There does not seem to be any doubt now that there really is a climate emergency, but there is a lot of uncertainty about what we must do to address it. The COP 26 meeting in Glasgow in November 2021 clearly highlights the difficulties we have as a global society in coping with systemic problems of this magnitude. In Glasgow there was essentially no disagreement about the nature and scope of the problem, but a lot of dithering about what to do.
Defining Net Zero
Since greenhouse gases are causing the climate emergency, the pursuit of “Net Zero” means transitioning society to produce zero net greenhouse gas emissions. This means effectively stopping the use of fossil fuels.
Some nations are now targeting 2050 for Net Zero, some 2070, but if we wait that long then the climate situation will apparently become quite dire.
So how should we address this?
Our new book, Net Zero City, proposes a pathway of innovation, a ten-year effort to achieve Net Zero. It contains a highly specific set of 113 action examples and a specific set of recommendations.
Why the City?
We focus on the city because whereas so many national and state governments seem to be absorbed in partisan ideological struggles, it is in cities that much of the real and important work gets done. City leaders are usually chosen or elected because they manage well, and if the world’s cities began making the changes necessary to address climate change, then we would indeed be able to overcome this challenge. Cities, in other words, are where the action is.
Achieving Net Zero
Achieving Net Zero is a complex problem, and it will not be solved by simplistic thinking or actions.
In the book we propose that to deal with it effectively we require a few key solution elements:
We need a framework model to describe the system city, for which we propose an Urban System Framework consisting of five key elements that make the city what it is.
We also need to engage a huge number of people in a process of fundamental change, and to address this topic the book proposes a Theory of Change.
We require a reliable data and a data management architecture to help organize the huge amount of data and information needed to inform the complex policy decisions that will have to be made. For this we offer the concept of the Data Value Stack.
We need to define a pathway, which we propose as a Four Phase Model.
And we need to identify the actions that you can take with respect to each sector of the framework, which address with a detailed Transformation Roadmap.
Book web site: www.netzerocitybook.com
Click here to get your copy from Amazon.
Net Zero Urban Data Science
We’re so committed to this effort, that in addition to writing the book, we have also established a partnership with The Modern Data Company to provide the data management system necessary to make Net Zero a reality. Modern’s “DataOS” can support the complex data management effort that we will require, and we are partnering with them to support cities in the implementation of the “Urban Twin,” an innovative approach to data management across all aspects of the Net Zero journey.
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As always, we welcome your feedback.
Thanks!
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