be sharing progress annually via our sustainable business report, and have already outlined short-term carbon targets in our most recent publication “Unlocking Potential”.

Delivering edutainment

Research isn’t only relevant in academic circles, but can be accessed and used by all of us, and can contribute to positive change. To facilitate this, we have worked closely with partners beyond our own industry. This year we worked with Netflix to demonstrate how real-life research stories can educate and inspire when delivered as entertainment. With “Don’t Look Up”, the 2021 film where a meteor’s threat to humanity acts as a metaphor for the impending impacts of climate change, viewers were encouraged to take personal actions set out on an action platform called Count Us In. In a short film shared earlier this year, we tell the story of how a paper in Nature Energy was spotted by Netflix and used in developing that platform. Cross-sector collaborations like this, and innovative ways to communicate science to wider audiences, even on the big screen, all help change attitudes and behaviours.

We want to make sure the climate content we publish is easy to access, use and share so it is within reach of those who need it. This may involve harnessing the power of new or existing partners, and looking beyond our industry to identify new ways to communicate science. As COP27 approaches, we continue to champion the research—from all disciplines—that will move us closer to the climate solutions we so desperately need.

Nature Energy is a monthly peer-reviewed journal published by Springer Nature. The journal explores issues surrounding energy provision including storage, distribution, impacts of technologies and policies, and research and development.