Building a Social Mandate for Climate Action: Lessons from COVID-19

Candice Howarth (), Peter Bryant, Adam Corner, Sam Fankhauser (), Andy Gouldson, Lorraine Whitmarsh and Rebecca Willis
Additional contact information
Candice Howarth: London School of Economics and Political Science
Peter Bryant: Shared Future
Adam Corner: Climate Outreach
Andy Gouldson: University of Leeds
Lorraine Whitmarsh: Cardiff University
Rebecca Willis: Lancaster University

Environmental & Resource Economics, 2020, vol. 76, issue 4, No 32, 1107-1115

Abstract: Abstract The COVID-19 imposed lockdown has led to a number of temporary environmental side effects (reduced global emissions, cleaner air, less noise), that the climate community has aspired to achieve over a number of decades. However, these benefits have been achieved at a massive cost to welfare and the economy. This commentary draws lessons from the COVID-19 crisis for climate change. It discusses whether there are more sustainable ways of achieving these benefits, as part of a more desirable, low carbon resilient future, in a more planned, inclusive and less disruptive way. In order to achieve this, we argue for a clearer social contract between citizens and the state. We discuss how COVID-19 has demonstrated that behaviours can change abruptly, that these changes come at a cost, that we need a ‘social mandate’ to ensure these changes remain in the long-term, and that science plays an important role in informing this process. We suggest that deliberative engagement mechanisms, such as citizens’ assemblies and juries, could be a powerful way to build a social mandate for climate action post-COVID-19. This would enable behaviour changes to become more accepted, embedded and bearable in the long-term and provide the basis for future climate action.

Keywords: Behaviour change; Climate change; COVID-19; Deliberative governance; Social mandate (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (12)

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DOI: 10.1007/s10640-020-00446-9

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