We’re all for sustainability, just not when
it feels like a sacrifice. James Nevard explains how behavioural science can help with Net Zero’s big branding problem.
Last year’s State of the Climate Report pulled no punches. And you’ve probably forgotten it already. In a world where everyday life can feel stressful enough, another dire warning from the world’s top scientists banging on about global oblivion just seems remote and overwhelming.
We’re on the brink of an irreversible climate disaster. Much of the very fabric of life on Earth is imperilled. We are stepping into a critical and unpredictable new phase of the climate crisis.
We’re more aware than ever of what must be done to reach Net Zero by 2050, yet awareness isn’t translating into action. Those of us who intend on making our Net Zero promise a reality need to ensure others join us, and that means meeting others where they are.
Climate scientists could learn a lot from behavioural scientists. As more and more climate-sceptic voices make their way into the mainstream, sustainability has a considerable branding problem.
So how do we change the record?
1. Accentuate the positive
It can all feel pretty hopeless. Although successive UK governments have committed us to Net Zero by 2050, we worry that it’s unachievable domestically and pointless internationally. Even if we progress at home, is the world doing anything? Are we being taken for mugs? What about China?
But there’s a lot we can do at an individual level. Science has a pretty clear idea about how you and I need to act to move us most quickly on the journey.
- “This heat pump will increase
your property value by 5%”
- “Pre-loved fashion lets you build
a style no one else has”
- “Your neighbour switched to an
EV and is saving £50 a month”
We must meet people where they are, not where we
want them to be. Make our messages personal, local and immediate. Climate comms needs to connect with what people care most about. Even voters sceptical of green politics care about migration, jobs and security, and climate change will hit all three. You won’t win elections or customers just by foregrounding the plight of the polar bears. You win by joining the dots between carbon and what already matters to people.
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We’ve done it before. Behaviours around issues from cigarette consumption to drink-driving to equal marriage once seemed incredible, and now seem inevitable.
The same shift happened with seatbelts. Once upon a time they were seen as annoying and unnecessary, they’re now automatic. This didn’t happen through facts alone, but because the law changed, car ads showed them as responsible, and TV dramas included them in their scripts.
Stop selling guilt. Start selling better.
