Last month Councillor John Dearing published
a letter in Nature, the wold's leading multidisciplinary science journal.
John Dearing, as well as being a very active councillor, is an environmental-systems researcher.
Getting anything published in Nature is a huge achievement and we hope this will encourage other climate researchers to follow John's lead and turn to local action.
Climate researchers: consider standing for office — I did
With the COP26 climate summit receding in the rearview mirror, in many regions it is the decisions made by local councils that are crucial to meeting national carbon-reduction targets. That’s why, five years ago, after a career as an environmental-systems researcher, I decided to devote more time to politics in my home town.
The green politics group I helped to start now has elected councillors — of which I am one — in 12 seats across three tiers of my local government. Our presence has given scientific credibility to the arguments for town and district action on climate. This has allowed progressive politicians from different parties the space to act accordingly. There is now a justified and costed climate-change action plans for half an English county (Warwickshire), a town climate-change roadmap group and greater public awareness of the need for change in personal behaviour.
It’s been a wake-up call after years of writing scoping articles and briefing notes for policymakers to witness at first hand the financial and political constraints involved.
It’s time for more councils to include the vision of climate researchers, in my view. Those who would like to engage with advocacy on climate change (see Nature 599, 22–24; 2021) should also consider standing for office.
