Do we really need optimism to tackle the climate crisis?

clock • 6 min read
Do we really need optimism to tackle the climate crisis?

Roger Harrabin reflects on a wave of books that argue we can save the planet if we really try, and asks if the narrative around climate action risks becoming too panglossian

Do we need optimism to tackle the climate crisis? I confess to enduring pessimism, but I raise the question because gloom appears to be out of fashion - at least, in the world of books. Publishers are...

To continue reading this article...

Join BusinessGreen

In just a few clicks you can start your free BusinessGreen Lite membership for 12 months, providing you access to:

  • Three complimentary articles per month covering the latest real-time news, analysis, and opinion from Europe’s leading source of information on the Green economy and business
  • Receive important and breaking news stories via our daily news alert
  • Our weekly newsletter with the best of the week’s green business news and analysis

Join now

 

Already a BusinessGreen member?

Login

More on Climate change

Could mortgages help homeowners foot the bill for climate resilience upgrades?

Could mortgages help homeowners foot the bill for climate resilience upgrades?

More than half of renters and outright owners would favour using a mortgage to fund shading, cooling, insulation, ventilation and solar panels to better protect their homes against extreme weather, fresh research has found

Stuart Stone
clock 13 August 2026 • 8 min read
'Tough decisions': UK dairy farmer lifts lid on struggles amid ongoing drought

'Tough decisions': UK dairy farmer lifts lid on struggles amid ongoing drought

One organic dairy farmer claims he has been forced to sell 60 of his cows to 'reduce forage demand'

Rachael Brown, Farmers Guardian
clock 12 August 2026 • 3 min read
National security depends on climate and nature - the UK government must act like it

National security depends on climate and nature - the UK government must act like it

The test for Andy Burnham is not whether the UK can afford to prioritise climate and nature, but whether Britain can afford a 10-year plan that does not, writes WWF UK's chief executive Tanya Steele

Tanya Steele, WWF UK
clock 12 August 2026 • 5 min read